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mastic

(Encyclopedia)mastic, resin obtained from the small mastic tree Pistacia lentiscus (of the sumac family), found chiefly in Mediterranean countries. When the bark of the tree is injured, the resin exudes in drops. I...

Arciniegas, Germán

(Encyclopedia)Arciniegas, Germán hĕrmänˈ ärsēnyāˈgäs [key], 1900–1999, Colombian historian and diplomat. A leading Latin American intellectual, he gained prominence as a journalist and publisher. A criti...

laburnum

(Encyclopedia)laburnum ləbûrˈnəm [key] or golden chain, small tree (Laburnum anagyroides) of the family Leguminosae (pulse family) with decorative dark green leaves and sprays of bright yellow flowers. It is na...

cabbage looper

(Encyclopedia)cabbage looper, moth larva, Trichoplusia ni, that feeds by night on the leaves of cabbage and related plants and is a serious agricultural pest. Like the inchworms (of another moth family), cabbage lo...

Brown, Helen Gurley

(Encyclopedia)Brown, Helen Gurley, 1922–2012, American writer and editor, b. Green Forest, Ark. A child of poverty, she became a successful advertising copywriter and wrote the best-selling Sex and the Single Gir...

Carolina parakeet

(Encyclopedia)Carolina parakeet, small, long-tailed bird, Canuropsis carolinensis, now believed extinct. The Carolina parakeet was the northernmost representative of the parrot family. It had green plumage with a y...

Bennington

(Encyclopedia)Bennington, town (2020 pop. 15,333), seat of Bennington co., SW Vt.; chartered 1749, settled 1761. It includes the villages of North Bennington and Old ...

watercress

(Encyclopedia)watercress, hardy perennial European herb (Nasturtium officinale) of the family Cruciferae (or Brassicaceae; mustard family), widely naturalized in North America, found in or around water. Often culti...

turquoise

(Encyclopedia)turquoise, hydrous phosphate of aluminum and copper, Al2(OH)3PO4·H2O+Cu, used as a gem. It occurs rarely in crystal form, but is usually cryptocrystalline. Turquoise is opaque and has a waxy luster; ...

trillium

(Encyclopedia)trillium or wake-robin trĭlˈēəm [key], any plant of the large genus Trillium, attractive spring wildflowers of the family Liliaceae (lily family), native to North America and E Asia. The leaves, p...