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wind

(Encyclopedia)wind, flow of air relative to the earth's surface. A wind is named according to the point of the compass from which it blows, e.g., a wind blowing from the north is a north wind. The diurnal, or dai...

Dewar flask

(Encyclopedia)Dewar flask [for Sir James Dewar], container after which the common thermos bottle is patterned. It consists of two flasks, one placed inside the other, with a vacuum between. The vacuum prevents the ...

Dee, river, Wales

(Encyclopedia)Dee, Welsh Dyfrdwy, river, c.70 mi (110 km) long, rising in the Cambrian Mts., Gwynedd, NW Wales, and flowing NE through Llyn Tegid (Bala Lake), then meandering through a picturesque course NE, N, and...

ice plant

(Encyclopedia)ice plant, low, fleshy plant (Cryophytum crystalinum) of warm, dry, barren regions. It is cultivated chiefly as a curiosity because of its leaves, densely coated with small, glistening, bladder-shaped...

antelope brush

(Encyclopedia)antelope brush, low, deciduous shrub (Purshia tridentata) of the family Rosaceae (rose family), widely distributed in the W United States where it is a characteristic constituent of the vegetation on ...

grape hyacinth

(Encyclopedia)grape hyacinth, any plant of the genus Muscari of the family Liliaceae (lily family), low plants with dense spikelike clusters of small, nodding flowers that are usually deep blue. Of more than 50 Old...

furze

(Encyclopedia)furze, any plant of the genus Ulex of the family Leguminosae (pulse family), low, densely branched shrubs with spiny leaves (when present) and fragrant yellow blossoms. U. europaeus, the common furze ...

Abaco Islands

(Encyclopedia)Abaco Islands ăbˈəkō [key], island group, c.780 sq mi (2,020 sq km), most northerly of the Bahamas. Also known as Abaco and Cays, the Abacos include Great Abaco (the largest), Little Abaco, and th...

Brauchitsch, Walther von

(Encyclopedia)Brauchitsch, Walther von välˈtər fən brouˈkhĭch [key], 1881–1948, German field marshal. Of a Prussian Junker family, he served in World War I with the general staff and later remained in the m...

buffalo grass

(Encyclopedia)buffalo grass, low perennial grass (Buchloe dactyloides) of the plains regions, one of the most important range grasses. Its dense matted growth is valuable also in erosion control. Buffalo grass usua...