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Economic Botany
Economic botany is the study of the relationship between people (individuals and cultures) and plants. Economic botany intersects many fields including established disciplines such as agronomy, anthropology, archaeology, chemistry, economics, ethnobotany, ethnology, forestry, genetic resources, geography, geology, horticulture, medicine, microbiology, nutrition, pharmacognosy, and pharmacology. This link between botany and anthropology explores the ways humans use plants for food, medicines, and commerce. History In a 1958 essay at the conference that founded the Society for Economic Botany, David J. Rogers wrote, "A current viewpoint is that economic botany should concern itself with basic botanical, phytochemical and ethnological studies of plants known to be useful or those which may have potential uses so far underdeveloped. Economic botany is, then, a composite of those sciences working specifically with plants of importance to eople" Closely allied with economic botany ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plants
Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclude the fungi and some algae, as well as the prokaryotes (the archaea and bacteria). By one definition, plants form the clade Viridiplantae (Latin name for "green plants") which is sister of the Glaucophyta, and consists of the green algae and Embryophyta (land plants). The latter includes the flowering plants, conifers and other gymnosperms, ferns and their allies, hornworts, liverworts, and mosses. Most plants are multicellular organisms. Green plants obtain most of their energy from sunlight via photosynthesis by primary chloroplasts that are derived from endosymbiosis with cyanobacteria. Their chloroplasts contain chlorophylls a and b, which gives them their green color. Some plants are parasitic or mycotrophic and have lost the a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pseudoephedrine
Pseudoephedrine (PSE) is a sympathomimetic drug of the phenethylamine and amphetamine chemical classes. It may be used as a nasal/sinus decongestant, as a stimulant, or as a wakefulness-promoting agent in higher doses. It was first characterized in 1889 by the German chemists Ladenburg and Oelschlägel, who used a sample that had been isolated from ''Ephedra vulgaris'' by the Merck pharmaceutical corporation of Darmstadt, Germany. The salts pseudoephedrine hydrochloride and pseudoephedrine sulfate are found in many over-the-counter preparations, either as a single ingredient or (more commonly) in a fixed-dose combination with one or more additional active ingredients such as antihistamines, guaifenesin, dextromethorphan, paracetamol (acetaminophen) or an NSAID (such as aspirin or ibuprofen). Medical uses Pseudoephedrine is a stimulant, but it is well known for shrinking swollen nasal mucous membranes, so it is often used as a decongestant. It reduces tissue h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zea (plant)
''Zea'' is a genus of flowering plants in the grass family. The best-known species is ''Z. mays'' (variously called maize, corn, or Indian corn), one of the most important crops for human societies throughout much of the world. The four wild species are commonly known as teosintes and are native to Mesoamerica. Etymology ''Zea'' is derived from the Greek name () for another cereal grain (possibly spelt).Gledhill, David (2008). "The Names of Plants". Cambridge University Press. (hardback), (paperback). pp 411 Recognized species The five accepted species names in the genus are: ''Zea mays'' is further divided into four subspecies: ''Z. m. huehuetenangensis'', ''Z. m. mexicana'', '' Z. m. parviglumis'' (Balsas teosinte, the ancestor of maize), and ''Z. m. mays''. The first three subspecies are teosintes; the last is maize, or corn, the only domesticated taxon in the genus ''Zea''. The genus is divided into two sections: ''Luxuriantes'', with ''Z. diploperennis'', ''Z. luxur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rice Husk
Rice hulls (or rice husks) are the hard protecting coverings of grains of rice. In addition to protecting rice during the growing season, rice hulls can be put to use as building material, fertilizer, insulation material, or fuel. Rice hulls are part of the chaff of the rice. Production Rice hulls are part of the rice seed. The hull protects the grain during the growing season from pests. The hull is formed from hard materials, including opaline silica and lignin. The hull is hard to eat or swallow (unless finely ground) and mostly indigestible to humans because of its enriched fibre components. However, during times of food scarcity in ancient China, a common daily meal was a pastry made from rice husks, wild vegetables, and soybean powder. This led to the idiom "meals of cereal, hulls, and vegetables for half a year," indicating poverty and food insecurity. Testing and commercialization of human grade anti-caking agents were done in the early 2000s. The material is appr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rainfall
Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water for hydroelectric power plants, crop irrigation, and suitable conditions for many types of ecosystems. The major cause of rain production is moisture moving along three-dimensional zones of temperature and moisture contrasts known as weather fronts. If enough moisture and upward motion is present, precipitation falls from convective clouds (those with strong upward vertical motion) such as cumulonimbus (thunder clouds) which can organize into narrow rainbands. In mountainous areas, heavy precipitation is possible where upslope flow is maximized within windward sides of the terrain at elevation which forces moist air to condense and fall out as rainfall along the sides of mountains. On the leeward side of mountains, desert climates ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grain
A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit ( caryopsis) – with or without an attached hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and legumes. After being harvested, dry grains are more durable than other staple foods, such as starchy fruits ( plantains, breadfruit, etc.) and tubers ( sweet potatoes, cassava, and more). This durability has made grains well suited to industrial agriculture, since they can be mechanically harvested, transported by rail or ship, stored for long periods in silos, and milled for flour or pressed for oil. Thus, the grain market is a major global commodity market that includes crops such as maize, rice, soybeans, wheat and other grains. Grains and cereal Grains and cereal are synonymous with caryopses, the fruits of the grass family. In agronomy and commerce, seeds or fruits from other plant families are called grains if they resem ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tropics
The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to as the tropical zone and the torrid zone (see geographical zone). In terms of climate, the tropics receive sunlight that is more direct than the rest of Earth and are generally hotter and wetter as they aren't affected as much by the solar seasons. The word "tropical" sometimes refers to this sort of climate in the zone rather than to the geographical zone itself. The tropical zone includes deserts and snow-capped mountains, which are not tropical in the climatic sense. The tropics are distinguished from the other climatic and biomatic regions of Earth, which are the middle latitudes and the polar regions on either side of the equatorial zone. The tropics constitute 40% of Earth's surface area and contain 36% of Earth's landmass. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Domesticated
Domestication is a sustained multi-generational relationship in which humans assume a significant degree of control over the reproduction and care of another group of organisms to secure a more predictable supply of resources from that group. A broader biological definition is that it is a coevolutionary process that arises from a mutualism, in which one species (the domesticator) constructs an environment where it actively manages both the survival and reproduction of another species (the domesticate) in order to provide the former with resources and/or services. The domestication of plants and animals by humans was a major cultural innovation ranked in importance with the conquest of fire, the manufacturing of tools, and the development of verbal language. Charles Darwin recognized the small number of traits that made domestic species different from their wild ancestors. He was also the first to recognize the difference between conscious selective breeding (i.e. artificial sel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wild Rice
Wild rice, also called manoomin, Canada rice, Indian rice, or water oats, is any of four species of grasses that form the genus ''Zizania'', and the grain that can be harvested from them. The grain was historically gathered and eaten in both North America and China, but eaten less in China, where the plant's stem is used as a vegetable. Wild rice is not directly related to domesticated rice ('' Oryza sativa'' and '' Oryza glaberrima''), although they are close cousins, all belonging to the tribe Oryzeae. Wild-rice grains have a chewy outer sheath with a tender inner grain that has a slightly vegetal taste. The plants grow in shallow water in small lakes and slow-flowing streams; often, only the flowering head of wild rice rises above the water. The grain is eaten by dabbling ducks and other aquatic wildlife. Species Three species of wild rice are native to North America: * Northern wild rice (''Zizania palustris'') is an annual plant native to the Great Lakes region ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Functional Food
A functional food is a food claimed to have an additional (often one related to health promotion or disease prevention) by adding new ingredients or more of existing ingredients. The term may also apply to traits purposely bred into existing edible plants, such as purple or gold potatoes having increased anthocyanin or carotenoid contents, respectively. Functional foods may be "designed to have physiological benefits and/or reduce the risk of chronic disease beyond basic nutritional functions, and may be similar in appearance to conventional food and consumed as part of a regular diet". The term was first used in the 1980s in Japan, where there is a government approval process for functional foods called Foods for Specified Health Use (FOSHU). Industry The functional food industry, consisting of food, beverage and supplement sectors, is one of the several areas of the food industry that is experiencing fast growth in recent years.Roberts, W. "Benefiting Beverages." ''Prepare ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plant & Food Research
Plant & Food Research (Māori: Rangahau Ahumāra Kai) is a New Zealand Crown Research Institute (CRI). Its purpose is to enhance the value and productivity of New Zealand's horticultural, arable, seafood and food & beverage industries. The interests of the institute are based in horticulture, arable and seafood research, specifically in the areas of sustainable production, bioprotection, elite genetics & intelligent breeding, food and health science and biomaterials. The institute was formed on 1 December 2008 by merging existing CRIs HortResearch and Crop and Food Research. Plant & Food has over 900 staff based at sites throughout New Zealand as well as science and business development staff working in the United States, Europe, Asia and Australia. Notable staff Trish Fraser Patricia M. Fraser is a New Zealand soil scientist at Crown Research Institute Plant & Food Research in Lincoln. Her work focuses on the role of earthworms in the soil, and nitrate leaching, to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Economic Botany
''Economic Botany'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal that covers all aspects of economic botany. The editor-in-chief is Robert A. Voeks ( California State University, Fullerton). The journal was established in 1947 and is published by Springer Science+Business Media and the New York Botanical Garden Press on behalf of the Society for Economic Botany. Authors have a choice to publish articles under the traditional subscription model or an Open Access model. Abstracting and indexing The journal is abstracted and indexed in: According to the ''Journal Citation Reports'', the journal has a 2020 impact factor The impact factor (IF) or journal impact factor (JIF) of an academic journal is a scientometric index calculated by Clarivate that reflects the yearly mean number of citations of articles published in the last two years in a given journal, as ... of 1.731. References External links *{{Official website, http://www.nybgpress.org/Products/CategoryCenter/JL ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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