This week's theme is "misleading" words - words which aren't what they appear to be.

Today's AWAD is: "pedology" Please scroll down.

The AWAD for Day 1 is:

diglot (DY-glot) adjective

Bilingual. noun

A bilingual book, person, etc.

[From Greek diglottos, from di- (two) + -glottos, from glossa, (tongue, language).]

Words can be deceiving. Take "diglot", for example. At first sight, it looks like it could be a "construction site". But, it isn't.

That's what Anu is up to this week. He's speaking with a forked tongue. He's trying to "debase" us. That's right! He wants to throw us off base.

This is something we can all do together. Prevaricate. :)

Here are two names which aren't really names at all: "sally" and "gene". Hey, this could get interesting.

Sally and Parry got merry and spliced Gene.

Dr. Bill [wwh] says "Crows are diglot" - "there's an old wives' tale about splitting crow's tongue makes them talk". Here is result of that search:

Voices in the Woods
Filed under: General — Steven B Cherry @ 11:09:21 am

Someone told me a story today about a Native American farmer in Sanilac County who split a crow's tongue and taught it to talk, he named the crow Oscar. As it's told, he'd feed Oscar and Oscar would bring him coins and other shiny objects. That to me, sounded too amazing to be a legend so onto the research.

This bit of satire mentions a study done by Battelle Human Affairs Research Center but I'm not able to find any reference to such a study so this may be a fabrication:

Battelle Human Affairs Research Center, Seattle: Scientific researchers at this institute, which nobody ever heard of before, interviewed 3,321 crows in an effort to determine once and for all how many of them could actually talk. The Crow, genus Corvus brachyrhynos, is widely reputed in mythology and folklore to possess the property of loquacity, though ornithologists in the "know" about such things point out that, at best, this could hardly be anything more than a mimicry of real human speech.
There is a difference of opinion about whether or not splitting their tonges helps them talk. There's been no scientific studies done on the subject as far as I know.

http://seat.defcode.com/index.php/2003/12/12/p106

Today's AWAD [Day 2] is:

feme covert (fem KOV-uhrt) noun, plural femes covert

A married woman.

[From Anglo-French feme covert, from feme (woman) + covert (protected).]

A feme covert is not the feminine equivalent of 007. Rather, it's a legal term to describe a married woman, one who is covered or protected by a husband. Some have interpreted the term literally to indicate a women covered by a veil. The opposite of this is feme sole, a single woman, whether divorced, widowed, or never married.

A feme covert can kick butt nowadays. She doesn't need anyone's protection. In her own home, she's got as much clout as a femme fatale. [And she can be just as deadly too, if she catches you foolin' around.]

And let's not feel too sorry for feme soles either. Some feme soles are the sole reason some guys aren't married. They're pining their hearts out for a feme sole mate.

Not to be confused with SOLE BONNE FEMME:

Bonne femme is French for 'good wife' or 'good woman' and refers to dishes that are prepared in a simple, family style, frequently served in the casserole dish, plate or pan that they were cooked in. Sole bonne femme is poached sole served with white wine and butter sauce, frequently garnished with mushrooms and/or onions.

Copied from the Food Reference Website

SOLE BONNE FEMME

My mouth waters for a sole bonne femme flambé, dxb.
[Please excuse my gourmet.]

And how about "cherchez la femme"? That's never a "bonne femme". A good detective always begins by eliminating all the bonne femmes as suspects. I don't know if that's good science or just good story-telling.

You know something, dxb. There's probably a "BONNE FEMME" frozen dinner out there. That's the closest thing some married men will ever get to bonne femme home cooking. :)

In fact, a lot of bonne femme home cooking is bon homme home cooking. Just ask Father Steve. Has anyone tried his recipe for "Vinaigrette Tangerine"?

Today's AWAD is:

tribology (try-BOL-uh-jee, tri-) noun

The study of interacting surfaces in relative motion and associated issues, such as friction, lubrication, and wear.

[From Greek tribos (rubbing), from tribein (to rub).]

You could say that today's AWAD is a fabrication. That's not a lie because it was made in a lab, so to speak, not in the street, where most words are made up.

Anu explains:

Usually words are coined on the streets of language, but here is one instance where a word may be considered to have been synthesized in a lab, if there could be such a thing as a word lab. In 1965, a group of lubrication engineers decided they needed a name for what they did and contacted the editors of the Oxford English Dictionary for help. Out of this came the word tribology, suggested by one C.G. Hardie of Magdalen College.

I've heard of idea labs before. But this is the first time I've ever heard of a "word lab".

Maybe AWADtalk could become a word lab. Why not? At least we could experimint with new words.

Yesterday, Faldage coined a new word "inciteful". My "Bonus ALAD" today honors this new coinage. May there be many more. :)

BTW there is actually a Journal of Tribology:

Welcome to the Journal of Tribology on-line,
Covering: Friction and Wear, Fluid Film Lubrication, Elastohydrodynamic Lubrication, Surface Properties and Characterization, Contact Mechanics, Magnetic Recordings, Tribological Systems, Seals, Bearing Design and Technology, Gears, Metalworking, Lubricants, and Artificial Joints.

http://scitation.aip.org/ASMEJournals/Tribology/

Elastohydrodynamic Lubrication. That'll wet your whistle!

Why couldn't they just call it "slick friction"?

Have you noticed, whenever anyone sticks an -ology on the back of a word, they always stick something ostentatious on the front of it.

About the only exception I can think of is "scatology". And that's because they've only got "scat" to crow about.

Reminds me of an old saying:

A cock always crows on his own dung hill.

Of course, that doesn't mean he's got anything to crow about. Tell the rooster that! [Please resist the temptation, themilum. :) ]

I'm sure Dr. Bill would not wish the etymological connection with tribadism to go unremarked.

Bingley

Today's AWAD is:

nonplus (non-PLUS, NON-plus) verb tr.
To put at a loss for what to do, think, or say; perplex.

noun
A state of perplexity or bewilderment.

[From Latin non plus (no more).]

If it doesn't add up, you're nonplussed. And there's not much you can do about it.

And there's not much else I can say about it.

Today's AWAD is:

pedology (pi-DOL-uh-jee) noun

The study of soil: its formation, usage, classification, etc. Also called soil science.

[From Greek pedon (soil).]

If at first you thought pedology was the study of children, you're not completely off. Using the Greek suffix pedo- (child), this term can refer to the field concerned with the development of little ones. But for everyone's sanity, pedology is mostly used when referring to soils, and pediatrics for children. Imagine taking your sick child to a pedologist who turns out to be an expert in soils or expecting a soil specialist to check your backyard when she shows up with a stethoscope around her neck.

Have you heard the one about the pedologist who moved into a new school district? All his neighbors were up in arms. They thought he had a soiled mind.

He finally calmed them down. He told them he had nothing against kids. "I'm more of a pedofield than a pedophile", he explained.

"The loess said about this the better," said Muhammed Ali.

"I want to be a loam," said Grita Garbo.

"That was the last straw brick," said Adobe Gillis.

"Life is just a china bowl of cherries," said Forrest Gumbo.

"just leave it in the till," said Buckminster Fuller's earthy partner.

"Let us grow mold together," said the man from the Marl borough.

"Compost yourself," said Perry Mason's creator.

"My sediments exactly," said Moraine McGovern.

I especially like "My sediments exactly," said Moraine McGovern, TEd Rem. It's a double. :)

mo·raine ( P ) Pronunciation Key (m-rn)
n.
An accumulation of boulders, stones, or other debris carried and deposited by a glacier.

[French, from French dialectal morena, mound of earth, from Provençal morre, muzzle, from Vulgar Latin *murrum.]

>it's a double

we've had Tom Swifty threads running over in Wordplay from time to time, ron suggested pointedly.

"Your Honour, I think you've lost your mind." determined Tom judgementally. :|

"Your Honour, I think you've lost your mind." determined Tom judgementally.

"I don't mind", the Judge retorted. "'Cause you've just lost your judgment."

Yes, but only the most obvious one of several.

The first one is perhaps the most subtle.

Said TEd not so obviously

the most obvious one of several

I only unearthed two, TEd Rem. Otherwise I would have called it a triple.

Hey, I just thought of something. Where's the cave in "excavation"? An "excavation" is just a big hole, unless there's a cave-in.

People are attracted to big holes. Have you noticed that? They're always hoarding them.

And they put peep holes in these hoards. So people can look through the peep holes into a hole. Where's the sense in that, TEd Rem?

They say some people are always looking for dirt. Well, maybe that's true. But most folks just want to know where the dirt went.

Everyone's heard about the law of conservation of mass. But what about the law of conservation of dirt? You can dig dirt up, but it never disappears. It just keeps circulating. That's the thing about dirt. Even if you can't see it, it's still a dirty secret.

Here's something else. Even when you're spotless, there's always someone trying to get the dirt on you. And that's another thing about dirt. It seems to multiply. Maybe they should call it the law of multiplication of dirt.

Now you know what pedologists do in their spare time, TEd Rem. Let's face it. If you study dirt for a living, sooner or later some of it is going to rub off on you.

Everyone's interested in dirt - even if they don't want any of it on them personally. It's time we came clean about that, TEd Rem. You were a teacher once, weren't you? Maybe you still are. If I were a teacher, I would bring dirt into the classroom. I would add it and subtract it and then watch it multiply.

If you ask me, there is more dirt piling up than there are holes to fill it with. I don't know why anyone is worried about erosion. The only thing that is eroding is our values. And that's because we've got too much dirt, not too little.

You know, TEd Rem. Some things never change. Everyone's always talking about erosion, but the dirt keeps piling up. If people were really interested in getting rid of dirt, they would just sweep it under the carpet. That's what I do with it. But, hell, what's the point really? Even if you sweep it under the carpet, someone's always bringing more out of the closet.

You can always tell when someone is about to dump a load of dirt. "I've got the skinny" on so and so, they say. That's a dead give-away. But I could never figure out why dirt is "skinny". If anything, you would think dirt would be fat. Why not say "I've got the fat" on so and so? People are always trying to lose weight. If you want to spread dirt on someone, you should spread "the fat" on them, not "the skinny". You can be sure it's going to get their goat a heck of a lot more.

Which makes me wonder. Why would anyone want to get someone else's goat? Where would you keep it even if you got it? What do goats eat anyway? You can get them to mow your lawn, but they won't eat dirt. And that's another thing about dirt. You can never get rid of it. So why dig it up in the first place?

It doesn't make a hole lot of sense to me, TEd Rem. That's the hole load on dirt when you really get to the bottom of it. You may disagree with me. You may say there's no bottom, but really there's no top. And that's why no-one can ever get on top of the problem. That's if you think dirt's a problem. Personally, I'm not so sure. Dirt is just a fact of life. So why can't we learn to live with it?

http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/17/messages/75.html

from Dr. Bill [wwh]: 'Pedology' reminded me that there are a number of Russian words commonly used in agricultural articles.

"Chernozem" and "Podzol" are two that come to mind. Maybe you might be interested to hunt for enough more to make a post.

Why Russian terms? [I wonder]*

"The scientific basis of soil science as a natural science was established by the classical works of Dokuchaev. Previously, soil had been considered a product of physicochemical transformations of rocks, a dead substrate from which plants derive nutritious mineral elements. Soil and bedrock were in fact equated.

Dokuchaev considers the soil as a natural body having its own genesis and its own history of development, a body with complex and multiform processes taking place within it. The soil is considered as different from bedrock. The latter becomes soil under the influence of a series of soil-forming factors--climate, vegetation, country, relief and age. According to him, soil should be called the "daily" or outward horizons of rocks regardless of the type; --------

Beginning in 1870, the Russian school of soil science under the leadership of V.V. Dokuchaiev (1846 – 1903) and N.M. Sibertsev (1860 – 1900) was developing a new concept of soil. The Russian workers conceived of soils as independent natural bodies, each with unique properties resulting from a unique combination of climate, living matter, parent material, relief, and time. They hypothesized that properties of each soil reflected the combined effects of the particular set of genetic factors responsible for the soil's formation. -----

* The Russian concepts were revolutionary. Properties of soils no longer were based wholly on inferences from the nature of the rocks or from climate or other environmental factors, considered singly or collectively; rather, by going directly to the soil itself, the integrated expression of all these factors could be seen in the morphology of the soils. This concept required that all properties of soils be considered collectively in terms of a completely integrated natural body. In short, it made possible a science of soil.

The early enthusiasm for the new concept and for the rising new discipline of soil science led some to suggest the study of soil could proceed without regard to the older concepts derived from geology and agricultural chemistry. Certainly the reverse is true. Besides laying the foundation for a soil science with its own principles, the new concept makes the other sciences even more useful. ----

Under the leadership of Marbut, the Russian concept was broadened and adapted to conditions in the United States. --- "

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soil_science

BTW Forestry is a related field of study [because trees prevent soil erosion]. This search turned up "silviculture", formerly the name for Forestry, and "edaphology" another name for "pedology". [As if we needed another name for "pedology". "Pedology" has more legs than a pedestrian! :) ]

Pedestrian: From Latin pedester, pedestr-, going on foot, from pedes, a pedestrian, from ps, ped-, foot. See ped- in Indo-European Roots. Dictionary.com

So how come a pedologist isn't a pedestrian, Dr. Bill? [You figure that one out, OK.]

>I only unearthed two

The Muhammed Ali one is pretty subtle, as is the one about Fuller's earth and till. But I think the others should have been pretty obvious.

And are you one of those people who need peep-holes? If you don;t know what to fill those holes up with, let's try sand. Another Barbra's pun.

The Muhammed Ali one is pretty subtle

Just like Muhammed Ali, TEd Rem. He was so fast, some of his opponents were out on their feet before they knew they'd been hit.*

On second thought, "the loess said about it the better" is the best in the field, so far.

M-W: Main Entry: loess
Pronunciation: 'les, 'l&s, 'lO-&s, 'l&rs
Function: noun
Etymology: German Löss
: an unstratified usually buff to yellowish brown loamy deposit found in No. America, Europe, and Asia and believed to be chiefly deposited by the wind
- loess·ial /'le-sE-&l, 'l&-, lO-'e-, 'l&r-/ adjective

* Muhammed Ali was "the greatest". But you're coloessial!

BTW subtlety is like the fine print in a legal contact.

Actually, Dr. Bill [wwh] just sent me this recollection from "Amos and Andy", the popular Radio Show of the 40's(?):

At one point they [Amos and Andy] were in the insurance business. A client complained when a claim was refused. So Andy replied with a quip I have always remembered:
"The large print giveth, but the fine print taketh away."

re "are you one of those people who need peep-holes? If you don't know what to fill those holes up with, let's try sand"

Is that a sucker punch, TEd Rem, or are you just tryin' to sandbag me? :)

re I want to be a loam," said Grita Garbo.

Greta Garbo was never a loam when she was lying in bed, TEd Rem. It was a bed of roses for her lovers, I'll bet. I don't need a peep hole to bet on that. :)

re "just leave it in the till," said Buckminster Fuller's earthy partner.

His partner was tilling the clients, TEd Rem, but Bucky was tilling the future. Have you heard of "Bucky balls"?

Named after R. Buckminster Fuller, the Fullerene molecule, or "Buckyball" contains 60 carbon atoms aranged in a sphere much like the vertices of a football (that's a soccer ball to all you Americans out there). Only recently, unfortunately after Bucky's death, were Fullerenes discovered, in the lab and also in the real world, in micrometeorite craters on satellites.

http://www.psyclops.com/bucky.shtml

BTW Bucky's dad, Buckminister Fuller, was a clergyman. He gave up tilling the soil for tilling the soul. Buckminster Fuller put his soul into his designs.

"Nature long ago solved the problem of making electronic devices on a molecular-scale and we're now beginning to learn how to do things the way Nature does," says Paul McEuen, a physicist who holds joint appointments with Berkeley Lab's Materials Sciences Division, and with UC Berkeley's Physics Department.

Within the past few years, a number of research groups, including McEuen's, have made transistors from carbon nanotubes - tiny sheets of graphite that have been curled and connected along the seam. Although considered a single molecule of carbon, these elongated tubes were several times larger than the soccer-ball shaped carbon-60 molecules used by McEuen and his colleagues to make their newest transistors. Buckyballs are so tiny that, as transistors, they only permit one electron at a time to move through them. This opens the door to the study of single-electron transport effects."

http://www.firstscience.com/SITE/ARTICLES/bucky.asp