Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Pledge of Allegiance, in full, Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, oath that proclaims loyalty to the United States. and its national symbol. It reads: “I pledge allegi...

(Encyclopedia) Augsburg, League of, defensive alliance formed (1686) by Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I with various German states, including Bavaria and the Palatinate, and with Sweden and Spain so far as their German...

(Encyclopedia) Aristarchus of Samothrace sămˈəthrās [key], c.217–c.145 b.c., Greek scholar, successor to his teacher, Aristophanes of Byzantium, as librarian at Alexandria. He was an innovator of scientific sc...

(Encyclopedia) Fourth of July, Independence Day, or July Fourth, U.S. holiday, commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. The Second Continental Congress approved the Declaration on July 4, 1776...

(Encyclopedia) Japan, Sea of, or East Sea, enclosed arm of the Pacific Ocean, c.405,000 sq mi (1,048,950 sq km), located between Japan and the Asian mainland, connecting with the East China Sea, the Pacific Ocean, a...

(Encyclopedia) act of God, in law, an accident caused by the operation of extraordinary natural force. The effect of ordinary natural causes (e.g., that rain will leak through a defective roof) may be foreseen and a...

(Encyclopedia) Thomas, Gospel of, a collection of sayings, composed originally in Greek, attributed to the “living” (i.e., resurrected) Jesus. Some of the sayings were previously known from papyri discovered at ...

(Encyclopedia) strength of materials, measurement in engineering of the capacity of metal, wood, concrete, and other materials to withstand stress and strain. Stress is the internal force exerted by one part of an e...

(Encyclopedia) Paris, University of, at Paris, France; founded 12th cent., confirmed 1215 by papal bull. The most famous of its colleges was the Sorbonne, which opened in 1253 and gained academic and theological dis...

(Encyclopedia) Aristarchus of Samos ărˌĭstärˈkəs, sāˈmŏs [key], fl. c.310 b.c.–c.230 b.c., Greek astronomer and mathematician of the Alexandrian school. He is said to have been the first to propose a heli...