Cucurbita (Latin for gourd) is a genus of vines in the gourd family,
native to the Andes and Mesoamerica. Five species are grown worldwide,
variously known as squash, pumpkin, or gourd depending on species,
variety, and local parlance. The fruits have played a role in human
culture for at least 2,000 years. First cultivated in the Americas
before being brought to Europe by returning explorers, the plants remain
an important food source. Most Cucurbita species are herbaceous vines
that grow several meters in length and have tendrils, but bush cultivars
of C. pepo and C. maxima have also been developed. Many North and
Central American species are visited by honey bees, as well as
specialist bees that pollinate only a single species. Most of the
domesticated species can be considered winter squash, since the full-
grown fruits can be stored for months. Their extracts have many uses,
including in cosmetics for dry and sensitive skin. The fruits are also
good sources of vitamins and minerals in foods such as pumpkin pie,
biscuits, bread, desserts, puddings, beverages, and soups.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cucurbita>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
475:
Romulus Augustulus took the throne as the last ruling emperor of
the Western Roman Empire.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romulus_Augustulus>
1517:
According to traditional accounts, Martin Luther first posted
his Ninety-Five Theses onto the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg,
present-day Germany, marking the beginning of the Protestant
Reformation.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ninety-Five_Theses>
1917:
World War I: Allied forces defeated Turkish troops in Beersheba
in Southern Palestine at the Battle of Beersheba, often reported as "the
last successful cavalry charge in history".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Beersheba_(1917)>
1973:
Three Provisional Irish Republican Army members escaped from
Mountjoy Prison in Dublin after a hijacked helicopter landed in the
prison's exercise yard.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountjoy_Prison_helicopter_escape>
2011:
The United Nations declared that the world's population had
exceeded seven billion.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7_Billion_Actions>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
zombocalypse:
(slang, fiction) The breakdown of society as a result of a zombie
outbreak
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/zombocalypse>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
If I should die, I have left no immortal work behind me —
nothing to make my friends proud of my memory — but I have loved the
principle of beauty in all things, and if I had had time I would have
made myself remembered.
--John Keats
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Keats>