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NEW FROM THE E-MAGAZINE THIS WEEK Galanthophile This is a splendid term for a collector or lover of snowdrops: “But if you run up against a committed galanthophile, expect to become embroiled in their obsessive mania. Suggest that snowdrops are all a bit similar and the ... Going to the dogs In my callow and uninformed youth I used to think this referred to a visit to a greyhound racing track (usually called the dogs in Britain) and the consequent adverse effect on one’s wallet through betting on animals ... Neurocinematics In essence, this is the study of the way watching films affects the human mind. The term was invented in a paper by Uri Hasson in 2008, which showed that some films exert considerable control over brain activity and eye ... Notta Lotta Nottle It all started when I read a supplement that came with my daily newspaper, which was advertising an exhibition of new packaging techniques. One item concerned a packaging firm that was said to be bringing out a new type ... RANDOMLY CHOSEN No names, no pack drill That phrase bubbled up from my subconscious. I realised at once that it might not be understood, but left it in from a mischievous desire to learn whether anybody would query it. The immediate source of ... RECENTLY ADDED PAGES Cock-a-hoop; Quinquagenary; Barrelhouse Words; Tumbarumba; Rub of the green; Chicanery; What Paddy shot at; Adust; Crisitunity; Southpaw; Centre about; Hoosegow; Sundae; Drunkard's cloak; Jollop; Pearls of wisdom; Manticore; Twenty-three Skidoo; Rannygazoo; Climate velocity; Colour Me Environmental; Redding; Shoestring; Griffonage; Amn't; Emuscation; Smartbook; Dot and carry one; Deliquescent; Slipshod; Macquarie Dictionary; Unfriend; E-bandoned. THE NEXT WEB SITE UPDATE The next update is due on 13 March, when the recent pop music genre chillwave is looked into, the now-rare term infra dig is investigated, the history of see-saw is explained, and I add anything interesting that comes up during the week. SIC! • “A coffee shop near my place of work,” e-mailed Patrick Mullins from Brooklyn, NY, “recently began advertising their breakfast, including a blubbery muffin. It doesn’t appeal.” • Roger Williams wondered whether a 29-year-old Sic! was permissible. He had just disinterred a fragment torn from television listings in the issue of the Sunday Times for 16 August 1981, a photo of which he sent with his message: “After his death at the age of 42, Elvis Presley became a living legend.” • “Now, that’s entertainment!” commented Margaret Collins, having seen a Yahoo! entertainment headline on 20 February: “Sean Penn charged with battery in Los Angeles.” • Linda Sewell, in Hartlepool, was reading the Northern Echo for 12 February when she spotted this ad for a mobile home: “Willerby Boston Lodge 40x20 fully sited on stunning south facing pitch with paramaniac views”. TECHNICAL INFORMATION This site is designed to work with the current generation of browsers. Some older ones might not be able to display every aspect of the design as it is intended to look, nor some of the special characters. If you want to download an updated browser, we recommend Firefox 3.6. The main text on every page is best viewed using Microsoft’s Georgia font. If you do not have it on your system, you can download it for Windows or the Apple Mac. Pronunciations are given in IPA symbols; to view these requires you to have a font on your system that includes them, such as Lucida Sans Unicode, Charis SIL, Doulos SIL or Arial Unicode MS. If you can read this (/mɛtɛmpˈtəʊsɪs/) as IPA you have a suitable font already installed. The site preference is for Lucida Sans Unicode (click on the font name to download the version for Microsoft Windows). See your system help files for how to install fonts.
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Last updated 6 Mar. 2010
Weekly E-Magazine
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