15 July 2013

litotes

[lahy-tuh-teez, lit-uh-, lahy-toh-teez]

noun, plural li·to·tes. Rhetoric .
understatement, especially that in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of its contrary, as in ‘not bad at all’.
Compare hyperbole.

Origin:
1650–60; < Neo-Latin < Greek lītótēs orig., plainness, simplicity, derivative of lītós plain, small, meager

Today’s aphorism

Art must not be concentrated in dead shrines called museums. lt must be spread everywhere – on the streets, in the trams, factories, workshops, and in the workers’ homes.

Vladimir Mayakovsky – ‘Shrine or Factory?’ (1918); translation from Mikhail Anikst et al. (eds.) Soviet Commercial Design of the Twenties (New York: Abbeville Press, 1987) p. 15.

On this day

15 July 1099 – First Crusaders conquer Jerusalem.

15 July 1606 – birthday of Rembrandt, famous Dutch painter.

15 July 1815 – Napoleon surrenders and is eventually exiled on the island of St Helena

14 July 2013

hyperbole

[hahy-pur-buh-lee]

noun Rhetoric .

1. obvious and intentional exaggeration.
2. an extravagant statement or figure of speech not intended to be taken literally, as ‘to wait an eternity’, or ‘I’m so hungry I could eat a horse’.

Example sentence:

‘The aspiring politician’s campaign promises were more hyperbole than policy’.

Compare litotes.

Origin:
1520–30; < Greek hyperbolḗ excess, exaggeration, throwing beyond, equivalent to hyper- hyper- + bolḗ throw

Synonyms
2. overstatement.

Antonyms
2. understatement.

Today’s aphorism

The thoughtless are rarely wordless.

Howard W. Newton

On this day

14 July 1789 – Bastille Day – commemorating the storming of the Bastille.

14 July 1881 – death (?) of William H. Bonney aka Billy ‘The Kid’. American outlaw. Legend has it that he killed 21 men, although historians believe it may have been between 4 and 9 men. He was shot dead by Sheriff Pat Garrett around 14 July 1881. Some conspiracy theorists believe that Bonney did not get shot that day, but that Garrett staged the shooting so that Billy ‘The Kid’ could escape. Born 23 November 1859.

13 July 2013

lugubrious

[loo-goo-bree-uhs, -gyoo-]

adjective

– mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner: lugubrious songs of lost love.

Origin:
1595–1605; < Latin lūgubri ( s ) mournful (akin to lūgēre to mourn) + -ous

Related forms
lu·gu·bri·ous·ly, adverb
lu·gu·bri·ous·ness, lu·gu·bri·os·i·ty [luh-goo-bree-os-i-tee, -gyoo-] Show IPA , noun
non·lu·gu·bri·ous, adjective
non·lu·gu·bri·ous·ly, adverb
non·lu·gu·bri·ous·ness, noun

Synonyms
sorrowful, melancholy.

Antonyms
cheerful.

Today’s aphorism

It’s really very simple, Governor. When people are hungry they die. So spare me your politics and tell me what you need and how you’re going to get it to these people.

Bob Geldof

On this day

13 July 1985 – Bob Geldof and Midge Ure organise and stage the Live Aid Concert. The concert was held simultaneously in London, UK, and Philadelphia, USA, to raise money to fight famine in Ethiopia. Similar concerts were performed across the globe in solidarity with Live Aid. The Live Aid concerts were broadcast live to an estimated audience of 1.9 billion people across 150 nations. An estimated £150 million was raised. Some of the world’s biggest musical acts participated, including Elton John, Boomtown Rats, Dire Straits, Mick Jagger, Neil Young, Sting, U2, Queen, Led Zeppelin, Joan Baez, BB King, Paul McCartney, The Who, Black Sabbath, Eric Clapton, Status Quo, Sade, ‘Crosby, Stills & Nash’, George Thorogood, Madonna, Duran Duran, Bob Dylan, and a host of others.

12 July 2013

ginormous

[jahy-nawr-muhs]

adjective Informal.

– extremely large; huge. e.g. King Kong was ginormous gorilla.

Today’s quote

‘Oh no, it wasn’t the airplanes. It was beauty killed the beast’.

– Carl Denham to the Police Lieutenant, King Kong (1933 movie).

On this day

12 July 1943 – The Soviet Army commences a counter-offensive in the Battle of Kursk, Russia to combat the German Army’s ‘Operation Citadel’ offensive on the Eastern Front. It was the largest tank battle in history, involving more than 8,000 tanks, 3 million troops, 35,000 guns and mortars, and more than 5,000 aircraft, between both sides. By mid-August, the Soviets had prevailed, driving the German’s out.

12 July 1950 – birth of Eric Carr (Paul Charles Caravello), drummer with Kiss. Died 24 November 1991.

12 July 1962 – Rolling Stones make their first live performance. The concert was at the Marquee Club on London’s Oxford St.

11 July 2013

synoptic

[si-nop-tik]

adjective

1. pertaining to or constituting a synopsis; affording or taking a general view of the principal parts of a subject.
2. ( often initial capital letter ) taking a common view: used chiefly in reference to the first three Gospels (synoptic Gospels) Matthew, Mark, and Luke, from their similarity in content, order, and statement.
3. ( often initial capital letter ) pertaining to the synoptic Gospels.
4. meteorological: showing or concerned with the distribution of meteorological conditions over a wide area at a given time: a synoptic chart

Also, syn·op·ti·cal.

Origin:
1755–65; < Greek synoptikós, equivalent to synop- (see synopsis) + -tikos -tic

Related forms
syn·op·ti·cal·ly, adverb
non·syn·op·tic, adjective, noun
non·syn·op·ti·cal, adjective
non·syn·op·ti·cal·ly, adverb

Today’s aphorism

There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.

– Leonard Cohen

On this day

11 July 1977 – Nine years after his assassination, Martin Luther King is posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by United States President Jimmy Carter.

11 July 1979 – US space station, Skylab, ignites on re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere, causing debris to rain down on Australia. The space station was unoccupied at the time.

10 July 2013

unilateral

[yoo-nuh-lat-er-uhl]

adjective
1. relating to, occurring on, or involving one side only: unilateral development; a unilateral approach.
2. undertaken or done by or on behalf of one side, party, or faction only; not mutual: a unilateral decision; unilateral disarmament.
3. having only one side or surface; without a reverse side or inside, as a Möbius strip.
4. Law.
a. pertaining to a contract that can be formed only when the party to whom an offer is made renders the performance for which the offeror bargains.
b. pertaining to a contract in which obligation rests on only one party, as a binding promise to make a gift.
5. Botany . having all the parts disposed on one side of an axis, as an inflorescence.

Today’s aphorism

Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and learn to love the questions themselves.

– Rainer Maria Rilke

On this day

10 July 1942 – birth of Ronald James Padavona, otherwise known as Ronny James Dio, heavy metal singer. Dio replaced Ozzy Osbourne as lead singer of Black Sabbath, for two years before leaving after disagreements with other band members. Dio was also associated with Rainbow, Dio, and Elf. Died 16 May 2010.

9 July 2013

Young Fogey

noun

– a young or fairly young person who adopts the conservative values of an older generation (see Old Fogey).

Example sentence:

The chubby London detective wore the three-piece, pink shirt and toothbrush moustache of the archetypal Young Fogey.

– Margaret Moore, Forests of the Night.

Today’s aphorism

There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.

― Nelson Mandela

On this day

9 July 1941 – British military cryptologists break the Enigma code which the German Army was using for encrypting messages used for directing ground to air operations. However, a group of Polish cryptologists claim to have assisted in the cracking of Enigma and have been campaigning for recognition of their part in the break-through.

9 July 1982 – In the early hours of the morning, 30 year old Irishman, Michael Fagan breaks into Buckhingham Palace and makes his way to Queen Elizabeth II’s bedroom. Reports at the time, claimed that he spent 10 minutes in there talking with the Queen before being arrested, however, Fagan later claimed that the Queen immediately fled the bedroom and summoned security. The incident was the biggest royal security breach of the 20th century.

9 July 2004 – A US Senate Intelligence Committee finds that the CIA misrepresented the threat posed by Iraq, which was used by President George W. Bush in order to justify the 2003 Iraq invasion by the ‘Coalition of the Willing’.

8 July 2013

old fogey

noun

a person who is excessively old-fashioned in attitude, ideas, manners, etc.
Also, old fogy.

Origin:
1825–35

Related forms
old-fo·gy·ish, old-fo·gey·ish, adjective

Today’s aphorism

The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those that speak it.

– George Orwell.

On this day

8 July 1954 – Military leader, Castillo Armas seizes power of Guatamala in a CIA-backed coup, overthrowing Communist president Jacobo Arbenz Guzman. The coup was part of the CIA’s international anti-communist activities. On request of the CIA, Armas formed the National Committee of Defense Against Communism, which is recognised as Latin America’s first modern death squad, purging the government and trade unions of people with suspected left-wing tendencies. Armas introduced the ‘Preventive Penal Law Against Communism’ which increased penalties for ‘Communist’ activities, such as labor union activities. Armas was assassinated on 26 July 1957 by a palace guard, Romeo Vásquez. It is unknown what Vásquez’s motive was. He was found dead in a suspected suicide a short while later.

8 July 1980 – First State of Origin match played between New South Wales and Queensland at Lang Park (Suncorp Stadium), Brisbane. Queensland won 20-10.

7 July 2013

ajar

[uh-jahr]

adjective, adverb

– either entirely open nor entirely shut; partly open: ‘He kept the door ajar with a jar’.

Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English on char on the turn; see a-1 , char3

Dictionary.com Unabridged
a·jar2 [uh-jahr] Show IPA
adverb, adjective
in contradiction to; at variance with: a story ajar with the facts.
Origin:
1545–55; for at jar at discord; cf. jar3 (noun)

Today’s aphorism

‘Let thy speech be better than silence, or be silent’.

― Dionysius of Halicarnassus

On this day

7 July 2007 – The New 7 Wonders Foundation officially declares a new ‘Seven Wonders of the World’ list:

1. The Great Wall of China
2. Petra, Jordan (a city carved into rock)
3. Christ Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
4. Machu Picchu, Peru
5. Chichén Itzá Pyramid, Mexico
6. Roman Colisseum, Italy
7. Taj Mahal, Indian

1. Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt
2. Hanging Gardens of Babylon
3. Temple of Artemis at Ephesus
4. Statue of Zeus, Olympia, Greece
5. Mausoleum of Maussollos at Hallicarnassus
6. Colossus of Rhodes
7. Lighthouse of Alexandria

6 July 2013

prosaic

[proh-zey-ik]

adjective

1. commonplace or dull; matter-of-fact or unimaginative: a prosaic mind.
2. of or having the character or form of prose rather than poetry.
Also, pro·sa·i·cal.

Origin:
1650–60; Late Latin prōsaicus. See prose, -ic

Related forms
pro·sa·i·cal·ly, adverb
pro·sa·ic·ness, noun
non·pro·sa·ic, adjective
non·pro·sa·ic·ness, noun
non·pro·sa·i·cal·ly, adverb

Synonyms
1. ordinary, everyday; vapid, humdrum, tedious, tiresome, uninteresting.

Today’s aphorism

‘Those who love peace must learn to organize as effectively as those who love war’.

– Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

On this day

6 July 1925 – birth of Bill Haley, who arguably had the world’s first ever rock’n’roll song, ‘Rock Around the Clock’. Died 9 February 1981.