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Tampico hemp

(Encyclopedia)Tampico hemp, fiber of various tropical American plants, among them the agave (see amaryllis). ...

Yorkton

(Encyclopedia)Yorkton, city (1991 pop. 15,315), SE Sask., Canada, NE of Regina. It is a railroad center and has large stockyards, warehouses, a flour mill, brick and cement plants, and a farm-implement plant. ...

hermaphrodite

(Encyclopedia)hermaphrodite hərmăfˈrədītˌ [key], animal or plant that normally possesses both male and female reproductive systems, producing both eggs and sperm. Many plants, including most flowering plants ...

Indian pipe

(Encyclopedia)Indian pipe, common name for the genus Monotropa and for the family Monotropaceae, low flowering plants of north temperate zones. They are chlorophylless saprophytes with a funguslike appearance. Each...

sweet cicely

(Encyclopedia)sweet cicely sĭsˈəlē [key], name for the European herb Myrrhis odorata and for closely related American and Asian plants of the genus Osmorhiza, all of the family Umbelliferae (parsley family). Bo...

fistula

(Encyclopedia)fistula fĭsˈcho͝olə [key], abnormal, usually ulcerous channellike formation between two internal organs or between an internal organ and the skin. It may follow a surgical procedure with improper ...

retrovirus

(Encyclopedia)retrovirus, type of RNA virus that, unlike other RNA viruses, reproduces by transcribing itself into DNA. An enzyme called reverse transcriptase allows a retrovirus's RNA to act as the template for th...

humus

(Encyclopedia)humus hyo͞oˈməs [key], organic matter that has decayed to a relatively stable, amorphous state. It is an important biological constituent of fertile soil. Humus is formed by the decomposing action ...

Rockefeller University

(Encyclopedia)Rockefeller University, philanthropic organization in New York City, founded 1901 as the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research by John D. Rockefeller for furthering medical science and its allied...

neuralgia

(Encyclopedia)neuralgia no͝orălˈjə, nyo͝o– [key], acute paroxysmal pain along a peripheral sensory nerve. Unlike neuritis, there is no inflammation or degeneration of nerve tissue. Neuralgia occurs commonly ...