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Cassirer, Ernst

(Encyclopedia)Cassirer, Ernst ĕrnst käsērˈər [key], 1874–1945, German philosopher. He was a professor at the Univ. of Hamburg from 1919 until 1933, when he went to Oxford; he later taught at Yale and Columbi...

cacao

(Encyclopedia)cacao kəkäˈō, –kāˈ– [key], tropical tree (Theobroma cacao) of the family Sterculiaceae (sterculia family), native to South America, where it was first domesticated and was highly prized by t...

Waterford, town, Republic of Ireland

(Encyclopedia)Waterford, town (1991 pop. 41,853), seat of Co. Waterford, S Republic of Ireland, on the Suir River near the head of Waterford Harbour. The port town is a center for the export of fruit, meat, and the...

flower

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Longitudinal cross section of a flower at the time of fertilization, showing a pollen grain and a pollen tube. flower, name for the specialized part of a plant containing the reproductive orga...

Khuzestan

(Encyclopedia)Khuzestan kho͞ozēstänˈ [key], province (1991 pop. 3,175,852), c.24,000 sq mi (62,160 sq km), SW Iran, bordering on Iraq in the west and the Persian Gulf in the south. Its major cities include Ahva...

mousebird

(Encyclopedia)mousebird or coly kōˈlē [key], common name for small, slender birds, comprising six species in the single genus Colius of the family Coliidae. They resemble mice in their soft, hairlike body feathe...

ginkgo

(Encyclopedia)ginkgo gĭngˈkō [key] or maidenhair tree, tall, slender, picturesque deciduous tree (Ginkgo biloba) with fan-shaped leaves. The ginkgo is native to E China, where it was revered by Buddhist monks an...

hyrax

(Encyclopedia)hyrax hīˈrăks [key], name for rabbit-sized mammals of Africa and SW Asia comprising the family Procavidae. Although rodentlike in appearance, hyraxes are hoofed mammals, or ungulates (see Chordata)...

aye-aye

(Encyclopedia)aye-aye īˈīˈ [key], name for an aberrant primate, Daubentonia madagascariensis, related to the lemurs but distinguished by its specialized teeth and fingers. A large nocturnal and arboreal primate...

staff tree

(Encyclopedia)staff tree, common name for some temperate members of the Celastraceae, a family of trees and shrubs (many of them climbing forms), widely distributed except in polar regions. These plants typically b...