24 August 2013

nonplus

[non-pluhs, non-pluhs]

verb, non·plussed or non·plused, non·plus·sing or non·plus·ing, noun
verb (used with object)

1. to render utterly perplexed; puzzle completely.
noun
2. a state of utter perplexity.

Example:

He was utterly nonplussed by the announcement.

Origin:
1575–85; (noun) < Latin nōn plūs literally, not more, no further, i.e., a state in which nothing more can be done

Synonyms
1. perplex, confuse, confound, disconcert.

Today’s aphorism

I’ve realized that being happy is a choice. You never want to rub anybody the wrong way or not be fun to be around, but you have to be happy. When I get logical and I don’t trust my instincts – That’s when I get in trouble.

– Angelina Jolie

On this day

24 August 79AD – eruption of Mt Vesuvius, Italy, completely destroying the cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Stabiae. The cities were buried under approximately 75m of tephra. The initial eruption produced a cloud of ash and pumice ranging from 15km to 30km high. It is estimated that 16,000 people perished.

24 August 479 – Fall of the Roman Empire as Visigoths conquer Rome.

24 August 1936 – establishment of the Australian Antarctic Territory.

24 August 1954 – Communist Party outlawed in the United States with the passing of the Communist Control Act.

24 August 1995 – Microsoft launches Windows 95. Bill Gates is embarrassed during a demonstration of the product, when his audience experiences the infamous ‘blue screen of death’.