Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

sapwood

(Encyclopedia)sapwood, relatively thin, youngest, outer part of the woody stem of a tree, the part that conducts water and dissolved materials. In the cross section of a tree, the sapwood is recognizable by its tex...

canvas

(Encyclopedia)canvas, strong, coarse cloth of cotton, flax, hemp, or other fibers, early used as sailcloth. Left in its natural color, bleached, or dyed, it has a wide variety of uses, as for game, duffel, sport, m...

Piloty, Karl von

(Encyclopedia)Piloty, Karl von kärl fən pēlōˈtē [key], 1826–86, German historical painter; son of Ferdinand Piloty (1786–1844), a noted German lithographer. Karl first won recognition for his genre painti...

ramontchi

(Encyclopedia)ramontchi, small tree or shrub (Flacourtia indica) belonging to the family Flacourtiaceae. It is cultivated in S Asia and in other tropical regions for its large edible berries. Dark purple to black i...

Ayrshire cattle

(Encyclopedia)Ayrshire cattle rˈshēr, –shər [key], breed of dairy cattle originated in Scotland in the late 18th cent.; introduced into the United States in 1837. They are medium-sized and white mixed with red...

indium

(Encyclopedia)indium ĭnˈdēəm [key], a metallic chemical element; symbol In; at. no. 49; at. wt. 114.818; m.p. 156.6℃; b.p. about 2,080℃; sp. gr. 7.31 at 20℃; valence +1, +2, or +3. Indium is a soft, malle...

octopus

(Encyclopedia)octopus, cephalopod mollusk having no shell, eight muscular arms or tentacles, a pouch-shaped body, and two large, highly developed eyes. The prey (crabs, lobsters, and other shellfish) is seized by t...

Kelly, Ellsworth

(Encyclopedia)Kelly, Ellsworth, 1923–2015, American painter, b. Newburgh, N.Y. He moved to New York City in 1941, studying at Pratt Institute, and later attended the Boston Museum Arts School. In Paris during the...

vase

(Encyclopedia)vase, vessel of pottery, glass, metal, stone, wood, or synthetic material. The pottery vase was anciently employed as a container for water (a hydria), wine and other products (an amphora), or oil (a ...

cobra

(Encyclopedia)cobra, name for African and Asian snakes of the family Elapidae that are equipped with inflatable neck hoods. The family also includes the African mambas, the Asian kraits, the New World coral snakes ...

Browse by Subject