Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Miranda v. Arizona, U.S. Supreme Court case (1966) in the area of due process of law (see Fourteenth Amendment). The decision reversed an Arizona court's conviction of Ernesto Miranda on kidnapping an...

(Encyclopedia) parent and child, legal relationship, created by biological (birth) relationship or by adoption, that confers certain rights and duties on parent and child; in some states the courts have given the no...

(Encyclopedia) multiple personality, a very rare psychological disorder in which a person has two or more distinct personalities, each with its own thoughts, feelings, and patterns of behavior. The personalities oft...

(Encyclopedia) meteor shower, increase in the number of meteors observed in a particular part of the sky. The trails of the meteors of a meteor shower all appear to be traceable back to a single point in the sky, kn...

(Encyclopedia) Macapagal-Arroyo, Gloria ärōˈyō [key], 1947–, Philippine political leader, president of the Philippines (2001–10), daughter of Diosdado Macapagal. A professor of economics, she entered governm...

(Encyclopedia) Hiss, Alger ălˈjər [key], 1904–96, American public official, b. Baltimore. After serving (1929–30) as secretary to Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Hiss practiced law in Boston and New York City....

(Encyclopedia) Navalny, Alexei Anatolyevich, 1976–, Russian lawyer and political activist. Navalny joined the Russian United Democratic party...

(Encyclopedia) papal election, election of the pope by the college of cardinals meeting in secret conclave in the Sistine Chapel not less than 15 nor more than 18 days after the death of the previous pontiff. In the...

(Encyclopedia) British Indian Ocean Territory, archipelago, c.1,180 mi (1,900 km), NE of Mauritius, in the central Indian Ocean. The more than 50 islands, which form the Chagos Archipelago and are located on the sou...

(Encyclopedia) DeLay, Tom (Thomas Dale DeLay), 1947–, American politician, b. Laredo, Tex., grad. Univ. of Houston (B.S., 1970). A conservative Republican businessman, he entered politics (1979) as a Texas state l...