Rice was first planted and grown in
India more than 4,000 years ago. Today
90 percent of the world’s rice is grown
in Asia.
Most rice is grown underwater in paddies.
A paddy is a bed of mud with low
mud banks around it. The paddy is
flooded with 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters)
of water. The paddy is kept
flooded for most of the growing season.
The rice plant grows to about 4 feet (1.2
meters) tall. It has several stalks with
long, flattened leaves. At the end of each
stalk is a fan-shaped head made up of
green and yellow flowers. These flowers
produce the grains of rice.
After harvesting, rice must be processed,
or milled. Milling removes outer layers
of the rice grains. To produce brown
rice, only the first layer, called the hull
or husk, is removed. Another layer,
called the bran, is removed to create
white rice. Brown rice is much higher in
nutrients than white rice. Enriched
white rice has added B vitamins and
minerals.
Rice is eaten alone and in a great variety
of soups, side dishes, and main dishes.
In eastern Asia people grind rice into
flour to make rice cakes and pastry. The
people of Japan, China, and India use
rice to make liquor. The parts of the
plant that are not eaten can be used to
make mats, garments, baskets, fertilizer,
fuel, and other products.
#More to explore
Grain • Grass
Workers plant rice in a paddy in India.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Rice 63
Richmond
Population
(2000 census),
city, 197,790;
(2007 estimate)
200,123
Richmond is the capital of the U.S. state
of Virginia. It lies on the James River. It
is a historic city that played an important
role in the American Revolution
and the American CivilWar.
Richmond has a number of notable
buildings. The state Capitol was
designed by Thomas Jefferson, the third
president of the United States. The home
of JohnMarshall, the fourth chief justice
of the U.S. Supreme Court, dates from
1790. St. John’s Church is where the
patriot Patrick Henry gave his famous
“Liberty or Death” speech in 1775.
Most people in Richmond work in government
or in trade, banking, or other
service industries. Factories in the city
make tobacco and food products,
chemicals, metals, and other goods.
In 1637 American colonists set up a
trading post where Richmond is today.
The town was built there in the 1730s.
During the American Revolution, Richmond
became the capital of Virginia.
British troops raided the town in 1781.
Just before the American CivilWar, Virginia
and 10 other Southern states withdrew
from the United States. In 1861
they formed a separate government
called the Confederate States of
America, or the Confederacy. Richmond
became the capital of the Confederacy.
In 1865 U.S. troops captured Richmond.
Most of the city’s business district
was destroyed. After the war
Richmond recovered rapidly.
..More to explore
American CivilWar • American
Revolution • Confederate States of
America • Henry, Patrick • Virginia
Ride, Sally
Sally Ride was a U.S. astronaut. In 1983
she became the first U.S. woman to
travel into outer space.
Sally Kristen Ride was born in Encino,
California, on May 26, 1951. She
graduated from Stanford University in
northern California with four degrees,
including a doctorate in physics.
In 1978 the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA) selected
Ride to train as an astronaut. After com-
Grand houses line a street in Richmond, the
capital of Virginia.
64 Richmond BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
pleting her training in 1979, she worked
as a space shuttle mission specialist. On
June 18, 1983, Ride made her first voyage
into outer space aboard the space
shuttle Challenger. The shuttle was in
space for six days.
Ride took a second trip aboard the Challenger
in 1984. During this mission
Ride’s friend Kathryn Sullivan became
the first U.S. woman to walk in space.
In 1986 the Challenger exploded as it
was taking off for another mission. Ride
was one of the astronauts who helped to
investigate the explosion. Ride left
NASA in 1987.
Ride later worked as the director of the
California Space Institute at the University
of California, San Diego. She also
wrote several children’s books about
outer space. In 2003 Ride helped to
investigate another space shuttle disaster
after the shuttle Columbia broke up as it
was returning to Earth.
..More to explore
Space Exploration
Riga
Population
(2008 estimate)
717,371
Riga is the capital of Latvia, a country in
northeastern Europe. It is Latvia’s largest
city by far. It is also a major port. The
city lies on theWestern Dvina River
near where it flows into the Baltic Sea.
Latvia’s economy depends heavily on
Riga. The city is a center of shipping
and manufacturing. Factories in Riga
make chemicals, cloth, processed foods,
and wood products. Banking, trade, and
other service industries are important to
the city’s economy.
Riga was established as a trading settlement
in 1201. Poland took control of
the city in 1581. Sweden captured Riga
Sally Ride sits in the cabin of the space
shuttle Challenger.
People gather at outdoor restaurants and
cafes among the old buildings of Riga.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Riga 65
