Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) sociology, scientific study of human social behavior. As the study of humans in their collective aspect, sociology is concerned with all group activities—economic, social, political, and religious. ...

(Encyclopedia) tap dance, theatrical dance form in which the dancer, wearing shoes with metal heel and toe taps, beats out complex, syncopated rhythms on the floor. After a slump in popularity in the 1960s, tap ...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 General anatomy of a bird bird, warm-blooded, egg-laying, vertebrate animal having its body covered with feathers and its forelimbs modified into wings, which are used by most birds for flight...

(Encyclopedia) dolphin, aquatic mammal, any of the small toothed whales of the family Delphinidae, numbering more than 50 species. These include the true, or beaked, dolphins, the killer whale, the pilot whale, and ...

(Encyclopedia) outsider art, artwork created by typically unconventional and untrained artists from the margins of society and the art world. The term was coined in 1972 by British scholar and art critic Roger Cardi...

(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...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Idaho īˈdəhō [key], one of the Rocky Mt. states in the NW United States. It is bordered by Montana and Wyoming (E), Utah and Nevada (S), Oregon and Washington (W), and the Canadian province...

(Encyclopedia) Detroit dĭtroitˈ [key], city (2020 pop. 639,111), seat of Wayne co., SE Mich., on the Detro...

(Encyclopedia) Danish literature, the literature of Denmark. By 1900 a lyrical reaction was being led by the poet J. J. Jørgensen; impressionistic themes became important, but were never the sole fruit of Danish ...

(Encyclopedia) Philadelphia, city (2020 pop. 1,603,797), coextensive with Philadelphia co., SE Pa., on the Delaware River c.100 mi (160 km) upstream at the influx of t...