Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia)  QAnon , a widely believed right-wing conspiracy theory. QAnon developed in the early years of Donald Trump’s presidency through the anonymous posts o...

(Encyclopedia) Gates, Robert Michael, 1943–, American government official, U.S. secretary of defense (2006–11), b. Wichita, Kans. A circumspect and pragmatic career intelligence officer, he joined (1966) the Cen...

(Encyclopedia) biology, the science that deals with living things. It is broadly divided into zoology, the study of animal life, and botany, the study of plant life. Subdivisions of each of these sciences include cy...

(Encyclopedia) Stuart or Stewart, John, 4th earl of Atholl ăthˈəl [key], d. 1579, Scottish nobleman. He succeeded his father to the earldom in 1542. A supporter of Mary of Guise, in 1559 he voted in Parliament ag...

(Encyclopedia) beat generation, term applied to certain American artists and writers who were popular during the 1950s. Essentially anarchic, members of the beat generation rejected traditional social and artistic f...

(Encyclopedia) Anderson, Sherwood, 1876–1941, American novelist and short-story writer, b. Camden, Ohio. After serving briefly in the Spanish-American War, he became a successful advertising man and later a manage...

(Encyclopedia) Lee, Spike (Shelton Jackson Lee), 1957–, African-American filmmaker, b. Atlanta, Ga. As a student at New York Univ., he won recognition with his gradu...

(Encyclopedia) Langland, William, c.1332–c.1400, putative author of Piers Plowman. He was born probably at Ledbury near the Welsh marshes and may have gone to school at Great Malvern Priory. Although he took minor...

(Encyclopedia) North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), accord establishing a free-trade zone in North America; it was signed in 1992 by Canada, Mexico, and the United States and took effect on Jan. 1, 1994. NAF...

(Encyclopedia) Dance Theatre of Harlem, the first black classical ballet company. The group was founded in Harlem, New York City, by Arthur Mitchell, then of the New York City Ballet, the first African-American prin...