cow |
bottle |
top 10 words in brain distribution (in article): animal species cat breed male human dog wild record female |
top 10 words in brain distribution (in article): produce drink water metal design modern wine size time shape |
top 10 words in brain distribution (not in article): wolf hunt card bear lion elephant tiger service prey information |
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times more probable under cow 30 20 10 6 4 2.5 1.25 1 1.25 2.5 4 6 10 20 30 times more probable under bottle (words not in the model) | |
Cattle'", colloquially referred to as "'cows'", are domesticated ungulates, a member of the subfamily Bovinae of the family Bovidae. They are raised as livestock for meat (called beef and veal), dairy products (milk), leather and as draft animals (pulling carts, plows and the like). In some countries, such as India, they are honored in religious ceremonies and revered. It is estimated that there are 1.3 billion cattle in the world today. Species of cattle. Cattle were originally identified by Carolus Linnaeus as three separate species. These were "Bos taurus", the European cattle, including similar types from Africa and Asia; "Bos indicus", the zebu; and the extinct "Bos primigenius", the aurochs. The aurochs is ancestral to both zebu and European cattle. More recently these three have increasingly been grouped as one species, with "Bos primigenius taurus", "Bos primigenius indicus" and "Bos primigenius primigenius" as the subspecies. Complicating the matter is the ability of cattle to interbreed with other closely related species. Hybrid individuals and even breeds exist, not only between European cattle and zebu but also with yaks (called a dzo), banteng, gaur, and bison ("cattalo"), a cross-genera hybrid. For example, genetic testing of the Dwarf Lulu breed, the only humpless "Bos taurus"-type" cattle in Nepal, found them to be a mix of European cattle, zebu and yak. Cattle cannot successfully be bred with water buffalo or African buffalo. The aurochs originally ranged throughout Europe, North Africa, and much of Asia. In historical times, their range was restricted to Europe, and the last animals were killed by poachers in Masovia, Poland, in 1627. Breeders have attempted to recreate cattle of similar appearance to aurochs by crossing of domesticated cattle breeds, creating the Heck cattle breed. (See also aurochs and zebu articles.) Word origin. "Cattle" did not originate as a name for bovine animals. It derives from the Latin "caput", head, and originally meant movable property, especially livestock of any kind. The word is closely related to "chattel" (a unit of personal property) and "capital" in the economic sense. Older English sources like King James Version of the Bible refer to livestock in general as cattle (as opposed to the word deer which then was used for wild animals). Additionally other species of the genus "Bos" are sometimes called wild cattle. Today, the modern meaning of "cattle", without any other qualifier, is usually restricted to domesticated bovines. Terminology of cattle. In general, the same words are used in different parts of the world but with minor differences in the definitions. The terminology described here contrasts the differences in definition between the United States and other British influenced parts of world such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. Singular terminology dilemma. "Cattle" can only be used in the plural and not in the singular: it is a plurale tantum. Thus one may refer to "three cattle" or "some cattle", but not "one cattle". There is no universally used singular equivalent in modern English to "cattle", other than the gender and age-specific terms such as cow, bull, steer and heifer. Strictly speaking, the singular noun for the domestic bovine was "ox", however, "ox" today is rarely used in this general sense. An ox today generally denotes a draft beast, most commonly a castrated male (but is not to be confused with the unrelated wild musk ox). "Cow" has been in general use as a singular for the collective "cattle" in spite of the objections of those who say that it is a female-specific term, so that that phrases such as "that cow is a bull" would be absurd from a lexicographic standpoint. However, it is easy to use when a singular is needed and the gender is not known, as in "There is a cow in the road". Further, any herd of fully mature cattle in or near a pasture is statistically likely to consist mostly of cows, so the term is probably accurate even in the restrictive sense. Other than the few bulls needed for breeding, the vast majority of male cattle are castrated as calves and slaughtered for meat before the age of three years. Thus, in a pastured herd, any calves or herd bulls usually are clearly distinguishable from the cows due to distinctively different sizes and clear anatomical differences. The Oxford English Dictionary lists the use of "cows" as a synonym for "cattle" as an American usage. Merriam-Webster, a U.S. dictionary, recognizes the non-gender-specific use of "cow" as an alternate definition, whereas Collins, a UK dictionary, does not. Colloquially, more general non-specific terms may denote cattle when a singular form is needed. Australian, New Zealand and British farmers use the term "beast" or "cattle beast". "Bovine" is also used in Britain. The term "critter" is common in the western United States and Canada, | A bottle'" is a container with a neck that is narrower than the body and a "mouth." Bottles are often made of glass, clay, plastic or other impervious materials, and typically used to store liquids such as water, milk, soft drinks, beer, wine, cooking oil, medicine, shampoo, ink and chemicals. A device applied in the bottling line to seal the mouth of a bottle is termed a bottle cap (external), or stopper (internal). A bottle can also be sealed using induction sealing. The bottle has developed over millennia of use, with some of the earliest examples appearing in China, Phoenicia, Rome and Crete. The Chinese used bottles to store liquids. In modern times for some bottles a legally mandated deposit is paid, which is refunded after returning the bottle to the retailer. For other glass bottles there is often separate garbage collection for recycling. History. Since prehistoric times, bottle containers were created from clay or asphaltum sealed woven containers. Early glass bottles were produced by the Phoenicians; specimens of Phoenician translucent and transparent glass bottles have been found in Cyprus and Rhodes generally varying in length from three to six inches. These Phoenician examples from the first millennium BC were thought to have been used for perfume. The Romans For wine. The glass bottle was an important development in the history of wine, because, when combined with a high-quality stopper such as a cork, it allowed long-term aging of wine. Glass has all the qualities required for long-term storage. It eventually gave rise to "château bottling", the practice where an estate's wine is put in bottle at the source, rather than by a merchant. Prior to this, wine would be sold by the barrel (and before that, the amphora) and put into bottles only at the merchant's shop, if at all. This left a large and often abused opportunity for fraud and adulteration, as the consumer had to trust the merchant as to the contents. It is thought that most wine consumed outside of wine-producing regions had been tampered with in some way. Also, not all merchants were careful to avoid oxidation or contamination while bottling, leading to large bottle variation. Particularly in the case of port, certain conscientious merchants' bottling of old ports fetch higher prices even today. To avoid these problems, most fine wine is bottled at the place of production (including all port, since 1974). There are many sizes and shapes of bottles used for wine. Some of the known shapes: Codd-neck bottles==. In 1872, British soft drink maker Hiram Codd of Camberwell, south east London, designed and patented a bottle designed specifically for carbonated drinks. The "'Codd-neck bottle'", as it was called, was designed and manufactured to enclose a marble and a rubber gasket in the neck. The bottles were filled upside down, and pressure of the gas in the bottle forced the marble against the washer, sealing in the carbonation. The bottle was pinched into a special shape, as can be seen in the photo to the right, to provide a chamber into which the marble was pushed to open the bottle. This prevented the marble from blocking the neck as the drink was poured Soon after its introduction, the bottle became extremely popular with the soft drink and brewing industries mainly in Europe, Asia and Australasia, though some alcohol drinkers disdained the use of the bottle. One etymology of the term "codswallop" originates from beer sold in Codd bottles. The bottles were regularly produced for many decades, but gradually declined in usage. Since children smashed the bottles to retrieve the marbles, they are relatively rare and have become collector items; particularly in the UK. A cobalt coloured Codd bottle today fetches thousands of British pounds at auction. The Codd-neck design is still used for the Japanese soft drink Ramune and in the Indian drink called Banta. Plastic bottles. Plastic bottles (e.g. two-liter) used for soft drinks can withstand typical internal carbonation pressures of 2–4 bar (30–60 psi.), because the plastic is strain oriented in the stretch blow molding manufacturing process. Aluminum bottles. The aluminum beverage bottle, launched in 2002, also known as a bottlecan, is made of recyclable aluminum with a resealable lug cap that fits onto a plastic sleeve. Some studies have concluded that aluminum provides for increased insulation keeping beverages cooler longer than glass. Capsules. Some jars and bottles have a metal cap or cover called a capsule. They were historically made of lead, and protected the cork from being gnawed away by rodents or infested with cork weevil. Because of research showing that trace amounts of lead could remain on the lip of the bottle, lead capsules (lead foil bottleneck wrappings) were slowly phased out, and by the 1990s most capsules were made of aluminum foil or plastic. |