Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Pan-Americanism, movement toward commercial, social, economic, military, and political cooperation among the nations of North, Central, and South America. In the early 20th cent., U.S. manipulation ...

(Encyclopedia) Canadian literature, English, literary works produced in Canada and written in the English language. The essayist Northrop Frye is noted for his systematic classification of literature, presented in...

(Encyclopedia) fire fighting, the use of strategy, personnel, and apparatus to extinguish, to confine, or to escape from fire. Ancient Rome is known to have had a fire department consisting by the 1st cent. of app...

(Encyclopedia) Stalin, Joseph Vissarionovich stäˈlĭn, Rus. vĭsəryôˈnəvĭch stäˈlyĭn [key], 1879–1953, Soviet Communist leader and head of the USSR from the death of V. I. Lenin (1924) until his own deat...

(Encyclopedia) Wilson, Woodrow (Thomas Woodrow Wilson), 1856–1924, 28th President of the United States (1913–21), b. Staunton, Va. Wilson's writings on history and jurisprudence include Division and Reunion, 1...

(Encyclopedia) Madison, James, 1751–1836, 4th President of the United States (1809–17), b. Port Conway, Va. When Jefferson triumphed in the election of 1800, Madison became (1801) his secretary of state. He se...

(Encyclopedia) League of Nations, former international organization, established by the peace treaties that ended World War I. Like its successor, the United Nations, its purpose was the promotion of international p...

(Encyclopedia) Neoplatonism nēˌōplāˈtənĭzəm [key], ancient mystical philosophy based on the doctrines of Plato. Neoplatonism was an early influence on Christian thinkers. The Christian apologists Clement...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Empire of Alexander the Great (including dependencies) Alexander the Great or Alexander III, 356–323 b.c., king of Macedon, conqueror of much of Asia. Whether or not Alexander had plans fo...

(Encyclopedia)  CE5 Circulatory system circulatory system, group of organs that transport blood and the substances it carries to and from all parts of the body. The circulatory system can be considered as compose...