By the way, today is Carl Sagan Day. Livestream at 2 p.m. eastern starts here.

I think I will listen while I write exams...

there are so many inside jokes here, one can hardly count them, but it's still funny. watch. enjoy. Then look up Mr. Diety on YouTube. And that science advisor guy? He's real.

It's been 8 years, so it's probably safe to talk about it now...

The very first question I had on my GRE the last time I took it in July 2001 was about this word:

fatuous • \FATCH-oo-us\ • adjective
: complacently or inanely foolish : silly

I have no idea if I got it right or not.

Class starts next week, so I'm trying to make some progress on my word list... expect a couple more.

lief-- 1. Beloved, dear, agreeable, acceptable, precious. Also lief and dear. a. In attrib. use. Obs. exc. arch. b. Used in addressing a person. Obs. c. In predicative use. Const. dat. or to, unto, esp. in liefer was, were, to me, him, etc. with inf. or clause as subject d. In various constructions with have (see HAVE 22, and cf. G. lieb haben, Du. liefhebben): I (etc.) had (occas. have) as lief as, I had (occas. have) liefer (than), liefest, with object a n., inf. phrase (with or without to), or subordinate clause. Also in catachrestic constructions 4. absol. a. (When used in addressing a superior = Sir! Sire! Lord!) Obs. b. quasi-n. A beloved, a dear one; a friend, sweetheart, mistress; occas. a wife. Similarly in the compar., one who is dearer. Obs. B. adv. Dearly, gladly, willingly. Chiefly with would, pa. subj. (occas. Sc. with omission of would). Also in as lief (as), the liefer; lief I were = I would gladly be.

columbarium -- 1. A vault with niches for storing urns. 2. A dovecote or pigeon house.

meronym -- 1. A word denoting the mid point of two extremes. rare. 2. Linguistics. A word denoting an object which forms part of another object. Cf. MERONYMY n.

grey-back, greyback -- 1. U.S. colloq. A Confederate soldier in the American Civil War. 2. U.S. Cf. GREENBACK. 3. dial. and U.S. colloq. A louse. 4. A name of various birds. a. The Hooded Crow, Corvus cornix. Also greyback crow. b. U.S. The North American Knot, Trigla canutus. c. dial. and U.S. The scaup duck, Fuligula marila. 5. U.S. The grey whale

haka -- A Maori ceremonial posture dance accompanied by chanting; one danced by members of a sports team, etc.

schwerpunkt -- The point of focus; an area of concentrated effort, especially in a military operation.

epistolary -- 1. Of or relating to letters.2. Composed of letters (as a literary work).

cormorant -- 1. Any species of Phalacrocorax, a genus of sea birds having a sac under the beak; the shag. Cormorants devour fish voraciously, and have become the emblem of gluttony. They are generally black, and hence are called sea ravens, and coalgeese. 2. A gluttonous, greedy, or rapacious person.

quodlibet -- 1. A subtle argument, especially on a theological or philosophical issue. 2. A musical medley: a whimsical combination of popular tunes.

inanition -- 1. The condition or quality of being empty. 2. Exhaustion, as from lack of nourishment. 3. Lack of vitality or spirit.

dermatoglyphics -- 1. The ridge patterns of skin on the inner surface of the hands and feet. 2. The scientific study of these skin patterns.

mathematicaster -- A minor or incompetent mathematician. (ooh! insult for a smart person!)

lepidopterology -- The study of butterflies and moths.

prakriti -- 1. Matter, nature; (esp. in Sankhya philosophy) one of two principles which, when united with the other (soul or purusha) in three different qualities (gunas), gives rise to the world. 2. This principle as a constituent of the self or of human nature; (in Ayurvedic medicine) a person's constitutional type.

subintelligitur -- Something that is not stated but understood.

infundibuliform -- Funnel-shaped. (um, I think I will just say "funnel-shaped"!)

pied-a-terre -- A place of lodging for temporary or secondary use.

clou -- A major point of interest, or a central idea.

au fait -- Being well-informed or skillful in something.

moue -- Pout; grimace. (A good Scrabble word for when you have too many vowels!)

bon ton -- 1. Good form or style. 2. Something regarded as fashionably right. 3. High society.

peculate -- to steal money or goods entrusted to one; embezzle

contumacious -- Stubborn, insubordinate.

God's acre -- A cemetery, especially one next to a church.

mug's game -- A foolish or futile activity.

sword of Damocles -- An ever-present threat; an impending disaster.

eikonal -- n. The optical path length of a ray between specified points in the object and image spaces; more widely, a function of position denoting the time taken by a wave-front to reach a specified point. 1. Physics. Designating an equation which expresses the eikonal in terms of the wave velocity. 2. Particle Physics. Of, pertaining to, or designating a method of approximating the behaviour of particles by the use of eikonals.

froward -- not easily managed; contrary

motty -- 1. Mining. A miner's tally; a stick of wood or disc of metal, notched or stamped in a particular way, placed on a full corf to identify it as the work of a certain miner. 2. A word, opinion; esp. in to put one's motty in: to stick one's oar in, to interfere.

Okay, that's enough for now.

Senator Voinovich,

I am writing to you today to urge you to support the President and his push for Health Care/Health Insurance Reform. I believe that you are as concerned as I am about the state of the health care system in this country, and the impacts that it has on your constitutents in all walks of life, and in our ability to compete abroad, particularly for Ohio's manufacturing base. I am certain that we will not agree on all of the particulars as I strongly support the existence of a public option for health insurance, but i urge you to think about the consequences for the state and for the country if no bill passes.

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