The Acorn Weevil (Curculio glandium) is a species of Snout Beetle (Curculionidae) related to the Nut Weevil, but the larvae develop in acorns. Research Acorn Weevil
Balauus ('acorn-shells'), is a genus of sessile cirripedes, of the family Balanidae, of which colonies are to be found on rocks at low water, on timbers, crustaceans, shells of molluscs, etc. They differ from the barnacles in having a symmetrical shell, and being destitute of a flexible stalk. The shell consists of six plates, with an operculum of four valves. They pass through a larval state in which they are not fixed, moving by means of swimming feet which disappear in the final state. All the Balanidae are hermaphrodite. A South American species (Balanus psittacus) is eaten on the coast of Chill, the Balanus tintinnabulum by the Chinese. The old Roman epicures esteemed the larger species. Research Balanus
Cinnamon is a species of laurel (Cinnamomum zeylanicum), which is chiefly found in Sri Lanka, but grows also in Malabar and other parts of the East Indies. The tree attains the height of about nine meters, has oval leaves, pale-yellow flowers, and acorn-shaped fruit. The Ceylonese bark their trees in April and November, the barkcurling up into rolls or quills in the process of drying; the smaller quills being introduced into the larger ones. These are then assorted according to quality by tasters, and made up into bundles. An oil of cinnamon is prepared in Sri Lanka, but the oil of cassia is generally substituted for it; indeed, the cassiabark is often substituted for cinnamon, to which it has some resemblance, although in its qualities it is much weaker. The leaves, the fruit, and the root of the cinnamon plant all yield oil of considerable value; that from the fruit, being highly fragrant and of thick consistence, was formerly made into candles for the sole use of the King of Ceylon (Sri Lanka). Research Cinnamon
Cirripedia is the Cirrepedes subclass of crustacea. These are the barnacles and acorn shells. They are sedentary animals with a reduced head and abdomen. The most striking appendages are usually the six pairs of biramous thoracic feet, which are used in catching food, being swept through the water after the fashion of a fishing net. They are crustaceans which have undergone retrograde metamorphosis, being free-swimming in the larva form, but becoming after a time attached by the head. When adult they are affixed to some substance, either set directly upon it, as in the genusBalanus; or placed on a foot-stalk, as the barnacle; or sunk into the supporting substance, as the whale-barnacle. Research Cirripedia
The oak is a tree of the genusQuercus, family Fagaceae, family Cupuliferae. They have a three-celled ovary and bear a round nut called an acorn. The timber of the British oak - the Pedunculate Oak or Common Oak (Quercus robur) is very hard, though prone to twisting, and was formerly used for building warships. Research Oak
An acorn valve is a form of thermionic valve used at ultra-high frequencies, in which, by adopting very small dimensions and special constructions, the inter-electrode capacitances, lead inductances and transit time effects are greatly reduced. Research Acorn Valve
The BBC Master Compact was a British personal computer launched in 1986 by Acorn Computers, based on the 65C12 processor running at 2 Mhz. The BBC Master Compact was fitted with 128 kb of RAM and ran the BBC BASIC ADFS operating system. The
BBC Master Compact was available with a 12-inch green monochrome or 8-colour monitor and had a display resolution of 640 x 256 pixels or 40 or 80 x 20 character cells. The BBC Master Compact used an external 640 kb 3.25 inch floppy disk drive for storage. Research BBC Master Compact
The BBC Microcomputer was developed in 1982 in the UK by Acorn for the BBC. The first versions were developed from Acorn's earlier microcomputers, the Electron and the Atom, and based on Rockwell's 6502 microprocessor. The computer was also the beneficiary of UK Government funding to schools, which were able to buy the BBC Micro at reduced prices. As a result, it became the dominant microcomputer in British schools. The BBC Micro was a highly advanced microcomputer for its time, with full support for disc drives and network connection. Its immediate successor, the BBC Master, also sold well to schools, but was too expensive for home use and unsuccessful in the business market. In 1998 the BBC World Service was still using a BBC Microcomputer in one of the studios for editing scripts. Research BBC Microcomputer
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Acorn
