21st Century Webster's Family Encyclopedia - Clyde to Constable, John

21st Century Webster's Family Encyclopedia

Clyde

Clyde, most important river of Scotland and one of Britain's major commercial waterways.

less than 1 minute read

George Clymer

Clymer, George (1739–1813), American revolutionary patriot and statesman.

less than 1 minute read

Clytemnestra

Clytemnestra, in Greek mythology, daughter of Leda and Tyndareus, twin sister of Helen of Troy, wife of Agamemnon, and mother of 3 daughters and a son, Orestes.

less than 1 minute read

Cnut

Cnut See: Canute.

less than 1 minute read

Coagulant

Coagulant, any substance that causes or stimulates a liquid to change to a thickened curdlike or solidified state.

less than 1 minute read

Coahuila

Coahuila, state in northern Mexico.

less than 1 minute read

Coal

Coal, hard, black mineral, predominantly carbon, the compressed remains of tropical and subtropical plants, especially those of the carboniferous and Permian geological periods, burned as a fuel. With its by-products coke and coal tar, it is vital to many modern industries. Coal formation began when plant debris accumulated in swamps, partially decomposing and forming peat layers. A rise in sea le…

1 minute read

Coal oil

Coal oil See: Kerosene.

less than 1 minute read

Coal tar

Coal tar, heavy, black, viscous liquid liberated during the distillation of coal, the source of a number of valuable chemicals.

less than 1 minute read

Coalition

Coalition, combination or alliance of political groups having mutual interests.

less than 1 minute read

Henri Marie Coanda

Coanda, Henri Marie (1885–1972), Romanian-born French aeronautics engineer and inventor, who designed an aircraft based on the jet-propulsion system.

less than 1 minute read

U.S. Coast Guard

Coast Guard, U.S., branch of the armed services supervised in peacetime by the Department of Transportation, in war by the navy.

less than 1 minute read

Coast Ranges

Coast Ranges, string of mountain ranges along the Pacific coast of North America, running from Kodiak Island in Alaska to southern California.

less than 1 minute read

Coati

Coati (Nasua nasua), small, carnivorous mammal related to the raccoon.

less than 1 minute read

Elizabeth Coatsworth

Coatsworth, Elizabeth (1893–1986), U.S. author best known for her children's books.

less than 1 minute read

Coaxial cable

Coaxial cable, cable consisting of 2 conductors, one within the other, separated by an insulator.

less than 1 minute read

Cobalt

Cobalt, chemical element, symbol Co; for physical constants see Periodic Table.

less than 1 minute read

Ty(rus Raymond) Cobb

Cobb, Ty(rus Raymond) (1886–1961), U.S. baseball player.

less than 1 minute read

William Cobbett

Cobbett, William (1763–1835), British radical writer and reformer, best known for his book Rural Rides (1830), which portrayed the misery of rural workers.

less than 1 minute read

Richard Cobden

Cobden, Richard (1804–65), British politician and reformer, leader of the Manchester School.

less than 1 minute read

Cobra

Cobra, venomous snake (family Elapidae) that rears up and spreads the ribs of the neck to form a “hood” when alarmed.

less than 1 minute read

Coca

Coca (Erythroxylon coca), shrub whose leaves contain various alkaloids.

less than 1 minute read

Cocaine

Cocaine, colorless or white crystalline alkaloid, member of a broad group of plant substances that includes nicotine, caffeine, and morphine. In nature, cocaine is found in significant quantities in the leaves of 2 species of the coca shrub that grow throughout the eastern highlands of the Andes in Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia and along the Caribbean coast of South America. In medicine it is used as…

1 minute read

Cochise

Cochise (1815–74), chief of the Chiricahua Apache tribe.

less than 1 minute read

Cock-of-the-rock

Cock-of-the-rock, bird of genus Rupicola, of the cotingas family, native to South American forests.

less than 1 minute read

Cockatiel

Cockatiel, gray bird (Nymphicus hollandicus) found in Australia.

less than 1 minute read

Cockatoo

Cockatoo, parrot with erectile crest (especially, genus Kakatoe).

less than 1 minute read

Sir John Douglas Cockcroft

Cockcroft, Sir John Douglas (1897–1967), English physicist who first “split the atom.” With E.T.S.

less than 1 minute read

Cocker spaniel

Cocker spaniel, popular breed of dog in the United States, bred from the English spaniel.

less than 1 minute read

Cockle

Cockle, bivalve mollusk (order Eulamel libranchia) with cupped shell ornamented with radiating grooves.

less than 1 minute read

Cocklebur

Cocklebur, any of several weeds (genus Xanthium) of the composite family.

less than 1 minute read

Cockroach

Cockroach, or roach, flat-bodied insect of the family Blattidae with long antennae and hardened forewings that protect the hindwings, as in the beetle.

less than 1 minute read

Cockscomb

Cockscomb, tropical Asiatic flower (Celosia argented) of the amaranth family.

less than 1 minute read

Coconut palm

Coconut palm (Cocos nuerferd), tropical tree. Its origin is obscure because coconuts can survive prolonged immersion in the sea, and they have been spread around the world by ocean currents. The height of the coconut palm ranges from 60 to 100 ft (18 to 30 m). The trunk, which often tilts over, bears a cluster of long fronds at the top. A single palm can produce over 400 nuts in the course of a ye…

less than 1 minute read

Cocoon

Cocoon, protective covering enclosing the larvae or pupae of insects.

less than 1 minute read

Jean Cocteau

Cocteau, Jean (1889–1963), French author, artist, and film director.

less than 1 minute read

Cod

Cod, bottom-feeding fish (family Gadidae) of the northern Atlantic and the Pacific.

less than 1 minute read

Cod-liver oil

Cod-liver oil, pale yellow substance obtained from the liver of cod and related fish.

less than 1 minute read

Code

Code, set of laws or rules arranged systematically and put in writing.

less than 1 minute read

Code Civil

Code Civil See: Code Napoleon.

less than 1 minute read

Code Napoléon

Code Napoléon, French legal code, officially the Code Civil.

less than 1 minute read

Codeine

Codeine, mild but addictive narcotic alkaloid, analgesic, and cough suppressant derived from opium.

less than 1 minute read

Codes and ciphers

Codes and ciphers, set of characters or signals, with prearranged meanings as letters or numbers, used for secrecy and brevity in transmitting messages, especially in wartime.

less than 1 minute read

Codling moth

Codling moth, or codlin moth, small, nocturnal moth (Laspeyresia pomonella) whose caterpillars live in apples and pears.

less than 1 minute read

Coeducation

Coeducation, education of both sexes in the same schools and classes.

less than 1 minute read

Coelacanth

Coelacanth, lunged, bony fish of the family Coelacanthidae.

less than 1 minute read

Coelenterate

Coelenterate, phylum of primitive, invertebrate animals, now renamed the Cnidaria (the C is silent).

less than 1 minute read

Coelom

Coelom, major body cavity in vertebrates and higher invertebrates.

less than 1 minute read

Coercive Acts

Coercive Acts See: Intolerable Acts.

less than 1 minute read

Coffee

Coffee, evergreen shrub or tree (genus Coffea) from whose seeds the drink of the same name is made.

less than 1 minute read

Coffee house

Coffee house, variety of commercial establishment that arose in London in the mid-17th century.

less than 1 minute read

George M(ichael) Cohan

Cohan, George M(ichael) (1878–1942), U.S. songwriter, actor, composer and producer of popular, patriotic musicals.

less than 1 minute read

Cohesion

Cohesion, attractive force holding the atoms or molecules of a single substance together.

less than 1 minute read

Ferdinand Julius Cohn

Cohn, Ferdinand Julius (1828–98), German botanist, one of the founders of bacteriology.

less than 1 minute read

Coin

Coin, piece of stamped metal, of a fixed value and weight, issued to serve as money. Until banknotes came into use, coins were the only form of money. The principal metals used in coinage are gold, silver, and copper. They were originally used in their pure state, but were later alloyed (combined) with other substances to make the coins cheaper and more resistant to wear. Coins have presented a co…

2 minute read

Coin collecting

Coin collecting, or numismatics, popular hobby throughout the world.

less than 1 minute read

Coke

Coke, form of amorphous carbon that is left when bituminous coal is burned in special furnaces to remove volatile constituents.

less than 1 minute read

Coke oven gas

Coke oven gas, hydrogen and methane mixture produced when coal is heated to about 2000°F (1100°C) in an airtight chamber.

less than 1 minute read

Colón

Colón (pop. 137,800), third largest city of Panama, established in 1850 at what is now the Atlantic terminus of the Panama Canal.

less than 1 minute read

Jean Baptiste Colbert

Colbert, Jean Baptiste (1619–83), French diplomat and finance superintendent.

less than 1 minute read

Colchicum

Colchicum, poisonous flowering plant (Colchicum autumnale) of the lily family, also known as autumn crocus or meadow saffron.

less than 1 minute read

Cold-blooded animal

Cold-blooded animal, or poikilotherm, animal that cannot maintain a constant internal body temperature and therefore attains a temperature close to that of its environment, making it dangerously subject to climatic changes.

less than 1 minute read

common Cold

Cold, common, viral infection of the mucous membrane of the nose and throat, marked by discharge of mucus, sneezing, and watering of the eyes.

less than 1 minute read

Cold sore

Cold sore, skin lesion, generally of the lips or nose, caused by the Herpes simplex virus.

less than 1 minute read

Cold War

Cold War, expression used to characterize the conflict after World War II between the Western powers led by the United States and the Communist bloc led by the USSR.

less than 1 minute read

Thomas Cole

Cole, Thomas (1801–48), English-born U.S. landscape painter.

less than 1 minute read

William Thaddeus Coleman Jr.

Coleman, William Thaddeus, Jr. (1920– ), U.S. secretary of transportation 1975–77, the second African-American cabinet member in U.S. history.

less than 1 minute read

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Coleridge, Samuel Taylor (1772–1834), English poet, philosopher, and critic.

less than 1 minute read

Colette

Colette (Sidonie Gabrielle Colette; 1873–1954), French author noted primarily for her sensual style and her themes of women, love and jealousy.

less than 1 minute read

Coleus

Coleus, tropical plant (genus Coleus) of the mint family.

less than 1 minute read

Schuyler Colfax

Colfax, Schuyler (1823–85), vice president of the United States during the first term of President Ulysses S.

less than 1 minute read

Colic

Colic, acute pain focused in an internal organ, frequently the colon or other component of the digestive tract.

less than 1 minute read

Coliseum

Coliseum See: Colosseum.

less than 1 minute read

Colitis

Colitis, disease characterized by inflammation of the colon (large intestine).

less than 1 minute read

Collage

Collage, 20th-century art form in which various objects and materials are glued onto a canvas or board, sometimes covered with paint.

less than 1 minute read

Collagen

Collagen, major component of connective tissue, constituting 70% of its dry weight.

less than 1 minute read

Collarbone

Collarbone, or clavicle, horizontal bone that connects with the breastbone (sternum) and the shoulder blade (scapula) to support the shoulder and to hold the arm in proper position.

less than 1 minute read

Collard

Collard (Brassica oreracea), headless cabbage of the mustard family commonly grown in the southern United States.

less than 1 minute read

Collective bargaining

Collective bargaining See: Labor movement; National Labor Relations Act.

less than 1 minute read

Collective behavior

Collective behavior, sociological term for human behavior in crowds and other large, unorganized, temporary groups.

less than 1 minute read

Collective farm

Collective farm, agricultural enterprise operated cooperatively.

less than 1 minute read

Collectivism

Collectivism, political doctrine that places control of economic activity in the hands of the community or the government, as opposed to individuals, as in the case under capitalism.

less than 1 minute read

College entrance examination

College entrance examination, series of tests administered in the United States by 2 agencies, the College Entrance Examination Board (CEEB) and the American College Testing Program (ACT), to determine eligibility for college or university admission.

less than 1 minute read

Collie

Collie, 2 types of sheepdog, rough-coated and smooth-coated, originating in Scotland in the 1600s and brought to the United States by British colonists a century later.

less than 1 minute read

Michael Collins

Collins, Michael (1930– ), U.S. astronaut.

less than 1 minute read

(William) Wilkie Collins

Collins, (William) Wilkie (1824–89), English novelist, often considered the originator of the detective novel in English.

less than 1 minute read

Carlo Collodi

Collodi, Carlo (Carlo Lorenzini; 1826–90), Italian journalist and author of humorous adult fiction and moral children's stories, of which the best known is The Adventures of Pinocchio (1883).

less than 1 minute read

Colloid

Colloid, mixture in which particles of one substance are dispersed in another.

less than 1 minute read

Colobus

Colobus, or guerza, genus of thumbless, long-tailed, African monkey of the family Cercopithecidae.

less than 1 minute read

Cologne

Cologne (pop. 916,200), river port and industrial city in western Germany, on the Rhine River.

less than 1 minute read

Colombia

Colombia (Republic of), fourth largest country in South America. It extends over 440,831 sq mi (1,141,748 sq km) of the extreme northwest of South America, bounded on the northwest by Panama, on the northeast by Venezuela, on the southeast by Brazil, and on the south by Peru and Ecuador. It is the only South American country that has both an Atlantic and a Pacific coastline. Nearly half of the cou…

3 minute read

Colombo

Colombo (pop. 615,000), capital, chief port, and largest city of Sri Lanka (Ceylon), located on the southwest coast of the island, in the Indian Ocean.

less than 1 minute read

Colombo Plan

Colombo Plan, cooperative program for economic development in South and Southeast Asia, inaugurated in 1951 at Colombo, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka).

less than 1 minute read

Colon

Colon, large intestine from the cecum (the pouch into which the small intestine empties) to the rectum, about 60 in (1.5 m) long.

less than 1 minute read

American Colonial period

Colonial period, American, nearly 170 formative years of settlement and adventure before U.S. independence. The first colonies were established by chartered trading companies, groups of commercial speculators who shared the profits of the colony in return for putting up the capital necessary for its establishment. The first permanent English settlement in America, at Jamestown (1607), was the proj…

4 minute read

Colonialism

Colonialism, political and economic subordination of an area by a geographically removed parent country.

less than 1 minute read

Colony

Colony, area and people controlled by a foreign power.

less than 1 minute read

Color

Color, visual effect caused by the eye's ability to react differently to different wavelengths of light.

less than 1 minute read

Color blindness

Color blindness, inability to tell certain colors apart.

less than 1 minute read

Colorado

Colorado, state in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States; bordered by Wyoming in the north, Nebraska in the north and east, Kansas in the east, Oklahoma and New Mexico in the south, and Utah in the west. Colorado has the highest mean elevation (c. 6,800 ft/2,100 m) of any state. The high plains of the east, part of the Great Plains, cover two-fifths of the state. The land here is extremel…

2 minute read

Colorado Desert

Colorado Desert, arid basin of Southeast California and northwest Mexico, 2,000 sq mi (5,180 sq km).

less than 1 minute read

Colorado River

Colorado River, major U.S. river, rising in the Rocky Mountains of northern Colorado and flowing 1,450 mi (2,333 km) in a generally southwesternly direction to enter the Gulf of California.

less than 1 minute read

Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs (pop. 215,200), city in central Colorado, second-largest in the state and seat of El Paso County.

less than 1 minute read

Colosseum

Colosseum, or Coliseum, oval amphitheater in Rome, built c.75–80 A.D., with seats for about 45,000 spectators on 4 tiers.

less than 1 minute read

Colossus of Rhodes

Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, statue of Helios, the sun god, erected c.290–280 B.C. by the sculptor Chares of Lindos in the harbor of Rhodes.

less than 1 minute read

Samuel Colt

Colt, Samuel (1814–62), U.S. inventor and industrialist who devised the revolver, a single-barreled pistol with a revolving multiple bullet chamber, in the early 1830s.

less than 1 minute read

John Colter

Colter, John (1775–1813), U.S. trapper and guide, best known for his explorations of what is now Yellowstone National Park.

less than 1 minute read

John Coltrane

Coltrane, John (1926–67), U.S. musician and composer.

less than 1 minute read

Coltsfoot

Coltsfoot, (Tussilago farfara), wild plant of the daisy family Compositae native to Europe and Asia.

less than 1 minute read

Padraic Colum

Colum, Padraic (1881–1972), Irish poet and dramatist associated with the Celtic renaissance and the Irish National Theater; cofounder of the Irish Review (1911) and writer of several plays for Dublin's Abbey Theater including The Fiddler's House (1907) and Thomas Μ uskerry (1910).

less than 1 minute read

Columbia

Columbia (pop. 95,802), city in central Missouri, seat of Boone County.

less than 1 minute read

Columbia

Columbia (pop. 99,300), capital and largest city of South Carolina; seat of Richland County.

less than 1 minute read

Columbia River

Columbia River, large river arising in the Canadian Rockies in southeast British Columbia, and flowing south into the northwest United States, where it turns west and forms the border between Oregon and Washington and empties into the Pacific Ocean.

less than 1 minute read

Columbia University

Columbia University, one of the major private U.S. universities.

less than 1 minute read

Columbine

Columbine, plant (genus Aquilegia) related to the buttercup, with tall, slender stems, lobed leaves, and intricate flowers.

less than 1 minute read

Columbite

Columbite, dense oxide mineral composed of manganese, niobium, and iron, general chemical formula (Fe,Mn)Nb2O6.

less than 1 minute read

Columbium

Columbium See: Niobium.

less than 1 minute read

Columbus

Columbus (pop. 644,000), capital and second-largest city of Ohio, seat of Franklin County.

less than 1 minute read

Columbus

Columbus (pop. 243,072), second-largest city in Georgia, seat of Muscogee County.

less than 1 minute read

Christopher Columbus

Columbus, Christopher (Cristoforo Colombo; 1451–1506), commonly credited as the discoverer of America. Born in Genoa, Italy, he was the son of a wool weaver. An experienced sailor and student of navigation, Columbus was convinced that he could pioneer a new route to the treasures of the Far East by sailing West across the Atlantic. In 1484 he tried to win financial support for his plans fro…

2 minute read

Column

Column, in architecture, vertical structural support, usually cylindrical, consisting of a base, shaft, and capital.

less than 1 minute read

Coma

Coma, state of unconsciousness from which a person cannot be roused by sensory stimulation.

less than 1 minute read

Comanche

Comanche, native North Americans of the Southwest, closely related to the Shoshone.

less than 1 minute read

Combine harvester

Combine harvester, farm machine that cuts, threshes, and cleans grain.

less than 1 minute read

Combustion

Combustion, rapid oxidation (or burning) of fuel in which heat and usually light are produced.

less than 1 minute read

Comedy

Comedy, literary work that aims primarily to amuse, often through ridicule, exaggeration, or satire of human nature and institutions, usually ending happily.

less than 1 minute read

John Amos Comenius

Comenius, John Amos (Jan Amos Komensk; 1592–1670), Czech educational reformer and Protestant theologian, last bishop of the old Moravian church (from 1632).

less than 1 minute read

Comet

Comet, astronomical body consisting of a small mass, mostly gas and dust, spread over a large volume, orbiting the sun in a highly elliptical path that may take it as much as 150,000 times as far from the sun as the earth is. The head of a comet is bright, probably composed of ice and frozen gases. As it nears the sun, particles and gases are cast off into a tail that may be as long as 100 million…

1 minute read

Comics

Comics, also known as comic strips, series of drawings, usually accompanied by captions or dialogue, telling a continuous story.

less than 1 minute read

Cominform

Cominform (Communist Information Bureau), international organization set up in 1947 to coordinate among Communist parties in the Soviet Union, eastern Europe, and some capitalist countries.

less than 1 minute read

Comintern

Comintern (Communist International), organization founded by the Russian Communist Party and composed of national Communist parties from all parts of the world.

less than 1 minute read

Comitia

Comitia, in ancient Rome, assemblies of people summoned in groups to vote on proposals presented by magistrates.

less than 1 minute read

Henry Steele Commager

Commager, Henry Steele (1902– ), U.S. historianand educator, who taught American history at New York University, Columbia University, and Amherst College.

less than 1 minute read

Commando

Commando, military unit trained for swift, guerrilla-like raids into enemy territory.

less than 1 minute read

Commedia dell'arte

Commedia dell'arte, form of Italian comedy that flourished in the 16th–18th centuries.

less than 1 minute read

Commercial art

Commercial art, general term for any of the visual arts used in business, especially advertising, such as designing, drawing, and lettering for illustrations and advertisements, design and preparation of posters, billboards, display cards, packages, etc.

less than 1 minute read

Commercial paper

Commercial paper, generic term for various business documents involving the payment of money.

less than 1 minute read

military Commission

Commission, military, written order and oath of service granting an individual the rank and authority of an officer in the armed services.

less than 1 minute read

Committee of the whole

Committee of the whole, committee including the entire membership of an organization.

less than 1 minute read

Committees of correspondence

Committees of correspondence, locally organized groups that formed a communication and information network in the 13 American colonies before and during the Revolutionary War.

less than 1 minute read

Committees of safety

Committees of safety, organizations set up at the urging of the Second Continental Congress to aid in the American transition to self-rule.

less than 1 minute read

Commodity exchange

Commodity exchange, formal market in which participants buy and sell contracts providing for the delivery of certain products at future dates.

less than 1 minute read

Common carrier

Common carrier, person or company that transports people, goods, or messages for the public at large.

less than 1 minute read

Common Cause

Common Cause, national citizens' lobby, organized in 1970 by John W.

less than 1 minute read

Common law

Common law, body of laws based on court decisions and customs. It is usually contrasted to statute law, which is made by legislatures. Common law grew out of English custom and became established mainly by the adherence of judges to precedents, or previous decisions—a principle known as stare decisis (stand on things as decided). The decisions of earlier judges became the law of later ones.…

1 minute read

European Common Market

Common Market, European, officially the European Economic Community (EEC), an economic union of West European nations. After World War II, West European nations sought new forms of cooperation in order to revive their damaged economies. The first step was the foundation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), set up in 1952 by the six future members of the EEC. The Treaty of Rome, creatin…

1 minute read

Barry Commoner

Commoner, Barry (1917– ), U.S. biologist, ecologist, and environmentalist who warned against the environmental threats of technology and nuclear energy in such books as The Closing Circle (1971), The Poverty of Power (1976), and The Politics of Energy (1979).A democratic socialist, he has spoken out against the concentration of corporate power in the United States and in 1980 ran for the U.S. presidency as the candidate of the Citizens' party.

less than 1 minute read

House of Commons

Commons, House of See: House of Commons.

less than 1 minute read

Commonwealth

Commonwealth, from the phrase “common wealth” (public good), form of government based on the power and consent of the people.

less than 1 minute read

Commonwealth Games

Commonwealth Games, sports competition among amateur athletes from British Commonwealth countries, first held in Hamilton, Ontario, in 1930 under the name of British Empire Games.

less than 1 minute read

Commonwealth of Nations

Commonwealth of Nations, association of Britain and over 40 former colonies, now independent states, and their dependencies.

less than 1 minute read

Communal society

Communal society, cooperative group formed on the basis of shared interests (e.g., religious or political) and emphasizing the needs of the community above those of the individual.

less than 1 minute read

Commune

Commune, term for small, locally governed territorial districts in France and some other countries.

less than 1 minute read

Communication

Communication, flow of information from one point (the source) to another (the receiver).

less than 1 minute read

Communications satellite

Communications satellite, artificial earth-orbiting object used to relay radio signals between points on earth.

less than 1 minute read

Communications Satellite Corporation

Communications Satellite Corporation (COMSAT), private corporation established by act of Congress in 1962, to develop satellite systems for relaying telephone, telegraph, and television transmissions.

less than 1 minute read

Communion

Communion, in Christian churches, name for the sacrament of the Lord's Supper.

less than 1 minute read

Communism

Communism, ideal economic order in which property and the means of production are held in common in a classless society. Elements of communism are as old as the Golden Age described by Greek poets and philosophers as a time long ago when people shared all things equally and lived simply. Primitive forms of communism are also discernible in the communities of early Christians and in the teachings a…

3 minute read

Community

Community, term used in the social sciences to designate a group of people within a larger society sharing similar customs, interests, characteristics or beliefs.

less than 1 minute read

Community property

Community property, legal system of property ownership by husband and wife existing in several states in the United States.

less than 1 minute read

Comoros

Comoros, island-state in the Indian Ocean off the east coast of Africa, between Mozambique and Madagascar.

less than 1 minute read

Compact disc (CD)

Compact disc (CD), small plastic disc used for storage of recorded sound or other data.

less than 1 minute read

Comparative psychology

Comparative psychology, branch of psychology concerned with the study of animal (including human) behavior at different stages of development to discern similarities and differences in species.

less than 1 minute read

Compass

Compass, instrument used to indicate direction.

less than 1 minute read

Compass plant

Compass plant, or pilotweed, prairie plant (Silphium laciniatum) of the family Compositae.

less than 1 minute read

Competency-based education

Competency-based education, teaching programs requiring students to attain specified levels of achievement in designated courses or skills.

less than 1 minute read

Compositae

Compositae, largest family of flowering plants, including more than 20,000 species.

less than 1 minute read

Compound

Compound, in chemistry, any substance composed of atoms of more than one element chemically bonded to form a fixed structure with distinctive properties.

less than 1 minute read

Compound eye

Compound eye, organ of vision consisting of many tiny, closely packed lenses.

less than 1 minute read

Arthur Holly Compton

Compton, Arthur Holly (1892–1962), U.S. physicist, Nobel Prize winner for physics (1927), for his discovery of the Compton effect (x-rays increase in wavelengths when they collide with electrons).

less than 1 minute read

Ivy Compton-Burnett

Compton-Burnett, Ivy (1892–1969), English novelist.

less than 1 minute read

Computer

Computer, automatic device capable of carrying out calculations according to a predetermined set of instructions. First developed in the 1940s, their technological development has been rapid. Computers have taken over routine commercial calculations and are used in scientific research and technology design. Computers are usually classified according to their mode of operation: analog, digital, or …

less than 1 minute read

Computer graphics

Computer graphics, use of a computer for drawing lines, graphs, designs, and pictures.

less than 1 minute read

COMSAT

COMSAT See: Communications Satellite Corporation.

less than 1 minute read

Comstock Law

Comstock Law, U.S. legislation, passed in 1873 and named for anti-vice crusader Anthony Comstock.

less than 1 minute read

Comstock Lode

Comstock Lode, enormously rich vein of gold and silver discovered near what became Virginia City in Nevada during the late 1850s.

less than 1 minute read

Auguste Comte

Comte, Auguste (1798–1857), French philosopher and sociologist.

less than 1 minute read

Conakry

Conakry (pop. 705,300), capital and largest city of Guinea in West Africa.

less than 1 minute read

James Bryant Conant

Conant, James Bryant (1893–1978), U.S. educator.

less than 1 minute read

Concentration camp

Concentration camp, prison for the detention of political or military suspects, frequently found in totalitarian countries and sometimes in democratic nations during time of war. Concentration camps differ sharply from other prisons in the absence of regular judicial proceedings and the fact that prisoners may be held indefinitely. Camps have often served to confine large segments of the populatio…

less than 1 minute read

Concerto

Concerto, musical composition in which unequal musical forces play in opposition to each other, usually 1 solo instrument against a large orchestra.

less than 1 minute read

Conch

Conch, name once applied to all mollusks—hence the term “conchology”—but now restricted to certain marine gastropod mollusks with large spiral shells.

less than 1 minute read

Concord

Concord (pop. 17,076), town in eastern Massachusetts situated on the Concord River 20 mi (32 km) northwest of Boston.

less than 1 minute read

Concord

Concord (pop. 36,006), capital of and third largest city in New Hampshire; seat of Merrimack County.

less than 1 minute read

Battle of Concord

Concord, Battle of, second engagement in the American Revolutionary War after the Battle of Lexington.

less than 1 minute read

Concordat

Concordat, treaty concluded between the pope and the secular government of a state to regulate religious affairs within the state and deal with such questions as the appointment of bishops and the status of church property.

less than 1 minute read

Concrete

Concrete, versatile structural building material made by mixing broken stone or gravel with sand, cement, and water.

less than 1 minute read

Concussion

Concussion, temporary malfunction of brain activity, often including unconsciousness, due to a blow to the head causing the brain to jolt against the inner skull, injuring the brain's outer surface.

less than 1 minute read

Louis de Bourbon Condé Prince de II

Condé, Louis II de Bourbon, Prince de (1621–86), also called the Great Condé, an outstanding French general of the Thirty Years' War, related to the Bourbon royal family.

less than 1 minute read

Condensation

Condensation, in physics, change of a substance from the gaseous (vapor) to the liquid state.

less than 1 minute read

Condominium

Condominium, in real estate, individual ownership in property, such as an apartment, that is part of a larger complex owned in common.

less than 1 minute read

Condor

Condor, one of two species of vultures and the largest flying birds in existence.

less than 1 minute read

Cone

Cone, three-dimensional geometric figure whose base is a closed curve, such as a circle or an ellipse, and whose dimensional sides meet at a single point called the vertex.

less than 1 minute read

Conestoga wagon

Conestoga wagon, large covered wagon used by North American pioneers.

less than 1 minute read

Confederate States of America

Confederate States of America, government formed by the Southern states that seceded from the United States of America between Dec. 1860 and May 1861. South Carolina was the first, followed by Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, and Louisiana by the end of Jan. Texas joined them in Feb. and was followed in the spring by Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina, and Tennessee. Rebels from Missouri an…

3 minute read

Confederation of Canada

Confederation of Canada, union of British colonies established by the British Parliament in the British North America Act of 1867.

less than 1 minute read

Confession

Confession, in Christianity, admission of sin, an aspect of repentance.

less than 1 minute read

Confirmation

Confirmation, rite of certain Christian churches, usually administered in adolescence.

less than 1 minute read

Conflict of interest

Conflict of interest, situation in which an employee, part owner, officer or director of an organization has a financial or other interest in another organization that could cause him or her to favor one at the expense of the other.

less than 1 minute read

Confucianism

Confucianism, philosophy based on the thinking of Confucius, the great Chinese philosopher and moralist. Confucianism teaches a moral and social philosophy and code of behavior based on certain abstract qualities and strengths, such as love, peace, harmony, order, humanity, wisdom, courage, and fidelity, without appealing to any ultimate higher authority or God. Heaven is the highest state one can…

less than 1 minute read

Confucius

Confucius (551–479 B.C.), Chinese philosopher and sage, founder of Confucianism, the great moral and religious system of China.

less than 1 minute read

Conglomerate

Conglomerate, corporation that has expanded into the production and sale of products quite different from those with which it was initially involved.

less than 1 minute read

Congo

Congo, Republic of the Congo, formerly part of French Equatorial Africa. It lies on the equator, with Gabon and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and Zaire to the east. A low, treeless plain extends from the coast inland for about 40 mi (64 km). The land then rises to the mountainous area of the Mayombé Escarpment, with its series of sharp ridges, a region of dense tropical rain forest. To the…

1 minute read

Congo River

Congo River, or Zaire River, second-longest river in Africa.

less than 1 minute read

Congregational Church

Congregational Church, Protestant church that holds that each local congregation should have complete autonomy, though congregations may form loose associations.

less than 1 minute read

Congress of the Confederation

Congress of the Confederation, political body that operated the government of the United States from Mar. 1781 to Mar. 1789.

less than 1 minute read

Congress of Racial Equality

Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), U.S. interracial organization founded in 1942 by James Farmer to promote African American civil rights and liberties through nonviolent direct action projects.

less than 1 minute read

Congress of the United States

Congress of the United States, legislative branch of the U.S. federal government. Congress consists of 2 houses: the Senate, composed of 2 members from each state, and the House of Representatives, in which seats are appointed to the states on the basis of population. House membership, which was 65 in 1789, has grown with the nation's population but is now permanently fixed at 435. Membersh…

3 minute read

Congressional Record

Congressional Record, printed daily account of the proceedings in the U.S.

less than 1 minute read

William Congreve

Congreve, William (1670–1729), English Restoration dramatist, known for his comedies of manners.

less than 1 minute read

Conifer

Conifer, any cone-bearing tree or shrub.

less than 1 minute read

Conjunctivitis

Conjunctivitis, inflammation of the conjunctiva of the eye (the mucous membrane that lines the inner surface of the eyelids); also called pinkeye.

less than 1 minute read

John Bowden Connally

Connally, John Bowden (1917– ), U.S. secretary of the Navy (1961–63), governor of Texas (1963–69), U.S. secretary of the treasury (1971–72).

less than 1 minute read

Connaught and Duke of Strathearn

Connaught and Strathearn, Duke of (Arthur William Patrick Albert; 1850–1942), governor general of Canada (1911–16), son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Great Britain.

less than 1 minute read

Connecticut

Connecticut, state in the New England region of the United States; bordered by Massachusetts in the north, Rhode Island in the east, Long Island Sound in the south, and New York in the west. The state is divided by the Connecticut River Valley into the western and eastern New England Uplands. The Taconic Mountains in the extreme northwest include Mt. Frissell. From these peaks the land slopes thro…

1 minute read

Connecticut River

Connecticut River, longest river in New England.

less than 1 minute read

Connective tissue

Connective tissue, basic tissue that constitutes the connective and supporting element of the body.

less than 1 minute read

Marc(us Cook) Connelly

Connelly, Marc(us Cook) (1890–1980), U.S. playwright, best known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning play The Green Pastures (1930).

less than 1 minute read

Jimmy Connors

Connors, Jimmy (1952– ), U.S. tennis player.

less than 1 minute read

Conquistadors

Conquistadors, 16th-century military adventurers who founded Spain's empire in the Americas.

less than 1 minute read

Charles Conrad Jr.

Conrad, Charles, Jr. (1930–), U.S. astronaut.

less than 1 minute read

Joseph Conrad

Conrad, Joseph (1857–1924), English novelist of Polish birth.

less than 1 minute read

Conrail

Conrail, official nickname for Consolidated Rail Corp., a quasi-governmental U.S. organization created to take over 7 bankrupt railroads in the northeastern and northwestern regions, including the Penn Central, Erie & Lackawanna, Lehigh Valley, and Reading.

less than 1 minute read

Conscientious objector

Conscientious objector, person opposed to war in any form or in the specific form it is then taking, who by reason of conscience and conviction refuses to bear arms in wartime.

less than 1 minute read

Conscription

Conscription See: Draft, military.

less than 1 minute read

Conservation

Conservation, management and protection of the earth's natural resources to assure adequate supplies for future generations.

less than 1 minute read

Conservatism

Conservatism, term for social and political philosophies or attitudes that stress traditional values and continuity of social institutions and that reject sudden radical change, while maintaining ideals of progress.

less than 1 minute read

Conservative Party

Conservative Party, one of the two major political parties in Great Britain.

less than 1 minute read

Conspiracy

Conspiracy, in U.S. law, agreement between two or more people to commit an unlawful act.

less than 1 minute read

John Constable

Constable, John (1776–1837), English painter.

less than 1 minute read