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Pleistocene epoch

(Encyclopedia)Pleistocene epoch plīˈstəsēn [key], 6th epoch of the Cenozoic era of geologic time (see Geologic Timescale, tablegeologic timescale, table). According to a classification that considered its depos...

New Zealand spinach

(Encyclopedia)New Zealand spinach, succulent annual (Tetragonia expansa) of Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and S South America, grown for the edible leaves. The plant grows prostrate, often spreading to cover sever...

Lee, Jesse

(Encyclopedia)Lee, Jesse, 1758–1816, American Methodist clergyman, b. Virginia. He is known as the apostle of Methodism in New England where, from 1789 to 1798, his labors as an itinerant preacher over a wide are...

San Marcos, University of

(Encyclopedia)San Marcos, University of, at Lima, Peru; the first university in South America; founded 1551 by the Spanish king Charles I (Holy Roman Emperor Charles V) and recognized by papal bull in 1571; closed ...

siderite

(Encyclopedia)siderite kălˈĭbīt [key], a mineral, varying in color from brown, green, or gray to black and occurring in nature in massive and crystalline form. A carbonate of iron, FeCO3, it serves as an iron o...

Palmas, Las

(Encyclopedia)Palmas, Las läs pälˈmäs [key], city (1990 pop. 373,846), capital of Las Palmas prov., Spain, on Grand Canary. The harbor nearby, at Puerto de la Luz, is the chief port of the Canary Islands and th...

Punta del Este

(Encyclopedia)Punta del Este po͞onˈtä ᵺĕl āsˈtā [key], city (1996 pop. 8,252), E Uruguay, on the Atlantic Ocean. Located on a narrow peninsula surrounded by excellent beaches, Punta del Este is one of the ...

huckleberry

(Encyclopedia)huckleberry, any plant of the genus Gaylussacia, shrubs of the family Ericaceae (heath family), native to North and South America. The box huckleberry (G. brachycera) of E North America is evergreen a...

Waldseemüller, Martin

(Encyclopedia)Waldseemüller, Martin märˈtĭn vältˌzāmülˈər [key], Gr. Ilacomilus, 1470?–1522?, German cosmographer. A member of a society of humanists known as the Gymnasium Vosagense, he lived at Saint-...

curlew

(Encyclopedia)curlew kûrˈlo͞o [key], common name for large shore birds of both hemispheres, generally brown and buff in color and with decurved bills. There are eight species, belonging to the genus Numenius. Th...