Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Robinson, Sir John Beverley, 1791–1863, Canadian jurist, b. Lower Canada (Quebec). After holding many important offices, he entered upon his long career (1829–62) as chief justice of Upper Canada;...

(Encyclopedia) Luce, Henry Robinson, 1898–1967, American publisher, b. Tengchow (now Penglai), China, the son of a Presbyterian missionary. After studying at Yale and Oxford, he worked (1921–22) as a reporter on...

(Encyclopedia) Baker, Ray Stannard, pseud. David Grayson, 1870–1946, American author, b. Lansing, Mich., grad. Michigan State College (now Michigan State Univ.), 1889. At first a Chicago newspaper reporter, he joi...

(Encyclopedia) ray, extremely flat-bodied cartilaginous marine fish, related to the shark. The pectoral fins of most rays are developed into broad, flat, winglike appendages, attached all along the sides of the head...

(Encyclopedia) Ripon, Frederick John Robinson, 1st earl of rĭpˈən [key], 1782–1859, British statesman, better known as Viscount Goderich. Entering Parliament as a Tory in 1806, he sponsored the unpopular corn l...

(Encyclopedia) Dundee, Angelo, 1921–2012, American boxing trainer, most famous for his work with Muhammad Ali, b. Philadelphia as Angelo Mirena, Jr. After serving in World War II he moved to New York City, where h...

(Encyclopedia) spinal puncture, surgical penetration of the spinal canal by a hollow needle introduced between two of the lumbar vertebrae. The arrangement permits injection of antibiotics or anesthetics (see anesth...

(Encyclopedia) polarization of light, orientation of the vibration pattern of light waves in a singular plane. Unpolarized light can be converted into a single polarized beam by means of the Nicol prism, a device ...

(Encyclopedia) Juan Fernández hwän fārnänˈdās [key], group of small islands, S Pacific, c.400 mi (640 km) W of Valparaiso, Chile. They belong to Chile and are constitutionally a special territory; they are adm...