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Melissa Petruzzello
Melissa Petruzzello
Encyclopædia Britannica Editor
Connect with Melissa Petruzzello
BIOGRAPHY

Melissa Petruzzello is Assistant Managing Editor and covers a range of content including plants, algae, and fungi; insects and spiders; and renewable energy and environmental engineering. She has her M.S. in Plant Biology and Conservation from Northwestern University and a B.S. in Biological Science from Biola University. 

 

Primary Contributions (351)
miracle fruit
miracle fruit
Miracle fruit, (Synsepalum dulcificum), evergreen shrub of the family Sapotaceae, grown for its mild fruits that make subsequently eaten sour foods taste sweet. The miracle fruit plant is native to tropical West Africa, where it is used locally to sweeten palm wine and other beverages. The…
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stinging nettle
quinoa
poison hemlock
kombucha
list of plant fibers
cicada
Transfiguration
Sagrada Família
stingless bee
wasabi
kiwi
cockroach
zombie-ant fungus
periodical cicada
Vaiont Dam
neem
tomatillo
shiitake mushroom
angel’s trumpet
John Newton
diviner’s sage
carpenter bee
cauliflower
Sichuan pepper
herbaceous plant
golden rice
bulgur
parallelogram
list of bridges
khat
list of race riots and massacres in the United States
almond
Tammy Faye Messner
Pan-American Highway
lemon balm
water scarcity
acai
transpiration
baobab
list of ants, bees, and wasps
compost
mammon
black cumin
agave
ghost pepper
amaranth
tamale
titan arum
Gotthard Base Tunnel
holy basil
patchouli
xylem
Araceae
mate
Oral Roberts
Chipko movement
Nephilim
Sunshine Skyway Bridge
spelt
list of U.S. state birds
Sharon Tate
ichneumon wasp
mason bee
list of plants in the family Solanaceae
Bob Jones, Sr.
Benny Hinn
Joyce Meyer
list of pirates
Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches of North America
kalanchoe
Saddleback Church
Starbucks
milkweed
10 Insects That Look Like Jewels
common garden insects and their larvae
major types of pollinators
human composting
list of carnivorous plants
What’s the difference between moths and butterflies?
teff
Los Angeles Chinese Massacre of 1871
list of doctors of the church
air quality index
list of mosses
St. Josephine Bakhita
Paul Rudd
particulate matter
Lentinula
king oyster mushroom
portobello mushroom
The six criteria air pollutants
Plant Chemicals: Healing, Hallucinogenic, and Harmful
Samuel Seabury
David Fairchild
geothermal heat pump
aster
10 Organisms Named for David Attenborough
list of fungi
calendula
nucleolus
Coffea
St. Gregory of Narek
list of plants in the family Rosaceae
list of economically important members of the family Rosaceae
list of snakes
list of culinary fruits
Droseraceae
sundew
Western Australian pitcher plant
list of presidents of Argentina
list of birth month flowers
hogweed
nectary
Little Lovely Lichens
monoculture
Emerald Ash Borer: At a Glance
Plantaginaceae
Monterey pine
Japanese knotweed
Plant Chemicals: Tasty and Terrifying
Eugenia
Cascade Tunnel
Jane Goodall: A Life in Pictures
Orobanchaceae
maca
list of cheeses
stevia
list of economically important members of the family Fabaceae
list of plants in the family Fabaceae
adzuki bean
Hydnora
list of plants in the family Asparagaceae
Asparagaceae
list of plants in the family Araceae
list of botanists
mung bean
Daniel-Johnson Dam
Missionaries of Charity
Pure Food and Drug Act
stamen
petal
telophase
metaphase
list of plants in the family Bromeliaceae
list of economically important members of the family Brassicaceae
list of plants in the family Brassicaceae
Orthodox Church of Ukraine
reforestation
chia
list of dams
list of tunnels
list of saints
neonicotinoid
Vasco da Gama Bridge
emerald ash borer
dewberry
list of books of the New Testament
list of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae
list of plants in the family Rutaceae
list of economically important members of the family Malvaceae
list of plants in the family Malvaceae
list of economically important members of the family Solanaceae
aloe
list of plants in the family Amaryllidaceae
Ganoderma
mandacaru
list of plants in the family Amaranthaceae
tropical dry forest
Mediterranean vegetation
coppice
flowering quince
list of culinary nuts
Letter to Diognetus
list of oak species
list of plants in the family Fagaceae
list of vegetables
Botanize!
list of herbs and spices
list of plants in the family Lamiaceae
list of economically important members of the family Lamiaceae
lamb’s ears
Wild, Wild Yeasts
list of plants in the family Betulaceae
beard lichen
list of plants in the family Ericaceae
arum
list of lichens
Mangroves Matter
The Orchid and the Fungus
heliconia
Otters, Algae, and Plants, Oh My
Strelitziaceae
Stench of the Titans
Rare but Not Forgotten
The Clone Giants
Doting on Dodder
Plants on Fire
On Plant Blindness
Seeds on Ice
epiphyte
eelgrass
tape grass
list of plants in the family Poaceae
nectar
list of plants in the family Moraceae
list of plants in the family Apiaceae
list of economically important members of the family Apiaceae
list of cycads
Cannabaceae
Pilobolus
sapote
dendrology
list of plants in the family Asteraceae
list of plants in the family Orchidaceae
list of plants in the family Cactaceae
herbarium
Schlumbergera
poison sumac
hydrilla
poison oak
Macrocystis
Laminaria
Rhizopus
spider plant
Chlorophytum
African cypress
snowflake
barnyard grass
mountain mahogany
Avicennia
Buxales
Various types of sugar. Organic compound. Glucose. Refined sugar, raw sugar, brown sugar, sugar cubes spoon wood
What’s the Difference Between Cane Sugar and Beet Sugar?
Yams and sweet potato, root vegetables
What’s the Difference Between Sweet Potatoes and Yams?
Close-up of tobacco plants in Ontario, Canada. Tobacco, Nicotiana, cured leaves used after processing in various ways for smoking, snuffing, chewing, and extracting of nicotine.
7 of the World’s Deadliest Plants
Community service - volunteers picking up garbage in a park during a spring cleanup. Environmentalism
A Timeline of Environmental History
The Cathedral of Saint Paul in Minnesota. The Italian Renaissance church, built in 1915, is styled after St. Peter's in Rome.
To All Nations: 8 Fascinating Jesuit Missionaries
Flower bingo
Britannica’s Flower Bingo
Glowworm (Lampyris noctiluca); female glowing at night, Cornwall, England. (beetles, insects, glow worms)
How Do Glowworms Glow?
Rusty patched bumble bee (Bombus affinis) photographed in the Midwest in 2017. endangered species insect pollination
Incredible Facts About Bees
Pine cones of a Sugar Pine (Pinus lambertiana) longest cone of any conifer on a pine tree, June 9, 2003. pine cone.
The 7 Best Pinecones (Really!)
Bear Hat Mountain above Hidden Lake on a crest of the Continental Divide in Glacier National Park, Montana
Exploring 7 of Earth’s Great Mountain Ranges
Sunlight shining on leaves. Photosynthesis
What Does Photosynthesis Produce?
Overhead view of high protein foods: chicken, meat, spinach, eggs, nuts, bean, cheese. (nutrition, health, food, diet)
Why Is Eating Protein Important?
Close-up of marijuana plant growing outdoors
What Is the Difference Between Hemp and Marijuana?
Close up of green grass
Why Is Grass Green?
Feed corn ready for harvest after drying in the field, Kings Hill County, Virginia. Agriculture food grain cereal corncob
18 Food Crops Developed in the Americas
DNA strands on blue background
What Is the Difference Between DNA and RNA?
Water sits in a macro at a a restored wetland area in Starke County, Indiana May 25, 2021. The area is enrolled in the NRCS' Wetland Reserve Easement Program. The easement includes 200.6 acres of former cropland that were restored to create wetland, prairie and forest habitat for wildlife. The purpose of the macros is to provide habit and food to a variety of animals including migrating waterfowl, while returning the landscape to its natural appearance prior to the installation of drainage for agriculture and urban development.
How Do You Rewild an Environment?
Atomic cloud formation from the Baker Day explosion over the Bikini Atoll; photo created July 25, 1946. (Test Baker, mushroom cloud, underwater nuclear explosion)
Why Does a Mushroom Cloud Look Like a Mushroom?
Gray wolf. Grey wolf. Timber wolf. Canis lupus. Canidae. Wolves. Two gray wolves running in forest near Golden, British Columbia, Canada.
Why Do Scientific Names Have Two Parts?
Father and daughter looking at autumn leaves
Why Do Leaves Change Color in the Fall?
Ripe red tomatoes (Solanum) and green tomato on plant. Fruit vegetable tomato
Why Are Tomatoes Red?
Tilled farmland. (farming, dirt, soil conservation)
Could We Lose All the Soil on Earth?
Large ocean waves breaking on a stormy day. (wave; sea; whitecaps; storm)
Why Is There Fresh and Salt Water on Earth?
Puppy dog having a bath looking into the camera. Wet dog, canines
Why Do Wet Dogs Have A Wet Dog Smell?
Asian face showing emotion (talking, speaking).
Why Does Your Voice Change as You Age?
Man washing his hands with a bar of soap over a sink with water running. (hygiene, cleanliness, hand washing)
How Does Soap Work?
Niagara Falls, American side, Buffalo, New York. (states)
How Old Is Niagara Falls?
Checking a petri dish with genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in a experimental laboratory setting.
When Were the First GMOs Developed?
Leaves are silhouetted against an orange and yellow sky with twilight. (plants, petioles, nature)
Do Plants Emit Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide at Night?
High angle view of a woman crossing a road. City streets, asphalt, bike lanes, car traffic, pedestrians
Why Are Roads Made of Asphalt?
Honeybee's landing moment. Honeybee, wings still in motion, lands on a white flower. Bees, pollination
Why Do Bees Buzz?
Bristlecone pine (Pinus Longaeva) on the slope of Mount Washington in Great Basin National Park in the Nevada desert.
How Can Some Trees Survive for Thousands of Years?
Little boy drinking a glass of milk outdoors. child food
Why Did Adult Humans Start Drinking Milk?
Saint Francis Xavier baptizing the infidels by an unknown painter, 18th century; in the collection of the Museo Nacional de Arte, Mexico City, Mexico.
How did St. Francis Xavier shape Catholicism?
July, 2006, Launch of Space Shuttle Discovery STS-121. See attached for full caption information.
Will Light-Speed Space Travel Ever Be Possible?
Plant seedlings emerging from rich fertile soil
Do Plants Feel Pain?
Carnivorous Venus Fly Traps (Dionaea muscipula) and Sundews (Drosera capensis) Plants secrete digestive enzymes s until the insect is liquified and its soluble contents digested.
Beyond Venus Flytraps: The Plants that Eat Meat
Rusty patched bumble bee (Bombus affinis) photographed in the Midwest in 2017. endangered species insect pollination
What Would Happen If All the Bees Died?
Agnes with a lamb near her feet. St. Agnes (Saint Agnes) design drawing for stained glass window by J&R Lamb Studios, ink, mount size 10.5 x 14.5 in.
Roman Catholic Saints
The three children, Jacinta, Francisco and Lucia, who saw the vision of Fatima in Portugal. Our lady of Fatima, saint, Christianity.
Our Lady of Fátima
Anemone coronaria, the poppy anemone, Spanish marigold, or windflower, is a species of flowering plant.
What’s the Difference Between Angiosperms and Gymnosperms?
European beech trees (Fagus sylvatica) in autumn. Note: Oak tree far left. Fall colors
Why Do Leaves Fall in Autumn?
Maple Leaves Mixed Changing Fall Colors
Why Do Leaves Change Colors in the Fall?
Diagram showing human heart
What’s the Difference Between Veins and Arteries?
Model Pirate Ship with fog and water
Black Pirates and the Tale of Black Caesar
Old medieval wooden pirate military war ship with a cannon on the deck pointed out and aiming
Pirate School: 5 Things You Can Shoot from a Cannon
Stained glass window showing ten Christian saints. St Peters Church, Cound, Shropshire, England.
Too Good to Rot? Saints with Incorrupt Bodies
Urtica dioica, often called common nettle or stinging nettle
7 Dangerous Plants You Should Never Touch
Environmental problem of plastic rubbish pollution in ocean
Plastic Disaster: How Your Bags, Bottles, and Body Wash Pollute the Oceans
A potato showing the effects of Phytophthora infestans, or late blight. Potato blight, Irish Potato Famine.
The Mold that Wrecked Ireland
Hippie Group Walking on a Countryside Road
Where Did the Word Hippie Come From?
Anne Frank. Photo of Anne Frank at the children's memorial at the Okopowa Street Jewish Cemetery in Warsaw, Poland Nov. 8, 2008. Anne Frank was a Jewish wartime girl diarist who hid from the Nazis during World War II. WWII, Holocaust
Anne Frank’s Diary
Illustration for Demystified "Where did the peace sign come from?"
Where Did the Peace Sign Come From?
Svalbard Global Seed Vault, Scandinavia
The Arctic’s Seed-Filled Doomsday Fortress
Several red apples with cut apple in the foreground.
Can Apple Seeds Kill You?
microwave, kitchen
Why Do Some Foods Explode in the Microwave?
Red tulip among yellow tulips, Mount Vernon, Washington.
Tulip Mania: How a Plant Virus Fueled a Speculative Frenzy
Coffee beans after roasting.
How Is Coffee Decaffeinated?
Carrots are an example of a plant that contain carotene.
Can Eating Too Many Carrots Make Your Skin Turn Orange?
Palm House conservatory of Kew Gardens, London, England. (formal garden, glass house, greenhouse)
How Botanical Gardens Save Plants with Science
Roses flowers plant colorful rose
Do Plants Have Sexes?
Exposed roots of mangrove trees in Tha Pom Khlong Song Nam park, near Krabi, Thailand. Forest, swamp, habitat, ecosystem, plants
Amazing Mangroves
Slices of ripe apples on a wooden table
Why Do Sliced Apples Turn Brown?
Opium. Opium poppy. Papaver somniferum. Seed. Spice. Poppy seed. Pile of poppy seeds.
Can Eating Poppy Seeds Make You Fail a Drug Test?
Green potatoes containing solanine are poisonous
Are Green Potatoes Dangerous to Eat?
Saguaro cacti dot the Sonoran Desert landscape at Saguaro National Park, Arizona. Formerly Saguaro National Monument cactus
Can You Drink Water from a Cactus?
Coriander leaves, fresh green cilantro on wooden background, herbs
Why Does Cilantro Taste Like Soap to Some People?
Asa Gray, 19th-century lithograph.
Asa Gray: The Father of American Botany
Dead and wilted flowers hang limply.
Why Do Plants Wilt?
Majestic sequoias in Sequoia National Park. (trees; sunlight; forest; conifers; sequoia tree)
Saving the World’s Largest Trees
algae. Lake Erie. Dead fish in harmful algal bloom along the southeast Lake Erie shore of Pelee Island, Ontario, Canada, 5 miles north of the international line Aug. 19, 2011. Toxic algae blooms, drinking water, 4th largest of 5 Great Lakes
Harmful Algal Blooms
Beatrix Potter at Hill Top. V.J. King, 1913
Beatrix Potter at 150
Small Argentinian flags on the street as a souvenirs.
Argentina Celebrates 200 Years of Independence
Women cutting and onion, cooking, vegetables
Why Do Onions Make You Cry?
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), the only eagle solely native to North America. (North American bird)
Endangered Species Day
Ripe red tomatoes (Solanum) and green tomato on plant. Fruit vegetable tomato
Is a Tomato a Fruit or a Vegetable?
Gills of three old specimens of webcap fungus (Cortinarius) in Gloucestershire, South West England. toxic, fungi, poisonous mushroom
7 of the World’s Most Poisonous Mushrooms