Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Martin, Agnes (Agnes Bernice Martin), 1912–2004, American painter, b. Macklin, Canada. She moved to the United States in 1931, began painting in 1942,...

(Encyclopedia) molecular orbital theory, detailed explanation of how electrons are distributed in stable molecules. In the simpler valence theory of the chemical bond, each atom in a molecule is assumed to retain it...

(Encyclopedia) Calypso, in astronomy, one of the named moons, or natural satellites, of Saturn. Also known as Saturn XIV (or S14), Calypso is a small, irregularly shaped (nonspherical) body measuring about 21 mi (34...

(Encyclopedia) American Museum of Natural History, incorporated in New York City in 1869 to promote the study of natural science and related subjects. Buildings on its present site facing Central Park were opened in...

(Encyclopedia) Jessup, Philip Caryl, 1897–1986, American authority on international law, b. New York City, grad. Hamilton College, 1919, LL.B. Yale, 1924, Ph.D. Columbia, 1927. He was admitted (1925) to the bar, a...

(Encyclopedia) Hamilton, Sir William, 1788–1856, Scottish philosopher. He was widely interested in law, physiology, and literature and was professor of history and philosophy at the Univ. of Edinburgh. Hamilton he...

(Encyclopedia) Kindelberger, Dutch (James Howard Kindelberger), 1895–1962, b. Wheeling, W.Va., American aerospace pioneer. In 1917 he joined the army and went into the signal corps, serving as a pilot instructor. ...

(Encyclopedia) string theory, description of elementary particles based on one-dimensional curves, or “strings,” instead of point particles. Superstring theory, which is string theory that contains a kind of sym...

(Encyclopedia) Thorne, Kip Stephen, 1940–, American theoretical physicist, b. Logan, Utah. Ph.D. Princeton, 1965. Thorne has been a professor (emeritus from 2009) at the California Institute of Technology since 19...

(Encyclopedia) Ting, Samuel Chao Chung, 1936–, American physicist, b. Ann Arbor, Mich., Ph.D. Univ. of Michigan 1962. Ting was a professor at Columbia from 1965 to 1969, when he joined the faculty at the Massachus...