Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

199 results found

Davidson, Donald Herbert

(Encyclopedia)Davidson, Donald Herbert, 1917–2003, American philosopher, b. Springfield, Mass., grad. Harvard (B.A., 1939; Ph.D., 1949). A student of W. V. Quine, Davidson emerged as one of the major figures in p...

Huxley, Thomas Henry

(Encyclopedia)Huxley, Thomas Henry, 1825–95, English biologist and educator, grad. Charing Cross Hospital, 1845. Huxley gave up his own biological research to become an influential scientific publicist and was th...

Maine, ship

(Encyclopedia)Maine, U.S. battleship destroyed (Feb. 15, 1898) in Havana harbor by an explosion that killed 260 men. The incident helped precipitate the Spanish-American War (Apr., 1898). Commanded by Capt. Charles...

Witherspoon, John

(Encyclopedia)Witherspoon, John, 1723–94, Scottish-American Presbyterian clergyman, political leader in the American Revolution, and signer of the Declaration of Independence, b. Haddingtonshire (now East Lothian...

Berdyaev, Nicholas

(Encyclopedia)Berdyaev, Nicholas bĕrdyīˈəf [key], 1874–1948, Russian theologian and religious philosopher, b. Kiev. After an early period as a Marxist, Berdyaev became prominent in a brilliant circle of Russi...

Bundy, McGeorge

(Encyclopedia)Bundy, McGeorge, 1919–96, U.S. educator and government official, b. Boston. An Army intelligence officer during World War II, he was on the Harvard faculty 1949–61, becoming the youngest dean of t...

Strawson, Peter Frederick

(Encyclopedia)Strawson, Peter Frederick, 1919–2009, British philosopher, grad. Oxford 1940. An influential advocate for so-called ordinary language philosophy, he began teaching at Oxford in 1947 and from 1968 to...

Prud'hon, Pierre Paul

(Encyclopedia)Prud'hon, Pierre Paul pyĕr pôl prüdôNˈ [key], 1758–1823, French painter; 13th child of a Cluny stonemason. He gained recognition in 1796 with Truth Descending from the Heavens Led by Wisdom (Lo...

chow chow

(Encyclopedia)chow chow, breed of powerful nonsporting dog whose origins are obscure but whose development was accomplished many centuries ago in China. It stands from 18 to 20 in. (45.7–50.8 cm) high at the shou...

Hügel, Friedrich, Baron von

(Encyclopedia)Hügel, Friedrich, Baron von frēˈdrĭkh bärōnˈ fən hüˈgəl [key], 1852–1925, British Roman Catholic religious writer, b. Florence; son of an Austrian diplomat. After his marriage (1873), Hü...