Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Foreman, George, 1948–, American boxer, b. Marshall, Tex. A high school dropout, Foreman learned to box in the Job Corps. In 1968 he was the Olympic heavyweight gold medalist. Foreman beat Joe Frazi...

(Encyclopedia) Tabari (Abu Jafar Muhammad ibn Jarir at-Tabari) täbäˈrē [key], c.839–c.923, Arab historian and commentator. The name Tabari was given him because he was born in Tabaristan, Persia. He traveled w...

(Encyclopedia) Kane, Elisha Kent, 1820–57, American physician and arctic explorer, b. Philadelphia. Seeking adventure after medical school, Kane entered naval service and before he was 30 had seen many parts of th...

(Encyclopedia) Grand Coulee Dam ko͞oˈlē [key], 550 ft (168 m) high and 4,173 ft (1,272 m) long, on the Columbia ...

(Encyclopedia) Pears, Sir Peter, 1910–86, English tenor. Pears studied at the Royal College of Music and became a member of the Sadler's Wells Opera and the English Opera Group. In 1948 he made his Covent Garden d...

(Encyclopedia) Reuben ro͞oˈbən [key], in the Bible, Jacob's eldest son and eponymous ancestor of one of the 12 tribes of Israel. He interceded for his brother Joseph's life and guaranteed the safe return from Egy...

(Encyclopedia) Dickinson College, at Carlisle, Pa.; coeducational; Methodist; founded 1773 as The Grammar School, chartered and opened as Dickinson College 1783. Chartered as a college primarily through the efforts ...

(Encyclopedia) Fernald, Merritt Lyndon fûrˈnəld [key], 1873–1950, American botanist, b. Orono, Maine, grad. Harvard, 1897. He taught at Harvard (1902–49) and was director of the Gray Herbarium there from 1937...

(Encyclopedia) Chambersburg, borough (2020 pop. 21,903), seat of Franklin co., S Pa.; settled 1730, inc. 1803. Food products, apparel, construction materials, and tran...