Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) box, common name for the Buxaceae, a family of trees and shrubs with leathery evergreen leaves, native to the tropics and subtropics of the Old World and to Central America. The boxes (genus Buxus) ha...

(Encyclopedia) Abdo Benítez, Mario, 1971–, Paraguayan political leader, b. Asunción. The son of Gen. Alfredo Stroessner's private secretary, he served in the Paraguayan armed forces and graduated (1995) from Tei...

(Encyclopedia) creosote krēˈəsōt [key], volatile, heavy, oily liquid obtained by the distillation of coal tar or wood tar. Creosote derived from beechwood tar has been used medicinally as an antiseptic and in th...

(Encyclopedia) Win Myint, 1951–, Burmese lawyer and political leader. A member of the National League for Democracy (NLD), he spent a brief time in prison during the 1988 uprising against the military government. ...

(Encyclopedia) Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), organization created (1899) at Columbus, Ohio, by veterans of the Spanish-American War. It received a charter from Congress in 1936. The organization later admitted vet...

(Encyclopedia) Saito, Makoto mäkōˈtō sīˈtō [key], 1858–1936, Japanese admiral and statesman. A moderate militarist, his selection as prime minister (1932–34) to replace Ki Inukai, who had been assassinate...

(Encyclopedia) López Mateos, Adolfo äᵺôlˈfō lōˈpās mätāˈōs [key], 1910–69, president of Mexico (1958–64). A lawyer, he became active in the government party. He served as senator (1946–52) and as...

(Encyclopedia) Pastor, Ludwig, Freiherr von lo͞otˈvĭkh frīˈhĕr fən päsˈtôr [key], 1854–1928, German historian. The author of the monumental and authoritative History of the Popes from the Close of the Mi...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Mastaba mastaba măsˈtəbə [key], in Egyptian architecture, a sepulchral structure built aboveground. The mastabas of the early dynastic period (3200–2680 b.c.), such as those of the I dyn...

(Encyclopedia) Welsh terrier, breed of medium-sized terrier developed in Wales more than a century ago. It stands about 15 in. (38 cm) high at the shoulder and weighs about 20 lb (9 kg). Its close-lying, harsh, wiry...