Corn is a tall annual cereal grass ( Zea mays ) that is widely grown for its large elongated ears of starchy seeds. The seeds, which are also known as corn, are used as food for humans and livestock and as a source of biofuel and can be processed into a wide range of useful chemicals.

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Q: When was corn first domesticated?

Corn was originally domesticated in Mexico by native peoples by about 9,000 years ago. They used many generations of selective breeding to transform a wild teosinte grass with small grains into the rich source of food that is modern Zea mays .

Q: Why do corn kernels pop?

A popcorn kernel has an extremely hard hull that surrounds a mass of moist starchy endosperm (the food of the embryo). When such a kernel is heated to about 400 °F (about 200 °C), the moisture in the starch turns into steam and builds up pressure until the kernel explodes inside out into an irregular white fluffy mass about 20 to 40 times the kernel’s original size. About 25 corn varieties are suitable for popcorn.

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Also known as: Indian corn, Zea mays, maize

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Dec 1, 2024 • Article History

Also called:: Indian corn or maize

Key People:: Edward Murray East; Kim Soon-Kwon; Donald Forsha Jones; John Lorain; Barbara McClintock

Related Topics:: Balsas teosinte; dent corn; sweet corn; Reid’s Yellow Dent; Opaque-2

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What is corn?

When was corn first domesticated?

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corn, (Zea mays), cereal plant of the grass family (Poaceae) and its edible grain. The domesticated crop originated in the Americas and is one of the most widely distributed of the world’s food crops. Corn is used as human food, livestock feed, as biofuel, and as raw material in industry. Taxonomy See also list of plants in the family Poaceae. Corn was first domesticated by native peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Modern corn is believed to have been derived from the Balsas teosinte (Zea mays parviglumis), a wild grass. Its culture had spread as far north as ...(100 of 1427 words)

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