Columbia Encyclopedia
Search results
98 results found
refraction
(Encyclopedia)refraction, in physics, deflection of a wave on passing obliquely from one transparent medium into a second medium in which its speed is different, as the passage of a light ray from air into glass. O...meteorite
(Encyclopedia)meteorite, meteor that survives the intense heat of atmospheric friction and reaches the earth's surface. Because of the destructive effects of this friction, only the very largest meteors become mete...Galileo
(Encyclopedia)Galileo (Galileo Galilei) gălˌĭlēˈō; gälēlĕˈō gälēlĕˈē [key], 1564–1642, great Italian astronomer, mathematician, and physicist. By his persistent investigation of natural laws he la...jet propulsion
(Encyclopedia)CE5 Types of jet engines: In the propeller-driven turbine a stream of high-velocity gases provides the power to drive the turbine and turn the propeller. In the jet-driven turbine the stream of gas...machine
(Encyclopedia)machine, arrangement of moving and stationary mechanical parts used to perform some useful work or to provide transportation. From a historical perspective, many of the first machines were the result ...wave, in physics
(Encyclopedia)wave, in physics, the transfer of energy by the regular vibration, or oscillatory motion, either of some material medium or by the variation in magnitude of the field vectors of an electromagnetic fie...satellite, artificial
(Encyclopedia)CE5 A. Nimbus weather satellite B. Syncom communications satellite satellite, artificial, object constructed by humans and placed in orbit around the earth or other celestial body (see also space ...wave, in the earth sciences
(Encyclopedia)CE5 A. Diagram of wave: Wave travels one wavelength during one period B. Diagram of wave: Phase relationships wave, in oceanography, an oscillating movement up and down, of a body of water caused ...interference
(Encyclopedia)CE5 Constructive interference: Two crests or two troughs meet and combine (A, B, C). Destructive interference: A crest and a trough meet and cancel each other (D, E, F). interference, in physics, ...pressure
(Encyclopedia)pressure, in mechanics, ratio of the force acting on a surface to the area of the surface; it is thus distinct from the total force acting on a surface. A force can be applied to and sustained by a si...Browse by Subject
- Earth and the Environment +-
- History +-
- Literature and the Arts +-
- Medicine +-
- People +-
- Philosophy and Religion +-
- Places +-
- Africa
- Asia
- Australia and Oceania
- Britain, Ireland, France, and the Low Countries
- Commonwealth of Independent States and the Baltic Nations
- Germany, Scandinavia, and Central Europe
- Latin America and the Caribbean
- Oceans, Continents, and Polar Regions
- Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, and the Balkans
- United States, Canada, and Greenland
- Plants and Animals +-
- Science and Technology +-
- Social Sciences and the Law +-
- Sports and Everyday Life +-
