Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Omar Khayyam

(Encyclopedia)Omar Khayyam kīämˈ [key], fl. 11th cent., Persian poet and mathematician, b. Nishapur. He was called Khayyam [tentmaker] probably because of his father's occupation. The details of his life are mos...

Smoot, George Fitzgerald, 3d

(Encyclopedia)Smoot, George Fitzgerald, 3d smo͞ot [key], 1945–, American astrophysicist, b. Jacksonville, Fl., Ph.D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology 1970. Smoot has been a professor at the Univ. of Califor...

Stein, Gertrude

(Encyclopedia)Stein, Gertrude, 1874–1946, American author and patron of the arts, b. Allegheny (now part of Pittsburgh), Pa. A celebrated personality, she encouraged, aided, and influenced—through her patronage...

Lorentz, Hendrik Antoon

(Encyclopedia)Lorentz, Hendrik Antoon hĕnˈdrək änˈtōn lōˈrĕnts [key], 1853–1928, Dutch physicist, a pioneer in formulating the relations between electricity, magnetism, and light. He was one of the first...

Reed, Ishmael Scott

(Encyclopedia) Reed, Ishmael Scott, 1938- , African-American novelist, poet, and social critic, b. Chattanooga, Tn. When he was a child, Reed’s family moved ...

McLean, John

(Encyclopedia)McLean, John məklānˈ [key], 1785–1861, American political figure and jurist, b. Morris co., N.J. His family moved to Ohio, where he studied law, was admitted (1807) to the bar, and practiced in L...

Scott, Sir Walter

(Encyclopedia)Scott, Sir Walter, 1771–1832, Scottish novelist and poet, b. Edinburgh. He is considered the father of both the regional and the historical novel. Scott's narrative poems introduced a form of v...

Ballantyne, James

(Encyclopedia)Ballantyne, James bălˈəntīn [key], 1772–1833, Scottish editor and publisher. Ballantyne and his brother John set up a publishing business in Edinburgh with the aid of Sir Walter Scott. The firm ...
 

Browse by Subject