Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Beach Boys, The, American rock music band formed in 1961 by brothers Brian Wilson, 1942–, Dennis Wilson, 1944–83, and Carl ...

(Encyclopedia) Rajasthan räˈjəstän [key], state (2001 provisional pop. 56,473,122), 132,150 sq mi (342,269 sq km), NW India, bordered on the west by Pakistan. The capital is Jaipur; other large cities are Ajmer,...

(Encyclopedia) Gandhi, Sonia gänˈdē [key], 1946–, Indian politician, b. Turin, Italy, as Sonia Maino. She met Rajiv Gandhi in 1965 when they were students in Cambridge, England. They were married in 1968 and se...

(Encyclopedia) Socrates sŏkˈrətēz [key], 469–399 b.c., Greek philosopher of Athens. Famous for his view of philosophy as a pursuit proper and necessary to all intelligent men, he is one of the great examples o...

(Encyclopedia) sexually transmitted disease (STD) or venereal disease, term for infections acquired mainly through sexual contact. Five diseases were traditionally known as venereal diseases: gonorrhea, syphilis, an...

(Encyclopedia) water pollution, contamination of water resources by harmful wastes; see also sewerage, water supply, pollution, and environmentalism. The United States has enacted extensive federal legislation to ...

(Encyclopedia) Liberal Democrats, British political party created in 1988 by the merger of the Liberal party with the Social Democratic party; the party was initially called the Social and Liberal Democratic party. ...

(Encyclopedia) Peirce, Charles Sanders pûrs [key], 1839–1914, American philosopher and polymath, b. Cambridge, Mass., grad. Harvard, 1859; son of Benjamin Peirce. Except for occasional lectures he renounced the r...

(Encyclopedia) metalwork. Copper, gold, and silver were probably fashioned into ornaments and amulets as early as the Neolithic period. Goldwork and silverwork have since employed the talents of leading artisans and...

(Encyclopedia) Northern Territory, territory (2016 pop. 228,833), 520,280 sq mi (1,347,525 sq km), N central Australia. It is bounded on the N by the Timor Sea, the Arafura Sea, and the Gulf of Carpentaria. Darwin i...