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Speaker, Tris
(Encyclopedia)Speaker, Tris (Tristram Speaker), 1888–1958, American baseball player, b. Hubbard, Tex. He started (1906) in organized baseball as a left-handed pitcher for the Cleburne team of the North Texas Leag...sandalwood
(Encyclopedia)sandalwood, name for several fragrant tropical woods, especially for Santalum album, an evergreen partially parasitic tree either native to India or introduced there centuries ago. It is used for joss...olivine
(Encyclopedia)olivine ŏlĭvˈēn [key], an iron-magnesium silicate mineral, (Mg,Fe)2SiO4, crystallizing in the orthorhombic system. It is a common constituent of magnesium-rich, silica-poor igneous rocks; metamorp...pyracantha
(Encyclopedia)pyracantha pĭrˌəkănˈthə [key] or firethorn, any hardwood evergreen shrub of the genus Pyracantha of the family Rosaceae (rose family). Native from S Europe to W China, pyracanthas are now cultiv...obsidian
(Encyclopedia)obsidian ŏbsĭdˈēən [key], a volcanic glass, homogeneous in texture and having a low water content, with a vitreous luster and a conchoidal fracture. The color is commonly black, but may be some s...oarfish
(Encyclopedia)oarfish, large, elongated fish, genus Regalecus, found in the oceans worldwide except for the polar regions. Oarfish species are solitary and rarely seen by humans. The giant oarfish, R. glesne, is th...Gram's stain
(Encyclopedia)Gram's stain, laboratory staining technique that distinguishes between two groups of bacteria by the identification of differences in the structure of their cell walls. The Gram stain, named after its...ladybird beetle
(Encyclopedia)ladybird beetle or ladybug, member of a cosmopolitan beetle family with over 4,000 species, including 350 species in the United States. Ladybird beetles are mostly under 1⁄4 in. (6 mm) long and are ...feldspar
(Encyclopedia)feldspar fĕlˈspär [key], an abundant group of rock-forming minerals which constitute 60% of the earth's crust. Chemically the feldspars are silicates of aluminum, containing sodium, potassium, iron...blood bank
(Encyclopedia)blood bank, site or mobile unit for collecting, processing, typing, and storing whole blood, blood plasma and other blood constituents. Most hospitals maintain their own blood reserves, and the Americ...Browse by Subject
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