won the election with 60 percent of the
popular vote.
Presidency
When Harding died suddenly in 1923,
Coolidge became president. The public
soon learned that Harding had allowed
government officials to make illegal
business deals. Coolidge quickly punished
people involved in the deals. He
restored people’s faith in the presidency.
In 1924 Coolidge easily won the presidential
election.
Coolidge encouraged the expansion of
industry. He also led Congress to reduce
taxes. The economy grew significantly
during his term.
Coolidge generally avoided international
affairs. One exception was the Kellogg-
Briand Pact of 1928, which Coolidge’s
secretary of state helped to create. In the
pact, 62 nations agreed to end war as a
way of solving conflicts.
Retirement
Despite his popularity, Coolidge decided
not to run for reelection. In 1929 he
retired to Northampton, where he wrote
his autobiography and magazine and
newspaper articles. He died of a heart
attack on January 5, 1933.
..More to explore
Harding,Warren G.
Copenhagen
Population
(2008
estimate), urban
area,
1,153,615
Copenhagen is the capital of Denmark,
a country of northern Europe. The city
is a leading center of culture and
education in Europe. It is also the
largest city in Denmark. Copenhagen is
located on the islands of Zealand and
Amager.
In Copenhagen’s harbor is a statue that
some people say is the symbol of the
city. The statue shows the Little Mermaid,
a character from a fairy tale by
Hans Christian Andersen. Andersen
lived in Copenhagen most of his life.
Copenhagen is the center of business in
Denmark. Many people in the city work
for the government. Others work in
banking, education, communications,
and computer services. Factories in
Copenhagen process foods and make
medical equipment and medicines.
Shipping and trade through the port
also bring money to the city.
Copenhagen began as a small fishing
village that grew up around the harbor.
The village was settled by the 900s. In
1167 a fortress was built to protect the
village. Copenhagen became the capital
Copenhagen
has a worldfamous
amusement
park called
Tivoli.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Copenhagen 195
of Denmark in 1445. In the late 1500s
the city grew as a center of trade.
Two fires in the 1700s destroyed many
buildings in Copenhagen. The British
attacked the city in the early 1800s as
part of a larger war. However, Copenhagen
continued to grow.
#More to explore
Andersen, Hans Christian • Denmark
Copernicus,
Nicolaus
The Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus
was the first person to state that
Earth and the other planets travel
around the sun. This was an important
change in thinking. For hundreds of
years before that, most scholars believed
that the sun, stars, and planets revolved
around Earth. But they were mistaken.
Copernicus was born in Torun, Poland,
on February 19, 1473. He studied in
Poland and later in Italy. Copernicus
learned several subjects, including
astronomy, mathematics, medicine, and
church law. Following his studies, he
became an officer in the Roman Catholic
church. In his spare time he observed
the skies.
Copernicus developed many ideas about
the solar system, or the sun and the
objects that revolve around it. He correctly
stated that Earth travels around
the sun and also spins about its center.
Copernicus published his ideas in a
book in 1543. He died that same year,
on May 24 in what is now Frombork,
Poland. His book did not immediately
change the way people viewed the solar
A statue of the Little Mermaid sits
in Copenhagen’s harbor. The
statue is based on a story by
Hans Christian Andersen, an
author who lived in Copenhagen.
Nicolaus Copernicus
196 Copernicus, Nicolaus BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
system, but later thinkers realized that
his ideas were correct.
#More to explore
Astronomy • Planets • Solar System
Coral
Corals are sea animals that stay in one
place throughout their adult lives. Some
types produce a skeleton, also called
coral, that remains in place after they
die. Corals can be very colorful underwater,
but most types fade when they die
or are removed from the water. Corals
belong to the same animal group as sea
anemones.
Where Corals Live
Corals live in all the oceans of the world.
Some types live alone. Many types live
together in groups called colonies. Several
different types of corals together can
form enormous colonies. These colonies
are called coral reefs. The largest coral
reef in the world is the Great Barrier
Reef off the coast of Australia.
Physical Features
The many types of coral include stony,
soft, black, thorny, horny, and blue corals.
As they grow, corals form different
patterns and shapes. They may look like
feathers, fingers, branches, or even a
brain.
The body of a coral is called a polyp.
The polyp is a hollow structure that
attaches to a surface. Polyps of large
corals may grow to about 10 inches (25
centimeters) across. Other corals have
polyps as small as 0.04 inch (1 millimeter)
across. At the top of the polyp is a
mouth surrounded by tentacles. The
tentacles bring small sea animals to the
mouth. The tentacles also have stingers
that paralyze, or freeze, corals’ prey.
