Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Clydesdale horse, breed of draft horse developed in Scotland. It closely resembles the Shire horse, although it is not as heavy. The Clydesdale is characterized by its graceful, springy step. Initiall...

(Encyclopedia) fluorite flo͞oˈərspär [key], mineral appearing in various colors, e.g., green, yellow-brown, rose, and red. Chemically, it is calcium fluoride, CaF2. Its crystals, commonly cubic, are transparent ...

(Encyclopedia) American saddlebred horse, breed of light horse with great beauty, easy gait, and stamina; also known as the American saddle horse and the Kentucky saddler. It was developed primarily from the Thoroug...

(Encyclopedia) Kosterlitz, John Michael, 1943–, British physicist, b. Scotland, Ph.D. Oxford, 1969. He was on the faculty at the Univ. of Birmingham, England, from 1974 to 1982, when he became a professor at Brown...

(Encyclopedia) wren, small, plump perching songbird of the family Troglodytidae. There are about 60 wren species, and all except one are restricted to the New World. The plumage is usually brown or reddish above and...

(Encyclopedia) Stewart, William Morris, 1827–1909, American lawyer and political leader, b. Wayne co., N.Y. After migrating to California in 1850 he engaged in mining and held several state elective offices. He mo...

(Encyclopedia) bauxite bôkˈsīt, bŏkˈ– [key], mixture of hydrated aluminum oxides usually containing oxides of iron and silicon in varying quantities. A noncrystalline substance formerly thought to be a minera...

(Encyclopedia) Watson, Thomas John, Jr., 1914–93, American industrialist, b. Dayton, Ohio. The son of Thomas John Watson, Sr., the founder of the International Business Machines Corp. (IBM), he joined the family b...

(Encyclopedia) Trudeau, Edward Livingston tro͞oˈdō [key], 1848–1915, American physician, b. New York City, M.D. Columbia, 1871. As a result of taking care of his brother, who had tuberculosis, he developed the ...

(Encyclopedia) bandicoot, small marsupial mammal native to Australia and nearby islands. There are 19 species in eight genera. Bandicoots have long, pointed, shrewlike faces; gray or brown fur; and long, bushy, ratl...