Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Cleaver, Eldridge

(Encyclopedia)Cleaver, Eldridge (Leroy Eldridge Cleaver), 1935–98, African-American social activist, b. Wabbaseka, Ark. Growing up in Los Angeles, he spent much of 1954–66 in prison for various crimes including...

Popayán

(Encyclopedia)Popayán pōpäyänˈ [key], city (1993 pop. 169,423), alt. 5,500 ft (1,676 m), capital of Cauca dept., SW Colombia, on a volcanic terrace high above the Cauca River. It produces textiles and foodstuf...

plane

(Encyclopedia)plane, in mathematics, flat surface of infinite extent but no thickness. An example of a plane, or more exactly of a bounded portion of a plane, is the surface forming one face, or side, of a cube. A ...

Santa Clara, city, United States

(Encyclopedia)Santa Clara sănˈtə klârˈə [key], city (1990 pop. 93,613), Santa Clara co., W Calif.; inc. 1852. Part of the Silicon Valley high-technology manufacturing complex, the city produces a variety of e...

Provincetown

(Encyclopedia)Provincetown, resort town (1990 pop. 3,374), Barnstable co., SE Mass., on the tip of Cape Cod, with a harbor on Cape Cod Bay; inc. 1727. The principal industries are tourism and fishing. The Pilgrims ...

Sparks

(Encyclopedia)Sparks, city (1990 pop. 53,367), Washoe co., W Nev., just E of Reno; inc. 1905. The Southern Pacific RR was the major employer until the dieselization of railroad engines forced the closing (1957) of ...

analytic geometry

(Encyclopedia)analytic geometry, branch of geometry in which points are represented with respect to a coordinate system, such as Cartesian coordinates, and in which the approach to geometric problems is primarily a...

lightship

(Encyclopedia)lightship, moored vessel bearing lights and other signal devices to guide ships and warn of hazards to navigation. Lightships are generally stationed at points where a lighthouse cannot be erected; th...

Haverhill

(Encyclopedia)Haverhill hāˈvərĭl [key], city (2020 pop. 67,787), Essex co., NE Mass., on the Merrimack ...

Hof

(Encyclopedia)Hof hōf [key], city, Bavaria, E central Germany, on the Saale River, near the Czech border. ...

Browse by Subject