Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) incantation, set formula, spoken or sung, for the purpose of working magic. An incantation is normally an invocation to beneficent supernatural spirits for aid, protection, or inspiration. It may also...

(Encyclopedia) stereopticon stĕrēŏpˈtĭkən [key], optical projection instrument making multiple use of the magic lantern. The magic lantern uses lenses to throw on a screen a magnified image from a transparent ...

(Encyclopedia) enchantment: see magic.

(Encyclopedia) Buss, Jerry (Gerald Hatten Buss), 1933–2013, American businessman and basketball executive, b. Salt Lake City. He worked in the aerospace industry unt...

(Encyclopedia) Cadmus, Paul, 1904–99, American painter, b. N.Y.C.; studied National Academy of Design (1919–26), Art Students' League (1928). From 1933–35 he and painter Jared French traveled to Europe, where ...

(Encyclopedia) Aguiyi-Ironsi, Johnson Thomas Umunnakwe, 1924–1966, Nigerian military officer and political leader. An Igbo from Umuahia, he joined the Nigerian army in 1942 and received military training in Englan...

(Encyclopedia) Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove on the Potomac: see National Parks and Monuments (table)national parks and monuments (table). ...

(Encyclopedia) Houdin, Jean Eugène Robert or Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin zhäN özhĕnˈ rōbĕrˈ o͞odăNˈ [key], 1805–71, French conjurer and magician. Originally a clockmaker, he was celebrated for his optica...

(Encyclopedia) sorcery: see incantation; magic; spell; witchcraft. ...

(Encyclopedia) Thorndike, Lynn, 1882–1965, American historian, b. Lynn, Mass. He taught history at Northwestern Univ. (1907–9), at Western Reserve Univ. (1909–24), and at Columbia (1924–50). Among his books ...