Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Compound microscope microscope, optical instrument used to increase the apparent size of an object. The electron microscope, which is not limited by the powers of optical lenses and light,...

(Encyclopedia) learning, in psychology, the process by which a relatively lasting change in potential behavior occurs as a result of practice or experience. Learning is distinguished from behavioral changes arising ...

(Encyclopedia) Riga rēˈgə [key], city (2011 provisional pop. 657,424), capital of Latvia, on the Daugava (Western Dvina) River near its entry into the Gulf of Riga. A major Baltic port, it is also a rail junction...

(Encyclopedia) Raphael Santi or Raphael Sanzio, Ital. Raffaello Santi or Raffaello Sanzio räfˌfäĕlˈlō sänˈtē, sänˈtsyō [key], 1483–1520, major Italian Renaissance painter, b. Urbino. In Raphael's work ...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Seychelles sāshĕlzˈ [key], officially Republic of Seychelles, republic (2015 est. pop. 94,000), c.110 sq mi (285 sq km), comprising approximately 100 islands in the Indian Ocean, c.600 mi (9...

(Encyclopedia) Garibaldi, Giuseppe gărĭbôlˈdē, Ital. jo͞ozĕpˈpā gärēbälˈdē [key], 1807–82, Italian patriot and soldier, a leading figure in the Risorgimento. He remains perhaps the most popular of al...

(Encyclopedia) Nobel Prizes

(Encyclopedia) Antwerp, Du. Antwerpen, Fr. Anvers, city (2020 pop. 1,042,000), capital of Antwerp prov., N Belgium, on the Scheldt River. It is one of the busiest ports in Europe; a commercial, in...

(Encyclopedia) song, relatively brief, simple vocal composition, usually a setting of a poetic text, often strophic, for accompanied solo voice. The song literature of Western music embodies two broad classification...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Kansas kănˈzəs [key], midwestern state occupying the center of the coterminous United States. It is bordered by Missouri (E), Oklahoma (S), Colorado (W), and Nebraska (N). Kansas has b...