Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia)  Rice, Anne, 1941-2021, American novelist, b. New Orleans, La., as Howard Katherine O'Brien, San Francisco State Univ. (B.A., 1964; M.A., 1972). Rice wa...

(Encyclopedia) midge, name for any of numerous minute, fragile flies in several families. The family Chironomidae consists of about 2,000 species, most of which are widely distributed. The herbivorous larvae are fou...

(Encyclopedia) Nancarrow, Conlon, 1912–1997, American-Mexican composer, best known for his works for the player piano, b. Texarkana, Ark., studied Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music and with Nicolas Slonimsk...

(Encyclopedia) monoclonal antibody, an antibody that is mass produced in the laboratory from a single clone and that recognizes only one antigen. Monoclonal antibodies are typically made by fusing a normally short-l...

(Encyclopedia) black fly, name for any of the flies of the family Simuliidae. The black fly is about 1⁄8 in. (3.2 mm) long and has large eyes, short legs, a stout, humped back, broad gauzy wings, and piercing-suck...

(Encyclopedia) Cohan, George Michael kōhănˈ, kōˈhăn, kōˈən [key], 1878–1942, American showman, b. Providence, R.I. As a child he appeared in vaudeville as one of “The Four Cohans” with his father, mot...

(Encyclopedia) iceberg, mass of ice that has become detached, or calved, from the edge of an ice sheet or glacier and is floating on the ocean. Because ice is slightly less dense than water about one ninth of the to...

(Encyclopedia) handball, court, indoor or outdoor game played by striking a ball against a wall or walls with the palm of the hand. Play may be for singles or doubles (four players) on a court with one, three, or fo...

(Encyclopedia) harmonic. 1 Physical term describing the vibration in segments of a sound-producing body (see sound). A string vibrates simultaneously in its whole length and in segments of halves, thirds, fourths, e...

(Encyclopedia) Rabe, David rāb [key], 1940–, American playwright, b. Dubuque, Iowa; grad. Loras College (B.A., 1962), Villanova Univ. (M.A., 1968). Rabe served in Vietnam (1965–67) and his experiences and obser...