Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

tissue

(Encyclopedia)tissue, in biology, aggregation of cells that are similar in form and function and the intercellular substances produced by them. The fundamental tissues in animals are epithelial, nerve, connective, ...

ratite

(Encyclopedia)ratite rătˈīt [key], common and general term for a variety of flightless birds characterized by a flat, raftlike sternum rather than the keeled sternum, designed to support flight muscles, typical ...

constitution, principles of government

(Encyclopedia)constitution, fundamental principles of government in a nation, either implied in its laws, institutions, and customs, or embodied in one fundamental document or in several. In the first category—cu...

Hartford

(Encyclopedia)Hartford. <1> City (2020 pop. 121,054), state capital, Hartford co., central Conn., on the west bank of the Connecticut River; settled as Newtown ...

column

(Encyclopedia)column, vertical architectural support, circular or polygonal in plan. A column is generally at least four or five times as high as its diameter or width; stubbier freestanding masses of masonry are u...

apostolic succession

(Encyclopedia)apostolic succession, in Christian theology, the doctrine asserting that the chosen successors of the apostles enjoyed through God's grace the same authority, power, and responsibility as was conferre...

tertiary

(Encyclopedia)tertiary tûrˈshēârē [key], in the Roman Catholic Church, member of a third order. The third orders are chiefly supplements of the friars—Franciscans (the most numerous), Dominicans, and Carmeli...

Lancaster House conference

(Encyclopedia)Lancaster House conference, series of three meetings (1960, 1962, 1963) in which Kenya's constitutional framework and independence were negotiated. In 1960 lack of agreement led Colonial Secretary McL...

Gayoso de Lemos, Manuel

(Encyclopedia)Gayoso de Lemos, Manuel mänwĕlˈ gīōˈsō dā lāˈmōs [key], c.1752–1799, governor of Louisiana (1797–99). In 1787 he was appointed governor of the newly organized District of Natchez, under...

Lot, in the Bible

(Encyclopedia)Lot, in the Book of Genesis, the son of Abraham's brother Haran. Lot settled in Sodom and received a warning of its destruction. As he fled with his family, his wife, disobeying God's orders, looked b...