Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

ring, piece of jewelry

(Encyclopedia)ring, small ornamental hoop usually worn on finger or thumb, but it may be attached to the ear or the nose. Finger rings made of bronze, gold, and silver from the period c.2600–1500 b.c. have been f...

Silk Road

(Encyclopedia)Silk Road, ancient overland trade route linking Asia and Europe, consisting of a network of caravan routes running from China across central Asia to the shores of the Mediterranean. Its starting point...

nickel

(Encyclopedia)nickel, metallic chemical element; symbol Ni; at. no. 28; at. wt. 58.6934; m.p. about 1,453℃; b.p. about 2,732℃; sp. gr. 8.902 at 25℃; valence 0, +1, +2, +3, or +4. Nickel is a hard, malleable, ...

Bryan, William Jennings

(Encyclopedia)Bryan, William Jennings brīˈən [key], 1860–1925, American political leader, b. Salem, Ill. Although the nation consistently rejected him for the presidency, it eventually adopted many of the refo...

Aurora, cities, United States

(Encyclopedia)Aurora ərôrˈə, ô– [key]. 1 City (2020 pop. 386,261), Adams and Arapahoe counties, N central Colo., a growing suburb on the east side of Denver; inc. 1903. Founded d...

net

(Encyclopedia)net, mesh fabric, known from prehistoric times. Nets have been made of many materials, including sinews, strips of hide, silk, vegetable and synthetic fibers, and metallic threads. Their earliest use ...

lusterware

(Encyclopedia)lusterware, kind of pottery with an overglaze finish containing copper and silver or other materials that give the effect of iridescence. The process may have been invented and was certainly first pop...

Medellín

(Encyclopedia)Medellín māᵺāyēnˈ [key], city (1993 pop. 1,551,160), capital of Antioquia dept., W central Colombia. It is the country's chief manufacturing center. Textiles, steel, flowers, food products, aut...

Macdonald, Ross

(Encyclopedia)Macdonald, Ross, pseud. of Kenneth Millar, 1915–83, American novelist, b. Los Gatos, Calif. He was educated in Canada and at the Univ. of Michigan. Macdonald's mystery novels center on the tough but...

Maier, Hermann

(Encyclopedia)Maier, Hermann hĕrˈmänˌ mīˈər [key], 1972–, Austrian skier. Sent home from a ski academy in his teens by a physical condition, he was a bricklayer before winning a place on the Austrian World...