Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Gulf Stream

(Encyclopedia)Gulf Stream, warm ocean current of the N Atlantic Ocean, off E North America. It was first described (1513) by Spanish explorer Ponce de León. The Gulf Stream originates in the Gulf of Mexico and, as...

Thule , town, Greenland

(Encyclopedia)Thule känäkˈ [key], town (1995 pop. 627), N Greenland, on the north side of Inglefield Gulf. The name of Thule was originally attached to the main settlement for the Thule Eskimos, founded in 1910 ...

Sino-Japanese War, First

(Encyclopedia)Sino-Japanese War, First, 1894–95, conflict between China and Japan for control of Korea in the late 19th cent. The Li-Ito Convention of 1885 provided for mutual troop withdrawals and advance notifi...

Triple Alliance, War of the

(Encyclopedia)Triple Alliance, War of the, 1865–70, fought between Paraguay on one side and an alliance of Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay on the other. Brazil's military reprisals for injuries to Brazilian subjec...

puna

(Encyclopedia)puna po͞oˈnä [key], high plateau region, 12,000 to 16,000 ft (3,658–4,877 m) high, between ridges of the Andes in Peru and Bolivia. Arid, cold, and in general, covered by short coarse grass, the ...

Horn, Cape

(Encyclopedia)Horn, Cape, headland, 1,391 ft (424 m) high, S Chile, southernmost point of South America, in the archipelago of Tierra del Fuego. It was discovered and first rounded by Willem Schouten, the Dutch nav...

body temperature

(Encyclopedia)body temperature, internal temperature of a living organism. Mammals and birds are termed warm-blooded, or homeothermic, i.e., they are able to maintain a relatively constant inner body temperature, w...

sty

(Encyclopedia)sty, in medicine, acute localized infection of one or more of the glands of the eyelid, with pain, swelling, and redness of the lid margin, usually caused by a staphylococcus infection. An external st...

frozen foods

(Encyclopedia)frozen foods, products of the food preservation process of freezing. This process has been employed by people in the Arctic from prehistoric times. Eskimos throw fresh-caught fish on the ice to freeze...

civil defense

(Encyclopedia)civil defense, nonmilitary activities designed to protect civilians and their property from enemy actions in time of war. A civil defense program usually includes measures taken during peace (e.g., bu...

Browse by Subject