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ostracism

(Encyclopedia)ostracism ŏsˈtrəsĭzˌəm [key], ancient Athenian method of banishing a public figure. It was introduced after the fall of the family of Pisistratus. Each year the assembly took a preliminary vote ...

yew

(Encyclopedia)yew, name for evergreen trees or shrubs of the genus Taxus, somewhat similar to hemlock but bearing red berrylike fruits instead of true cones. Of somber appearance, with dark green leaves, the yew si...

masque

(Encyclopedia)masque, courtly form of dramatic spectacle, popular in England in the first half of the 17th cent. The masque developed from the early 16th-century disguising, or mummery, in which disguised guests be...

harrow, in agriculture

(Encyclopedia)harrow, farm implement, consisting of a wooden or metal framework bearing metal disks, teeth, or sharp projecting points, called tines, which is dragged over plowed land to pulverize the clods of eart...

geode

(Encyclopedia)geode jēˈōd [key], hollow, globular rock nodule ranging in diameter from 1 to 12 in. (2.54–30.5 cm) or more. Most geodes are partly filled with mineral matter; they have a thin layer of chalcedon...

Shiva

(Encyclopedia)Shiva or Siva shēˈvə [key], one of the greatest gods of Hinduism, also called Mahadeva. The “horned god” and phallic worship of the Indus valley civilization may have been a prototype of Shiva ...

flower

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Longitudinal cross section of a flower at the time of fertilization, showing a pollen grain and a pollen tube. flower, name for the specialized part of a plant containing the reproductive orga...

Lepidodendron and Sigillaria

(Encyclopedia)Lepidodendron sĭjĭlârˈēə [key], two principal genera of an extinct group of primitive vascular trees. They dominated the forests of the early Carboniferous period until the ferns gained ascendan...

conifer

(Encyclopedia)conifer kŏnˈĭfûr [key] [Lat.,=cone-bearing], tree or shrub of the order Coniferales, e.g., the pine, monkey-puzzle tree, cypress, and sequoia. Most conifers bear cones and most are evergreens, tho...

solenodon

(Encyclopedia)solenodon sōlēˈnədŏn [key], venomous insectivorous mammal, genus Solenodon, found in the West Indies. Related to moles and shrews, the solenodon resembles a rat with an elongated snout and coarse...