Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Canadian literature, French, the body of literature of the French-speaking population of Canada. Except for the narratives of French explorers (such as Samuel de Champlain and Pierre Esprit Radisson) ...

(Encyclopedia) French architecture, structures created in the area of Europe that is now France. Engineers and architects, including François Hennebique, Auguste Perret, and Tony Garnier, pioneered the use of rei...

(Encyclopedia) Napoleon III (Louis Napoleon Bonaparte), 1808–73, emperor of the French (1852–70), son of Louis Bonaparte (see under Bonaparte, family), king of Holland. Napoleon III was a complex figure. H...

(Encyclopedia) landscape painting, portrayal of scenes found in the natural world; these scenes are treated as the subject of the work of art rather than as an element in another kind of painting. In China landsca...

(Encyclopedia) ethics, in philosophy, the study and evaluation of human conduct in the light of moral principles. Moral principles may be viewed either as the standard of conduct that individuals have constructed fo...

(Encyclopedia) artificial intelligence (AI), the use of computers to model the behavioral aspects of human reasoning and learning. Research in AI is concentrated in some half-dozen areas. In problem solving, one mus...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Typical seating plan of a symphony orchestra orchestra and orchestration, an orchestra is a musical ensemble of mixed instruments based on strings and winds, under the direction of a conductor...

(Encyclopedia) opera, drama set to music. In the early part of the 20th cent. the foremost operatic composer was Richard Strauss. Although influenced by Wagner, he composed operas with even richer and more stunnin...

(Encyclopedia) Enlightenment, term applied to the mainstream of thought of 18th-century Europe and America. Centered in Paris, the movement gained international character at cosmopolitan salons. Masonic lodges pla...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Incandescent lamp CE5 Basic fluorescent lamp lighting, light produced by artificial means to allow visibility in enclosures and at night. For stage lighting, see scene design and stage ligh...