Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Rhee, Syngman sĭngˈmən rē [key], 1875–1965, Korean statesman, president of the Republic of Korea (1948–60). Early an advocate of Korean independence, he led a demonstration against the Japanes...

(Encyclopedia) Dulles, John Foster dŭlˈəs [key], 1888–1959, U.S. secretary of state (1953–59), b. Washington, D.C.; brother of Allen Dulles, grandson of John Watson Foster, secretary of state under President ...

(Encyclopedia) parole pərōlˈ [key], in criminal law, release from prison of a convict before the expiration of his term on condition that his activities be restricted and that he report regularly to an officer. T...

(Encyclopedia) Hamlisch, Marvin, 1944–2012, American composer, conductor, and pianist, b. New York City, grad. Queens College (B.S., 1967). A versatile and prolific composer of melodies ranging from the soulfully ...

(Encyclopedia) Shannon, principal river of the Republic of Ireland and longest (c.240 mi/390 km) in the British Isles. It rises near Cuilcagh Mt., NW Co. Cavan, and flows S through the Central Plain into Co. Limeric...

(Encyclopedia) land-grant colleges and universities, U.S. institutions benefiting from the provisions of the Morrill Act (1862), which gave to the states federal lands for the establishment of colleges offering prog...

(Encyclopedia) Ransom, John Crowe, 1888–1974, American poet and critic, b. Pulaski, Tenn., grad. Vanderbilt Univ. and studied at Oxford as a Rhodes scholar. He is considered one of the great stylists of 20th-centu...

(Encyclopedia) Arnold, Benedict, 1741–1801, American Revolutionary general and traitor, b. Norwich, Conn. As a youth he served for a time in the colonial militia in the French and Indian Wars. He later became a pr...

(Encyclopedia) standard time, civil time used within a given time zone. The earth is divided into 24 time zones, each of which is about 15° of longitude wide and corresponds to one hour of time. Within a zone all c...

(Encyclopedia) angry young men, term applied to a group of English writers of the 1950s whose heroes share certain rebellious and critical attitudes toward society. This phrase, which was originally taken from the t...