Month: January 2021

useful

alpha version, preview version, beta version – Alpha version describes a development status that usually means the first complete version of a program or application, which is most likely unstable, but is useful to show what the product will do to, usually, a selected group—and is also called preview version; the beta version is usually the last version before wide release, often tested by users under real-world conditions. More…

index fossil – One useful for dating and demonstrating the relation between strata in which it is found. More…

putti – Cupids that make themselves useful, as in old paintings; the singular is putto. More…

decorative arts – Any of the arts that create entities that are both useful and beautiful. More…

Myanmar Independence Day

The southeast Asian country of Burma (renamed Myanmar in 1989 by its military government), was given independence in 1948, when it refused to rejoin the British Commonwealth following Japanese occupation in World War II. The former capital, Yangon (formerly Rangoon), is decorated for Independence Day festivities, and the day is marked by sports and fairs in most cities. Burmese people dress in their national costume, which consists of an aingyi (blouse or shirt) and a longyi (skirt); panthay khowse (noodles and chicken) is traditionally served on this day, as is nga sak kin (curried fish balls). Discuss

Thieves' Cant

Dating to the early 16th century, thieves’ cant was a secret language used in the criminal underworld of Great Britain by thieves, beggars, vagrants, and supposedly Gypsies. Beginning in the mid-1500s, numerous “canting dictionaries” were published, and the code words of the thieves’ language came to be widely known. Though the argot is almost totally obsolete today, what small group of people was reported in 2009 to have revived thieves’ cant for everyday use? Discuss

thick

foggy, fog – Foggy first meant “covered with a grass; mossy; boggy,” as fog first meant “coarse grass” and evolved to mean “thick, murky” in relation to atmosphere. More…

riley – Has two meanings: thick and turbid, or angry and irritable. More…

baobab tree – Is so thick—up to 30 feet across—that some African tribes hollow them out so families can live inside. More…

thumb – From Old English thuma, “thick, swollen.” More…

A Sandwich for Sandwich

It has been said of John Montagu, 4th earl of Sandwich, that “seldom has any man held so many offices and accomplished so little.” An unpopular, corrupt politician, he was criticized for prosecuting a friend for obscenity, despite being notoriously dissolute himself. Today, he is known for a 1762 incident in which he asked to be served meat stuck between slices of bread so that he would not have to interrupt his gambling to eat. What alternate tale explains Sandwich’s connection to the sandwich? Discuss