Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

waveguide

(Encyclopedia)waveguide, device that controls the propagation of an electromagnetic wave so that the wave is forced to follow a path defined by the physical structure of the guide. Waveguides, which are useful chie...

bestiary

(Encyclopedia)bestiary bĕsˈchēĕrˌē [key], a type of medieval book that was widely popular, particularly from the 12th to 14th cent. The bestiary presumed to describe the animals of the world and to show what ...

bookplate

(Encyclopedia)bookplate, label pasted in a book to indicate ownership, also called ex libris [Lat.,=from the books of]. The bookplate is usually of paper on which heraldic or other designs are engraved or printed. ...

index, in publishing

(Encyclopedia)index, of a book or periodical, a list, nearly always alphabetical, of the topics treated. This list is usually at the back of a book, and the table of contents is in the front. The index seeks to dir...

Machado de Assis, Joaquim Maria

(Encyclopedia)Machado de Assis, Joaquim Maria zhwäkēmˈ mərēˈə məshäˈdo͝o dĭ əsēzˈ [key], 1839–1908, Brazilian novelist, b. Rio de Janeiro. The grandson of African slaves, he was educated by a pries...

Clinton, George

(Encyclopedia) Clinton, George, 1941- , American singer, songwriter, producer, and bandleader, b. Kannapolis, N.C. Although born in North Carolina, Clinton was ...

Handy, W. C.

(Encyclopedia)Handy, W. C. (William Christopher Handy), 1873–1958, American songwriter and band leader, b. Florence, Ala. Largely self-taught, Handy began his career as a cornet player in a minstrel show in 1896,...

Meyer, Eugene

(Encyclopedia)Meyer, Eugene, 1875–1959, American financier and newspaper publisher, b. Los Angeles. He was a successful broker and a director of many corporations. In 1917 he was appointed to guide American war p...

Morris, Richard Brandon

(Encyclopedia)Morris, Richard Brandon, 1904–89, American historian, b. New York City. He received his Ph.D. from Columbia in 1930, taught (1927–49) at the College of the City of New York, became a professor at ...

Marcos de Niza

(Encyclopedia)Marcos de Niza märˈkōs dā nēˈsä [key], c.1495–1558, missionary explorer in Spanish North America. A Franciscan friar, he served in Peru and Guatemala before going to Mexico. There he headed a...