Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Delsarte, François

(Encyclopedia)Delsarte, François fräNswäˈ dĕlsärtˈ [key], 1811–71, French teacher of acting and singing. He studied singing (1825–29) at the Paris Conservatoire and appeared as a tenor at the Opéra-Comi...

endoderm

(Encyclopedia)endoderm ĕnˈdədûrmˌ [key], in biology, inner layer of tissue formed in the gastrula stage of the developing embryo. At the end of the blastula stage, cells of the embryo are arranged in the form ...

O'Keefe, John

(Encyclopedia)O'Keefe, John, 1939–, British-American neuroscientist, b. New York City, Ph.D. McGill Univ., 1967. O'Keefe has spent his entire career at University College London, beginning as a postdoctoral fello...

Pan-American Highway

(Encyclopedia)Pan-American Highway, system of roads, c.16,000 mi (25,750 km) long, linking the nations of the Western Hemisphere. It was suggested at the Fifth International Conference of American States (1923) and...

hyperinsulinism

(Encyclopedia)hyperinsulinism, presence in the system of an above-normal amount of insulin, the substance secreted by the pancreas and needed by the body to utilize sugar. An increased amount of insulin in the body...

Haleakala Observatories

(Encyclopedia)Haleakala Observatories häˌlāäˌkäläˈ [key], astronomical facilities located on the summit of Haleakala volcano, 10,023 ft (3,055 m), in Haleakala National Park, Maui island, Hawaii. Because of...

suspension, in vehicles

(Encyclopedia)suspension, in automobiles, system of springs used to suspend the frame, body, engine, and power train above the wheels. Its principal purpose is to lessen the jarring of the automobile that is caused...

Broecker, Wallace Smith

(Encyclopedia)Broecker, Wallace Smith brōkˈər [key], 1931–2019, American geophysicist, b. Chicago, Ph.D. Columbia, 1958. He was a member of Columbia's faculty from 1959. In the 1970s he predicted rising temper...

Brongniart, Alexandre

(Encyclopedia)Brongniart, Alexandre brôNyärˈ [key], 1770–1847, French geologist, mineralogist, and chemist. As director of the Sèvres porcelain factory from 1800, he was responsible for its international fam...

Buck, Linda B.

(Encyclopedia)Buck, Linda B., 1947–, American neurobiologist, b. Seattle, Wash., Ph.D. Univ. of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 1980. Buck taught at Harvard Medi...