Literary notes about Convolute (AI summary)
The word “convolute” is often used to depict structures that are intricately twisted, rolled, or overlapping in a spiral manner. In botanical literature, it vividly describes features such as petals or leaves that are rolled in the bud—a characteristic noted in descriptions of corolla lobes and linear leaves [1, 2, 3]. At the same time, it is employed to portray naturally occurring curls or coils in shells and even the arrangement of embryonic cotyledons, emphasizing a graceful yet complex pattern [4, 5]. Its application extends to nonbotanical contexts as well, capturing the dynamic, spiraling formations found in mechanical coils or the eddying motion of a sail caught in the wind [6, 7, 8].
- Petals 5, rather unequal, linear-lanceolate, inserted in the throat of the calyx, convolute in the bud.
— from The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Asa Gray - Petals 5 or 10, regular, spreading, flat, convolute in the bud, deciduous.
— from The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Asa Gray - Corolla 5-parted, wheel-shaped, sometimes reflexed-spreading; the lobes convolute in the bud.
— from The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Asa Gray - Shell univalve, turbinated, inversely conic, convolute; aperture longitudinal, narrow, not toothed; base effuse; spire very short.
— from Zoological Illustrations, Volume 1 or, Original Figures and Descriptions of New, Rare, or Interesting Animals by William Swainson - Embryo of Calycanthus; upper part cut away, to show the convolute cotyledons.
— from The Elements of Botany, For Beginners and For Schools by Asa Gray - The convolute coils have several extra turns of wire as each coil approaches the top of its spiral.
— from Selling Home Furnishings: A Training Program by Walter F. Shaw - Convolute : rolled or twisted spirally: also applied to wings when they are wrapped around the body.
— from Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology by John Bernhard Smith - "When the wind blows straight against a sail, certain eddies are produced which cause a convolute stream around its edges.
— from The Wonder Island Boys: The Mysteries of the Caverns by Roger Thompson Finlay
