A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Thu Jun 1 00:12:13 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--prophylaxis X-Bonus: Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information? -T. S. Eliot (1888-1965) prophylaxis (pro-fuh-LAK-sis, prof-) noun Prevention of or protective treatment for disease. [New Latin, from Greek prophulaktikos, from prophulassein, to take precautions against : pro-, before + phulassein, to protect (from phulax, guard).] "I thought back to my own three years in Nigeria, and how different my health and indeed my life might have been if suddenly, in the middle of our stay, our supply of anti-malaria prophylaxis had been cut off." Meg Skinner, Worrying That the Bombs Might Target an African Friend, Capital Times (Madison, WI), Aug 31, 1998. This week's theme: words from medicine. -------- Date: Fri Jun 2 00:12:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--aperient X-Bonus: If you want something really important to be done you must not merely satisfy the reason, you must move the heart also. -Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) aperient (uh-PIR-ee-uhnt) adjective Gently stimulating evacuation of the bowels; laxative. noun A mild laxative. [Latin aperiens, aperient-, present participle of aperire, to open.] "Who is this wretched fellow Currie? What gives him the authority to criticise our world-standard cartoonist? I will pin his letter on my bathroom wall where its words will act as a cheap aperient, when required, and thus help preserve my boyish good looks." Daily political satire one of cartoonist's most demanding roles, The Advertiser (Adelaide, Australia), Apr 14, 1995. This week's theme: words from medicine. -------- Date: Sat Jun 3 00:12:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--emetic X-Bonus: Nothing produces such odd results as trying to get even. -Franklin P. Jones emetic (i-MET-ik) adjective Causing vomiting. noun An agent that causes vomiting. [Latin emetica, feminine of emeticus, provoking vomiting, from Greek emetikos, from emetos, vomiting, from emein, to vomit.] "He was following a course of emetics, and so both ate and drank with uninhibited enjoyment. Saturnalia: Sub sole nihil novi, The Economist, Dec 18, 1999. This week's theme: words from medicine. -------- Date: Sun Jun 4 00:12:09 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--auscultation X-Bonus: Along this tree / From root to crown / Ideas flow up / And vetoes down. -A senior executive, quoted by Peter Drucker auscultation (o-skuhl-TAY-shuhn) noun 1. The act of listening. 2. The act of listening for sounds made by internal organs, as the heart and lungs, to aid in the diagnosis of certain disorders. [Latin auscultatio, auscultation-, from auscultatus, past participle of auscultare, to listen to.] "Chest auscultation with a stethoscope will help detect any heart murmurs or harshness of the lungs." D.V.M. Ronald Ulfohn, Check Out That laid-Back Lab, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Jan 22, 2000. This week's theme: words from medicine. -------- Date: Mon Jun 5 00:12:07 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--kakistocracy X-Bonus: The greatest sign of success for a teacher is to be able to say, "The children are now working as if I did not exist." -Maria Montessori, Italian educator (1870-1952) kakistocracy (kak-i-STOK-ruh-see, kah-ki-) noun Government by the least qualified or most unprincipled citizens. [Greek kakistos, worst, superlative of kakos, bad + -cracy, government, rule.] "Russia is proving the opposite. Late last year, the kakistocracy propping up Boris Yeltsin decided not to risk giving up power." William Safire, Contrasting Elections, The New York Times, March 20, 2000. Democracy, government of the people, by the people, and for the people, is only as good as the governed demand. As recent elections in several places around the globe have illustrated, this leaves a lot to be desired. However, until we invent a better system, it is the best one can get. The presidential race in the US is heating up too and is being closely watched by the citizens of the world. For better or worse, the results of this contest will have repercussions everywhere. Later this year we'll know whether Bush gets gored or Gore gets bushed. In the meanwhile, enjoy this week's words (all of them selected by a single vote :-) about government, politics, and elections. -Anu -------- Date: Tue Jun 6 00:12:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--stalking-horse X-Bonus: I do not want the peace that passeth understanding. I want the understanding which bringeth peace. -Helen Keller stalking-horse (STOK-ing-hors) noun 1. Something used to cover one's true purpose; a decoy. 2. A sham candidate put forward to conceal the candidacy of another or to divide the opposition. 3. A horse trained to conceal the hunter while stalking. A canvas screen made in the figure of a horse, used for similar concealment. "The main parties in the 23 May Front are the leftist Combatant Clergy Society and the reformist Islamic Iran Participation Party. Both groups view Rafsanjani, who says he is an independent, as a stalking horse for rightwing factions opposed to Khatami." Khatami coalition weighs Rafsanjani role, Middle East Economic Digest, Jan 2000. This week's theme: words about government, politics, and elections. -------- Date: Wed Jun 7 00:12:09 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--enfranchise X-Bonus: Wit is educated insolence. -Aristotle (384-322 BCE) [The Art of Rhetoric] enfranchise (en-FRAN-chyz) verb tr. 1. To bestow a franchise on. 2. To endow with the rights of citizenship, especially the right to vote. 3. To free, as from bondage. [Middle English enfraunchisen, from Old French enfranchir, enfranchiss-, to set free : en-, intensive pref + franchir (from franc, free).] "I wondered what could be done to genuinely enfranchise those who feel most excluded from the voting process. Certainly voter registration is a place to begin." Nancy Nienhuis, Why Don't We Vote?, Sojourner: The Women's Forum, Nov 30, 1992. This week's theme: words about government, politics, and elections. -------- Date: Thu Jun 8 00:12:11 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--filibuster X-Bonus: Man is harder than iron, stronger than stone and more fragile than a rose. -Turkish proverb filibuster (FIL-uh-bus-tuhr) noun 1. The use of obstructionist tactics, especially prolonged speechmaking, for the purpose of delaying legislative action. An instance of the use of this delaying tactic. 2. An adventurer who engages in a private military action in a foreign country. verb intr. 1. To use obstructionist tactics in a legislative body. 2. To take part in a private military action in a foreign country. verb tr. To use obstructionist tactics against (a legislative measure, for example). [Spanish filibustero, freebooter, from French flibustier, from Dutch vrijbuiter, pirate.] "Despite last week's marathon sessions -- including one 17-hour spurt -- senators backing Republican Gov. David Beasley's statewide ban have not mustered the 29 votes needed to break the five-day filibuster." Jesse J. Holland, Gambling foes grow weary as filibuster continues Spartanburg Herald-Journal, Apr 1, 1998. This week's theme: words about government, politics, and elections. -------- Date: Fri Jun 9 00:12:11 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--suffrage X-Bonus: If I can stop one Heart from breaking / I shall not live in vain / If I can ease one Life the Aching / Or cool one Pain / Or help one fainting Robin / Unto his Nest again / I shall not live in Vain. -Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) suffrage (SUF-rij) noun 1. The right or privilege of voting; the franchise. The exercise of such a right. 2. A vote cast in deciding a disputed question or in electing a person to office. 3. A short intercessory prayer. [Middle English, intercessory prayer, from Old French, from Medieval Latin suffragium, from Latin, the right to vote, from suffragari, to express support.] "Women's suffrage has become a hot campaign issue. Shiites and some Sunni leaders believe it is not against Islamic teachings for women to mingle with men and enter political office, while others have threatened to take severe action if women are allowed into the political domain." Diana Elias, Women's Suffrage Debated in Kuwait, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Jun 21, 1999. This week's theme: words about government, politics, and elections. -------- Date: Sat Jun 10 00:12:09 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--stemwinder X-Bonus: Science is built with facts as a house is with stones--but a collection of facts is no more a science than a heap of stones is a house. -Jules Henri Poincare (1854-1912) stemwinder (STEM-wyn-duhr) noun 1. A stem-winding watch. 2. A rousing oration, especially a political one. 3. A stirring orator. Sullivan, known for his stentorian stemwinders on the Senate floor, said there was no need to reopen the budget ...." Christopher Keating, Sullivan Sees Racism in Treasurer Debate, The Hartford Courant, Feb 5, 2000. This week's theme: words about government, politics, and elections. -------- Date: Sun Jun 11 00:12:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--autarchy X-Bonus: Those who are incapable of committing great crimes do not readily suspect them in others. -Francois de La Rochefoucauld (1613-1680) autarchy (O-tahr-kee) noun 1. Absolute rule or power; autocracy. 2. A country under such rule. 3. Variant of autarky. [From Greek autarkhos, self-governing, autarch : aut-, auto-, auto- + arkhos, ruler (from arkhein, to rule).] autarky (O-tahr-kee) noun 1. A policy of national self-sufficiency and nonreliance on imports or economic aid. 2. A self-sufficient region or country. [Greek autarkeia, self-sufficiency, from autarkes, self-sufficient : aut-, auto-, + arkein, to suffice.] "The paranoid autarchy of North Korea, even with Kim Il Sung gone, is just as unlikely to tolerate dissenting views." Jeff Trimble, U.S. diplomacy and the Bobby Hall story, U.S. News & World Report, Jan 9, 1995. "The fascist authorities, anticipating the Duce's involvement in a European war, embarked on a strict policy of autarchy, designed to make the empire as far as possible, self-sufficient. Horse-drawn garries, or carts, were for example introduced as a substitute for cars making use of petrol." Richard Pankhurst, A History Of Early Twentieth Century Ethiopia, The Addis Tribune (Ethiopia), Feb 28,1997. This week's theme: words about government, politics, and elections. -------- Date: Mon Jun 12 01:29:12 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--bibliophage X-Bonus: God gives every bird his worm, but he does not throw it into the nest. -Swedish proverb bibliophage (BIB-lee-uh-fayj) noun An ardent reader; a bookworm. [Biblio- book + -phage one that eats.] "A thousand facts crowd the mind of the bibliophage narrator who recites fragments--proper names, book titles, writerly quirks--at a dizzying clip." Sybil Steinberg, et al., PW's best books, Publishers Weekly, Nov 1996. So many books, so little time! Do you find yourself muttering these words as you browse the shelves in a library or a bookstore? Rest assured, you are not alone in your love of books. It was the Dutch writer Desiderius Erasmus who once said, "When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left I buy food and clothes." This fondness for books subsumes a wide range. At the extreme, books have been ascribed as the motive behind murders (Don Vicente, a Spaniard, killed as many as eight people to acquire a book in 1836), and there have been thieves who steal only books (Stephen Blumberg of the US, stole precious books worth millions of dollars from hundreds of university libraries during the 1970s and 80s, all for his own pleasure, not for resale). While we can't arrange them in a scientific table reflecting severity, this week's progression presents words in increasing order of affinity for books. Finally, to round things out, at the end we'll feature a couple of words for people who don't share that love. So leaf through this week's words and drop me a line ((garg AT wordsmith.org)) about where your bibliomania falls within this spectrum. -Anu -------- Date: Tue Jun 13 01:29:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--bibliophile X-Bonus: The only tyrant I accept in this world is the 'still small voice' within me. -Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) bibliophile (BIB-lee-uh-fyl) also bibliophil (-fil) or bibliophilist (bib-lee-OF-uh-list) noun 1. A lover of books. 2. A collector of books. [Biblio-, book + -phile, lover of.] "The 17th-century bibliophile George Thomason, whose specialty was seditious tracts, once buried his collection of over 22,000 publications, fearing their discovery, by the Army. What if he'd died, before he was able to retrieve them? " Albert Goldbarth, Canyon, Gorge, Arroyo, Poetry, Oct 1999. This week's theme: words about book-lovers. -------- Date: Wed Jun 14 00:05:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--bibliolater X-Bonus: Selfish, adj. Devoid of consideration for the selfishness of others. -Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914), [The Devil's Dictionary, 1906] bibliolater (bib-lee-OL-ay-tuhr) noun 1. One having excessive reverence for the Bible as literally interpreted. 2. One with extravagant devotion to or dependence upon books. [Biblio- book + -latry, worship.] "From describing the trauma of marrying her personal library with her husband's (`my books and his books had become our books') to detailing the joy of browsing second-hand bookstores (`seven hours later, we emerged...carrying nineteen pounds of books"), Fadiman writes with an appealing warmth and humor. Highly recommended for bibliolaters and bibliophiles everywhere." Wilda Williams, Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader (Books Review), Library Journal, Sep 1998. This week's theme: words about book-lovers. -------- Date: Thu Jun 15 00:05:07 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--bibliotaph X-Bonus: Anger, if not restrained, is frequently more hurtful to us than the injury that provokes it. -Seneca (BCE 3-65 A.D.) bibliotaph (BIB-lee-uh-taf) also bibliotaphe noun A person who caches or hoards books. [Biblio- book + Greek taphos burial.] "Leon Henry Vincent's essay on Gautier in The Bibliotaph, and Other People, 1898, is worth consulting." Theophile Gautier, Salem Press, Jan 1, 1974. This week's theme: words about book-lovers. -------- Date: Fri Jun 16 00:05:09 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--biblioklept X-Bonus: A woman's head is always influenced by heart; but a man's heart by his head. -Marguerite Gardiner, writer (1 Sep 1789-1849) biblioklept (BIB-lee-uh-klept) noun A person who steals books. [Biblio- book + Greek klept thief.] "Towards the Persons who frequent your Library maintain a courteous Demeanour, but the utmost Vigilance. For as it is your duty to guard well the Books which are the Riches of your Treasury, so you cannot afford to relax those Restrictions which may save you from Despoilment and the most grievous Loss. The Biblioklept or Thief of Books is your eternal Foe." Charles Robinson, April hath 30 days, Library Administrator's Digest Mar 1, 2000. This week's theme: words about book-lovers. -------- Date: Sat Jun 17 00:05:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--bibliophobe X-Bonus: Anyone can do any amount of work, provided it isn't the work he is supposed to be doing at that moment. -Robert Benchley bibliophobe (BIB-lee-uh-foab) noun A person who hates, fears, or distrusts books. [Biblio- book + -phobe one that fears.] "If you have a bibliophobe in your family, here are a few suggestions. First, take the child to the library and find the area with books about his or her favorite hobbies." Kate Tsubata, Summer vacation isn't a break from reading, The Washington Times, Jun 30, 1998. This week's theme: words about book-lovers (and haters). -------- Date: Sun Jun 18 00:05:07 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--biblioclast X-Bonus: Doubt comes in at the window when inquiry is denied at the door. -Benjamin Jowett (1817-1893) biblioclast (BIB-lee-uh-klast) noun A person who mutilates or destroys books. [Biblio- book + (icono)clast, from -klastes breaker.] "The need to protect books from thieves and defilers (from biblioklepts and biblioclasts) is ancient indeed." Francis A. Neelon, Osler and Ernulf's curse, The Lancet, Oct 25, 1997. This week's theme: words about book-lovers (and haters). -------- Date: Mon Jun 19 00:05:10 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--caryatid X-Bonus: Few people are capable of expressing with equanimity opinions which differ from that of their social environment. -Albert Einstein (1879-1955) caryatid (kar-ee-AT-id) noun, plural caryatids or caryatides (-i-deez) A supporting column sculptured in the form of a draped female figure. [From Latin Caryatides, maidens of Caryae, caryatids, from Greek Karuatides, from Karuai, Caryae, a village of Laconia in southern Greece.] "Opposite me is this gargantuan drinks cupboard, and a desk supported by winged caryatids with a jar of jellybeans on it." Mark Irving, The man with the midas touch, The Independent - London, Mar 5, 2000. When was the last time you came across a victrix, an authoress, an usherette or a comedienne? As you might have already figured, these are now-obsolete feminine forms of the nouns victor, author, usher, comedian, formed by appending the suffixes -trix, -ess, -ette, -enne, respectively. Many believe these gender-specific words connote inferiority (leather/leatherette), diminutive size (novel/novelette), or lesser social status (governor/governess), and prefer that the same term be applied to both males and females, especially when the sex of the person is immaterial in context. As a result, especially in the US, the word actor is preferred for both men and women, chairman is giving way to chair, and firemen/firewomen are becoming firefighters, to cite but three examples. This development may be a relief for modern schoolchildren who no longer have to remember whether they should use aviatrix, aviatoress, or aviatorette when writing an essay about women flying aircraft. However, things are not always that easy. There are still places where one needs to know separate terms for male and female forms. This week's AWAD explores some terms that are gender specific and without a suffix-enabled counterpart. -Anu -------- Date: Tue Jun 20 00:05:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--telamon X-Bonus: Pray, v. To ask the laws of the universe to be annulled on behalf of a single petitioner confessedly unworthy. -Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914), [The Devil's Dictionary, 1906] telamon (TEL-uh-mon) noun, plural telamones (-MOH-neez) A figure of a man used as a supporting pillar. [Latin telamon, from Greek, bearer.] Atlas is another word for figure of a man used as a column. -Anu "Even though Dickens never pulled down the temple, he went further than Thackeray in mocking the pillars of a repressive society--Podsnap a telamon and Mrs. General a caryatid." Rodney Stenning Edgecombe, Middle-class Erasures: The Decreations of Mrs. General and Mr. Podsnap, Studies in the Novel, Fall 1999. This week's theme: feminine and masculine forms of words. -------- Date: Wed Jun 21 00:05:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--lamia X-Bonus: Infidel, n. In New York, one who does not believe in the Christian religion; in Constantinople, one who does. -Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914), [The Devil's Dictionary, 1906] lamia (LAY-mee-uh) noun 1. In Greek mythology, a monster represented as a serpent with the head and breasts of a woman and reputed to prey on human beings and suck the blood of children. 2. A female vampire. [Middle English, from Latin, from Greek.] "Finally, dare to be different. Does the world really need another vampire novel? How about a lamia instead?" Elizabeth Hand, Writing the supernatural novel, The Writer, May 1996. This week's theme: feminine and masculine forms of words. -------- Date: Thu Jun 22 00:05:10 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--warlock X-Bonus: They know enough who know how to learn. -Henry Adams (1838-1918) warlock (WOR-lok) noun A male witch, sorcerer, wizard, or demon. [Middle English warloghe, from Old English waerloga, oath-breaker : waer, pledge + -loga, liar (from leogan, to lie).] "About 20 self-described witches, warlocks and psychics staged a Friday the 13th demonstration against a nearly half-century-old state anti-divination law." Laws on Fortune telling, Tarot Cards Draw Protest, Greensboro News & Record, Aug 14, 1999. This week's theme: feminine and masculine forms of words. -------- Date: Fri Jun 23 00:05:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gynarchy X-Bonus: Who is more to be pitied, a writer bound and gagged by policemen or one living in perfect freedom who has nothing more to say? -Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., writer (1922- ) [Bluebeard, 1987] gynarchy (JIN-ar-kee, JYE-nar-, gye-) noun Government by women. [Gyn- woman + -archy, rule, government.] Here are a few more terms synonymous with today's word: gynecocracy, its variant, gynocracy, and matriarchy. -Anu "The exhibition `Julia Margaret Cameron's Women' could be faulted for the exclusivity of its focus on the female sex. ... Including Cameron's patriarchs would only have brought the law of the father back into this photographic gynarchy." Carol Armstrong, Julia Margaret Cameron's Women, Artforum, Mar 1999. This week's theme: feminine and masculine forms of words. -------- Date: Sat Jun 24 00:05:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--androcracy X-Bonus: The vast majority of human beings dislike and even dread all notions with which they are not familiar. Hence it comes about that at their first appearance innovators have always been derided as fools and madmen. -Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) androcracy (an-DROK-ruh-see) noun Social and political rule by men. [Andro- male + -cracy, government, rule.] "He cites Mount Athos in Greece, the world's oldest continuous democracy (though it's really more of a theological androcracy, in that only male priests get to vote) and the only state still to run on the Julian calendar." Lee Marshall, Travel: In Francis of Assisi's footsteps, Independent on Sunday, Apr 21, 1996. This week's theme: feminine and masculine forms of words. -------- Date: Sun Jun 25 00:05:08 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--nymphomania X-Bonus: A failure is a man who has blundered but is not able to cash in on the experience. -Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915) nymphomania (nim-fuh-MAY-nee-uh, -MAYN-yuh) noun Excessive sexual desire in a female. [New Latin : Greek numphe, nymph + -mania.] "Doctors now presume that Catherine suffered from nymphomania. This was indirectly confirmed by then court doctor Melhior-Adam Veikard, who acknowledged the Empress' intellect and talent but noted: `By the way, marrying her would require extreme bravery.'" Nikolai Pavlenko, The Prince & The Empress, Russian Life, May 30, 1998. This week's theme: feminine and masculine forms of words. -------- Date: Mon Jun 26 00:05:07 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--malefactor X-Bonus: A leader who keeps his ear to the ground allows his rear end to become a target. -Angie Papadakis malefactor (MAL-Uh-fak-tuhr) noun 1. One who has committed a crime; a criminal. 2. An evildoer. [Middle English malefactour, from Latin malefactor, from malefacere, to do wrong : male, ill + facere, to do.] "Dean Kirk Peters at Eastern Connecticut State University is sentencing students convicted of minor rules infractions to attend the opera or the symphony with him. Since they don't want to go, it's punishment. The malefactor students already have seen `Carmen.'" Editorial; Innovation by the dean, Boston Herald, Mar 27, 2000. Even though the bulk of the malefactors on this planet happen to be male, the word in itself has nothing to imply that men have a monopoly in the crime biz. A woman who holds up a bank is still a malefactor, maybe a malefactress, but never a femalefactor. The combining form male- meaning `evil' occurs in loanwords from Latin. So malevolence in a person can be a precursor to violence as easily in those belonging to the fair sex as in those of the unfair sex. This week brings together seven words whose meanings are not the first things that come to mind. Watch out for these red-herring words. -Anu -------- Date: Tue Jun 27 00:05:11 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--incommode X-Bonus: The barriers are not erected which can say to aspiring talents and industry, "Thus far and no farther." -Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) incommode (in-kuh-MOD) verb tr. To cause to be inconvenienced; disturb. [French incommoder, from Old French, from Latin incommodare, from incommodus, inconvenient : in-, not + commodus, convenient.] "While this may incommode literary historians, the rest of us need not lose any sleep over it." Robert Shaw, Beyond Stanford, Poetry, May 1998. This week's theme: red-herring words. -------- Date: Wed Jun 28 00:05:11 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--diplomatics X-Bonus: Write the bad things that are done to you in the sand, but write the good things that happen to you on a piece of marble. -Arabian wisdom diplomatics (dip-luh-MAT-iks) noun (used with a sing. verb) The science of deciphering old official documents, as charters, and of determining their authenticity, age, or the like. "Vienna is one of the centers of the scholarly world for the study of diplomatics, and we have come to expect a steady flow of fine editions and monographs treating the problems of medieval letters." Kenneth Pennington, Book reviews: Medieval, Catholic Historical Review, Oct 1991. This week's theme: red-herring words. -------- Date: Thu Jun 29 00:05:16 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--axenic X-Bonus: By the time a man realizes that maybe his father was right, he usually has a son who thinks he's wrong. -Charles Wadsworth axenic (ay-ZEN-ik) adjective Not contaminated by or associated with any other living organisms. Usually used in reference to pure cultures of microorganisms that are completely free of the presence of other organisms. [A- not + Greek xenikos foreign + -ic] "Cultures that are free of contamination are easy to initiate and maintain. Axenic cultures, although not essential for successful growth and observations, allow experimentation without the uncontrolled effects on growth and differentiation that may be associated with fungal or bacterial contaminants." Hickok, Leslie G., et al, Sex and the C-Fern: not just another life cycle, BioScience, Dec 98. This week's theme: red-herring words. -------- Date: Fri Jun 30 00:05:12 EDT 2000 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--sundog X-Bonus: Kindness is loving people more than they deserve. -Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824) sundog (SUN-dog) noun 1. A parhelion (a bright spot sometimes appearing on either side of the sun, often on a luminous ring or halo) 2. A small halo or rainbow near the horizon just off the parhelic circle. "I still remember a lecture on sundogs when I was a graduate student and the vivid demonstration on how the hexagonal ice crystals cause these images." W. Dean Pesnell, The Prodigal Sun, Mercury, Jan/Feb 1998. This week's theme: red-herring words.