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Langmuir, Irving

(Encyclopedia)Langmuir, Irving lăngˈmyo͞or [key], 1881–1957, American chemist, b. Brooklyn, N.Y. Associated (1909–50) with the research laboratory of the General Electric Company, he introduced atomic-hydrog...

mandala

(Encyclopedia)mandala mŭnˈdələ [key], [Skt.,=circular, round] a concentric diagram having spiritual and ritual significance in Hindu and Buddhist Tantrism. The mandala may have derived from the circular stupa a...

kiva

(Encyclopedia)kiva kēˈvə [key], large, underground ceremonial chamber, peculiar to the ancient and modern Pueblo. The modern kiva probably evolved from the slab houses (i.e., storage pits and dwellings that were...

rudder

(Encyclopedia)rudder, mechanism for steering an airplane or a ship. In ships it is a flat-surfaced structure hinged to the stern and controlled by a helm. When the ship is on a straight course, the rudder is in lin...

Saint John the Divine, Cathedral of

(Encyclopedia)Saint John the Divine, Cathedral of, New York City, the world's largest Gothic cathedral. The Episcopal cathedral was begun in 1892 in the Byzantine-Romanesque style after designs by G. L. Heins and C...

nave

(Encyclopedia)nave nāv [key], in general, all that part of a church that extends from the atrium to the altar and is intended exclusively for the laity. In a strictly architectural sense, however, the term indicat...

tissue

(Encyclopedia)tissue, in biology, aggregation of cells that are similar in form and function and the intercellular substances produced by them. The fundamental tissues in animals are epithelial, nerve, connective, ...

rheology

(Encyclopedia)rheology rēŏlˈəjē [key], branch of physics dealing with the deformation and flow of matter. It is particularly concerned with the properties of matter that determine its behavior when a mechanica...

semiotics

(Encyclopedia)semiotics or semiology, discipline deriving from the American logician C. S. Peirce and the French linguist Ferdinand de Saussure. It has come to mean generally the study of any cultural product (e.g....

vertebrate

(Encyclopedia)vertebrate, any animal having a backbone or spinal column. Verbrates can be traced back to the Silurian period. In the adults of nearly all forms the backbone consists of a series of vertebrae. All ve...