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parsnip, in botany

(Encyclopedia)parsnip, garden plant (Pastinaca sativa) of the family Umbelliferae (parsley family), native to the Old World. It has been cultivated since Roman times for its long, fleshy, edible root. Wine and beer...

herb

(Encyclopedia)herb ûrb, hûrb [key], name for any plant that is used medicinally or as a spice and for the useful product of such a plant. Herbs as condiments and seasonings are still important in culinary art; th...

eggplant

(Encyclopedia)eggplant, name for Solanum melongena, a large-leaved woody perennial shrub (often grown as an annual herb) of the family Solanaceae (nightshade family), and also cultivated for its ovoid fruit. Native...

Bosio, François Joseph, Baron

(Encyclopedia)Bosio, François Joseph, Baron fräNswäˈ zhôzĕfˈ bärôNˈ bôsyōˈ [key], 1769–1845, French sculptor. He was employed by Napoleon I to make the bas-reliefs for the column of the Place Vendôm...

Avalon Peninsula

(Encyclopedia)Avalon Peninsula, 3,579 sq mi (9,270 sq km), SE N.L., Canada, on Newfoundland. It is nearly divided at its center by Conception Bay and St. Mary's Bay. The peninsula is the most densely populated part...

Miriam

(Encyclopedia)Miriam mĭrˈēəm [key], in the Bible. 1 Sister of Moses and Aaron. After the crossing of the Sea of Reeds, she led the women in the song of Miriam. Later she sided with Aaron against Moses and was s...

Fleming, Sir Alexander

(Encyclopedia)Fleming, Sir Alexander, 1881–1955, Scottish bacteriologist, discoverer of penicillin (1928) and lysozyme (1922), an antibacterial substance found in saliva and other body secretions. Educated at St....

Habash al-Hasib

(Encyclopedia)Habash al-Hasib häbäshˈ äl-häsēbˈ [key], d. c.870, Arab mathematician and astronomer. Habash al-Hasib was born in what is now Mary, Turkmenistan, and worked in Baghdad. He calculated tables of ...

Kinross, town, Scotland

(Encyclopedia)Kinross kĭnrôsˈ [key], town (1991 pop. 3,459), Perth and Kinross, E Scotland, on Loch Leven. Kinross is an agricultural hub, with some woolen and linen manufacturing. Mary Queen of Scots was impris...

Bethune-Cookman College

(Encyclopedia)Bethune-Cookman College, at Daytona Beach, Fla.; United Methodist; coeducational. Named for its founder and first president, Mary McCleod Bethune, the school was formed as a result of a merger (1923) ...