Word of the Day

[D. Allan]

heuristic (hyoo ristik) noun or adjective

A method for discovery, learning or problem solving; a ‘rule of thumb.’

Logic : a helpful procedure not necessarily a proof for arriving at a solution.

1821, irregular formation from Gk. heuretikos "inventive," related to heuriskein "to find"

“To make diagnoses, most doctors rely on shortcuts and rules of thumb—known in psychology as ‘heuristics.’ ” - Jerome Groopman, ‘What’s the Trouble,’ The New Yorker, Jan. 29, 2007

‘When they examined how people deal with uncertainty, Tversky and Kahneman found that there were consistent biases to the responses, and that these biases could be traced to mental shortcuts, or what they called “heuristics.” ‘ Elizabeth Kolbert, [size:8pt]‘What Was I Thinking?’ The New Yorker, Feb. 25, 2008

Symantec said yesterday that it had been given a patent on its advanced heuristic antivirus technology. Standard antivirus software looks for specific strings of code that appear in known viruses; heuristic systems look more generally for suspicious patterns. Heuristic systems are not as accurate as standard ''fingerprint'' systems, but when used with them can help fight known viruses and prevent infection by new viruses. –John Schwartz, NYTimes, March 21, 2002

If the track record of layoffs in improving corporate performance and shareholder returns is so mediocre, why do executives still find them tempting? One reason is that executives’ view of downsizing is shaped by what’s sometimes called the vividness heuristic: the tendency to give undue weight to particularly vivid or newsworthy examples. –James Surowiecki, ‘It’s the Workforce, Stupid!’, The New Yorker, April 30, 2007

The one that has most gotten to me is the availability heuristic, which means that people assess probabilities by asking whether examples easily come to mind…. I don’t know if our society is more vulnerable to bad heuristics and errors than it was 20 years ago. Certainly there’s a lot of vulnerability to those things, but the same as been true for a very long time. – Cass Sunstein in “From Push to Nudge: A Q&A With the Authors of the Latter” By Annika Mengisen in NYTimes, April 15, 2008

When judging risks, we often go wrong by using what’s called the availability heuristic: we gauge a danger according to how many examples of it are readily available in our minds. Thus we overestimate the odds of dying in a terrorist attack or a plane crash because we’ve seen such dramatic deaths so often on television; we underestimate the risks of dying from a stroke because we don’t have so many vivid images readily available. -John Tierney, Findings, NYTimes, Jan. 01, 2008

We call this the “recognition heuristic,” and it basically means “go with what you know.” 'Through Analysis, Gut Reaction Gains Credibility,' NYTimes, August 28, 2007 - By CLAUDIA DREIFUS - Science

[phkrause]

Nice, and good to see you again D. Allan.

pk

[Woody]

Yes. dAb .... SO good to see you.

[D. Allan]

Thank you very much, fellows. You are kind.

[D. Allan]

liminal adj.

1. relating to a threshold; of, relating to, or situated at a sensory threshold being neither one thing nor the other.

2. barely perceptible

from the Latin noun limin, threshold.

related words:

liminality: the state of being neither-this-nor-that, betwixt and between, “on the threshold" of or between two different states of being or awareness.

subliminal: "below the threshold" (of consciousness).

But she had a wonderful quality of being poised between child and woman, that great liminal state. –Dave Kehr, “At The Movies; Getting Started Extra Early,” NYTimes, May 2, 2003

Liminality, the state of being "in between," is inherently unsettling, yet full of possibility. - http://www.lisjobs.com/liminal/

"I live in a very liminal place," Ms. [Jennifer] Miller says. " 'Liminal' means an 'in-between place,' " she explains. "It means 'in a doorway, a dawn or a dusk.' It's a lovely place. In the theater, it's when the lights go out. And before the performance begins." -Dinitia Smith, “Step Right Up! See the Bearded Person!” NYTimes, June 9, 1995

[Gail]

Great word! Reminds me of limbo...

So good to see you again, dAb!!! It's been too long!!

*Gail dancing around*

[D. Allan]

You dance well, I'm sure!

"Limbo" is an interesting word also and has something in common with liminal besides the sound - although instead of being 'on the threshold' I think of being in limbo as more like being shunted from the hallway and stowed in a closet. But still, I agree that limbo is a liminal place or state.

[D. Allan]

“Anomie” is a series of 17 large paintings made in the 1990's by Mr. Mesches, and feature what are, for him, pivotal moments in world history. These moments demonstrate anomie, or the decline of standards both in society and the individual. –William Zimmer, “ART; What’s Going On at Wesleyan?,” NYTimes, Feb. 3, 2002

http://museums.richmond.edu/hmaexhibitions/mesches.html

anomie

1. social instability due to erosion of moral and social codes

2. alienation or disorientation in society and the individual due to a lack of social or moral frameworks.

1591, anomy, "disregard of law," from Gk. a- "without" + nomos "law." The modern use, with Fr. spelling (from Durkheim's "Suicide," 1897), is first attested 1933 and means "absence of accepted social values." -Online Etymology Dictionary

Anomie, in contemporary English language, is a sociological term that signifies in individuals an erosion, diminution, or absence of personal norms, standards, or values, and increased states of psychological normlessness. It is a social condition in which norms are weak, conflicting, or absent.[1] When applied to a government or society, anomie implies a social unrest. An older English synonym is "accidy". -wikipedia.com

Anomie signifies the breakdown of the normative frameworks of our lives, the upsetting of rules, expectations, one’s sense of one’s place in society, one’s status vis-à-vis others, a social condition with grave psychological effects, leading in extreme cases to suicide. –Steven Lukes, ‘Zero confidence,’ New Humanist, vol. 123, #6, Nov-Dec, 2008

Almost all Miss Robison's characters, it seems, suffer from a sense of dislocation. One woman hears voices in her head, another complains about a brain tumor; an accident-prone man totals the family car, then catches on fire while cooking on the hibachi. Others, like Nobuko who hasn't changed out of her pajamas in weeks, are simply afflicted with a nameless anomie. ''What's the matter?'' her boyfriend asks. ''There are things,'' Nobuko says. ''Many things.'' –Kakutani, Michiko, NYTimes, Nov. 15 1983

Mr. Merton had asked himself what it was that brought about anomie, a state in which, according to Mr. Durkheim, the breakdown of social standards threatened social cohesion. In a breakthrough that spawned many lines of inquiry, Mr. Merton suggested that anomie was likely to arise when society's members were denied adequate means of achieving the very cultural goals that their society projected, like wealth, power, fame or enlightenment. –Michael T. Kaufman, “Robert K. Merton, Versatile Sociologist and Father of the Focus Group, Dies at 92,” NYTimes, Feb. 24, 2003

I was actually hoping for anomie as well, but that was when I thought it was something like ennui. Apparently, if we are to believe the several dictionaries I consulted, anomie isn't exactly a state of mind but a kind of disconnected lack of direction or morals. –James Gorman, “SIDE EFFECTS; This is Your Brain on Schadenfreude….,” NYTimes, Jan. 24, 2006

The great issues are the same as they were when 15-year-old Anne Frank, three weeks shy of discovery in her attic hideaway, less than a year from death in Bergen-Belsen, wrote in her shabby plaid diary: "In spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart."

Fear not; Anne was right. The heavenly hosts prove it every day, in Coney Island, in Washington Heights, in Flushing, with cots, with comfort, with boxes of tissues on their desks. I leave you with good tidings of great joy: Those who shun the prevailing winds of cynicism and anomie can truly fly. –Anna Quindlen, “Public & Private; Every Day, Angels,” Dec. 14, 1994

Links: http://durkheim.itgo.com/anomie.html

[D. Allan]

stasis noun

1. a state of no change, a stoppage

2. a state of equilibrium or inactivity caused by opposing equal forces, –Random House Dictionary

3. a state of balance among various forces; motionlessness. American Heritage Dictionary

4. medical: the stoppage of flow of body fluids.

1745, from Medical L., from Gk. stasis "a standing still," related to statos "placed,"

synonyms: equilibrium, balance, equivalence, evenness, stoppage, motionlessness.

“The peripheral vessels of the hands, the feet and the ears react beneficially with less likelihood of sluggishness and stasis.” The New York Times, Jun3 23, 1957

Beckett had been writing plays of stasis, mocking drama s age-old notion that it had something to do with "action." -The New York Times, April 12, 1970

“Drones can be soothing and meditative or foreboding in their immobility, though they never seem entirely still; human perception continually searches for changes within the stasis, focusing on various levels of harmony or imagining a hidden melody.” Jon Pareles, “In a Stasis of Sound: Dron-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-ne,” NYTimes, Sept. 5, 1996

“I think sadness is the emotion that “The Moviegoer” best encapsulates —anomie, stasis, fixedness, even hopelessness.” NYTimes, ‘The End of Something-Reading Room Blog,’ Feb. 4, 2008

[Woody]

Please don't wish number four on me quite now.

[D. Allan]

No! let all flow smoothly and easily and regularly. :)

[Woody]

teehe

[phkrause]

That's a good one Redwood.

pk

[D. Allan]

Stasis can be caused by a stricture.

at 2 – stricture or narrowing of the esophagus

http://www.jewishhospital.org/myjewishhospital/images/GI-11.jpg

stricture (STRIK-cher), noun

1. a narrowing of a bodily passage

2. an adverse critical remark; censure

3. a limit, restriction, restraint

[c.1400, "abnormal narrowing in a body part," from L.L. strictura "contraction, constriction," from pp. stem of stringere "to bind or draw tight". Sense of "criticism, critical remark" is first recorded 1655, perhaps from the other L. word stringere "to touch lightly" -Online Etymology Dictionary ]

synonyms : limit, parameter, limitation, restriction, constraint, bound, factor, consideration, issue, boundary

In advanced cases, this narrowing, or stricture, can be severe. The opening may be reduced to the size of a pencil or even smaller. Food and fluid are delayed and only move slowly across the opening into the stomach.- Jackson Siegelbaum Gastroenterology http://www.gicare.com/pated/ecdgs05.htm

She writes about the yearning of young Saudis to escape the constraints of the rigid tribal and religious strictures of their parents. –Tom Hundley, ‘Arabian Tale’ Chicago Tribune, July 22, 2008

Fiction, when it is made so truly reflective of reality that it seems a “piece of life,” can communicate complexities of history that cannot be corralled within the strictures of rational analysis. –Nikhil Patel, ‘Mail; Re: Movable Types,’ The New Yorker, Dec. 24, 2007

It was an extremely religious household. The noses of her dolls were cut off, she said, as a reminder of the stricture against graven images. –Dinitia Smith, Arts, ‘An Author’s Hasidic Roots Become Her Inspiration,’ NYTimes, Feb. 8, 2005

Some adherents to a religion strive to obey literally its every stricture, others find room for interpretation, and nearly no Christians -- not even the most passionate fundamentalists -- believe that farmers should be forbidden to plant two crops in the same field, as proscribed in Leviticus. –Randy Cohen, ‘The Way We Live Now, Baptism Battle,’ NYTimes, July 4, 2004

[D. Allan]

empirical adj.

1. based on experience (rather than theory) .

2. derived from, or testable by observations of the physical senses or by using instruments which extend the senses.

3. verifiable by scientific experimentation –wiktionary.org

Based on actual measurement, observation, or experience without regard to science and theory. www.daviscalibration.com

1569, from L. empiricus, from Gk. empeirikos "experienced," from empeiria "experience," from empeiros "skilled," from en- "in" + peira "trial, experiment." Originally a school of ancient physicians who based their practice on experience rather than theory. Online Etymology Dictionary

Related words:empirically

empiricism

empiricist

Antonyms: conceptual, theoretical, anecdotal, anecdotal evidence

He explains in his sub-title that it is "an empirical study of the mental and physiological effects of definite meteorological conditions." NYTimes, Sept. 3, 1904

But though she never forgets that empirical emphasis, Dr. Harkness constantly urges the fact that philosophy is what we need,… NYTimes, “Ideals for Bewildered Worldings” May 9, 1937

The Resurrection is an object of faith, not of empirical investigation, and I say as much in the last two paragraphs of my article. ... NYTimes, “The Historical Jesus” Jan. 18, 1987

“What would happen if we started with these empirical discoveries about the nature of mind and constructed philosophy anew? The answer is that an empirically responsible philosophy would require our culture to abandon some of its deepest philosophical assumptions.” George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, “Philosophy in the Flesh, The Embodied Mind and Its Challenge to Western Thought,” from the introduction.

“It is surprising to discover, on the basis of empirical research, that human rationality is not at all what the Western philosophical tradition has held it to be.” Lakoff and Johnson

“. . . and since most thought is unconscious, the mind cannot be known simply by self-reflection. Empirical study is necessary.” Lakoff and Johnson

[phkrause]

Where do you get all these words and the info from? Oh yeah the dictionary I guess. And if so, your probably the only, or one of the only people to read it. Thanks for keeping us up on these words of wisdom.

pk

[D. Allan]

Some words just pop up during a conversation, or while reading. Like Gail just used the word 'akimbo' recently. It has a nice sound - recalls Japanese words like akiado, (sp). I'm glad you check them out.

dab

[Gail]

Here is our puppy, asleep, with her legs all akimbo:

[D. Allan]

apt adjective

1. very appropriate; esp. suited to the circumstances

2. likely (this meaning was more apt to be used 100 years ago .)

3. quick to learn

synonyms: appropriate, suitable, fitting apposite, pertinent; quick, capable, competent, clever, skilled.

antonyms: inappropriate; inept

aptly, adv.

aptness, noun

1398, "suited, fitted, adapted," from L. aptus "fit, suited," pp. of *apere "to attach, join, tie to,"

- Online Etymology Dictionary

“They are simply apt pupils in the school of practical Anarchy, of which our Executives have been Superintendents and the saloon keepers teachers. ... “ NYTimes, Oct. 16, 1893

“This State has passed a prohibition law which is illustrative of the way that we are apt to tackle a problem in this country,. . . “ NYTimes, January 23, 1916

'Mahagonny,' an Apt Metaphor For Political Chaos in Any Era. By BERNARD HOLLAND. Published: Monday, November 27, 1995 ... NYTimes

EDINBURGH, June 17 -- William J. 'Bryan addressed the evening session of the World Missionary Conference here tonight, and, arguing against many of the objections to missions, said that missionaries were much less apt to get nations into trouble than persons who went abroad for the purpose of making money. New York Times, June 18, 1910

[Gail]

Interesting- thanks, dab!

[D. Allan]

Apt is short and sweet; and related to aptitude, a word usually used in evaluation of human traits but which may also be applied to inanimate things or to abstract qualities (as in quotes below from Aristotle, David Hume, and the 2nd quote from Thomas Hobbes.) The usage by Ben Jonson is especially interesting (please don’t be intimidated by his spelling.)

aptitude noun

1. a natural skill or inclination

2. ability to learn something with ease

3. the condition of being suitable. -Wiktionary

synonyms: ability, skill, talent, gift, capacity, fitness, suitability, inclination

“We will take your personal aptitudes and abilities into account” Cambridge Advanced Learners Dictionary.

“An aptitude test measures your ability to succeed at something. “ – Cambridge Dictionary of American English.

“His stormy tenure at Harvard, where his aggressive personal style and sharp-edged remarks — including an observation that women might lack an intrinsic aptitude for math and science — provoked a bitter clash with the faculty, forcing his resignation after five years.” -Mark Landler, ‘The New Team, Lawrence H. Summers,’ NYTimes, Nov 7, 2008. [The word “intrinsic” here may be redundant. -dab]

“A low-aptitude student can use video tapes as an aid to his formal classroom ...” -NYTimes, Aug 24, 1966

“Most of us think in verbal terms, and we have a suspicion that verbal thinking has very little to do with engineering aptitude." NYTimes, August 12, 1928

“It is the nature almost of every corporeal thing, being often moved in one and the same manner, to receive continually a greater and greater easiness and aptitude to the same motion; insomuch as in time the same becometh so habitual, that to beget it, there needs no more than to begin it.” Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679), “The Elements of Law Natural and Politic”

“. . . one would think on so small an island an Irishman must be an Irishman: yet it is not so, they are different in their aptitude to, and in their love of labour.” -St John De Crevecoeur, Hector J. (1735-1813); “Letters From An American Farmer”

“Secondly by other more characteristic affections which express their aptitude to be affected: I mean, for instance, the aptitude to melt or solidify or bend and so forth, all these qualities, like moist and dry, being passive. These are the qualities that differentiate bone, flesh, sinew, wood, bark, stone. . . “ -Aristotle 384 BC – 322 BC, ‘Meteorology’

“The difference between these three kinds of Commonwealth consisteth, not in the difference of power, but in the difference of convenience or aptitude to produce the peace and security of the people; for which end they were instituted.” Thomas Hobbes, ‘Leviathan’

“This is the case with good nature, good humour, facility, generosity, beauty, and many other qualities. These have a peculiar aptitude to produce love in others; but not so great a tendency to excite pride in ourselves: For which reason the view of them, as belonging to another person, produces pure love, with but a small mixture of humility and respect. “ -David Hume (1711-1776), ‘A Treatise of Human Nature’

"Giue aside now a little, and leaue me to examine her condition, and aptitude to my affection. He goes about her, and viewes her. She is exceeding faire, and of a speciall good fauour; a sweet composition, or harmony of limmes: her temper of beauty has the true height of my blood.” -Ben Jonson (1572-1637), ‘The Silent Woman’

“Certainly they will, in their gentleness, their lowly docility of heart, their aptitude to repose on a superior mind and rest on a higher power, their childlike simplicity of affection, and facility of forgiveness.” Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896), ‘Uncle Tom’s Cabin’

“The natural aptitude of the French for seizing the picturesqueness of things seems to be peculiarly evinced in what paintings and engravings they have of their whaling scenes.” Herman Melville (1819-1891), ‘Moby Dick’

[D. Allan]

Gail, what is the puppie's name? Kimbo?

dab

[D. Allan]

akimbo (eh – KIM – bow) adj. and adverb

It is refreshing to come across such a word , one more purely English without the seemingly ubiquitous influence of the Latin, Greek or French languages which afflict or bless our language, (depending upon your point of view for one wonders just what would our language be if one needed not to be a scholar of Latin and of Greek to fully catch the nuances of meaning hidden from ordinary speakers in its many foreign borrowings.) From a Late Middle English phrase in kenebowe (in keen bow, keenly or sharply, bowed or bent, much as when an archer’s bow is ready to release its arrow), akimbo today usually describes the stance of a person with her hand on her hip, and her elbow bent outward; or both hands on hips with both elbows flared outward. -dAb

The word's origins are murky. The term was recorded first in the English language around 1400 in The Tale of Beryn: "The hoost ... set his hond in kenebowe." In the 17th century, the word was spelled on kenbow, a kenbow, a kenbol, a kenbold, or on kimbow, but may have other non European origins. The forms akembo and akimbo are found in the 18th century, with akimbo gradually becoming the standard. –http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akimbo

c.1400, in kenebowe, perhaps from phrase in keen bow "at a sharp angle," or from a Scand. word akin to Icelandic kengboginn "bow-bent." Many languages use a teapot metaphor for this, such as Fr. faire le pot a deux anses "to play the pot with two handles." -http://etymonline.com

Uses of this word:

“…and am looking for ideas on how one can start conversations with someone who is not American, without coming across as slightly akimbo. ...” NYTimes, Feb 13, 2009

“The window placement, roof lines, decoration and walls are all akimbo, leaving a pleasant, picturesque chaos. ...” NYTimes, December 28, 2008 - By CHRISTOPHER GRAY - Real Estate

“If you have back trouble, putting your arms akimbo is one way to take the strain off your shoulders or hips for a few minutes. ...” NYTimes, November 10, 2008 – Freakonomics

“I am growing tired of the elbows-akimbo, hands on rounded hip pose after all these years. Yes, she is a curvy girl, so embrace it and learn to relax into a ...” NYTimes, February 22, 2009 – Carpetbagger

“How can one emote pride without fully taking the cartoonish “standard pose” ( head thrown back with a small smile, arms akimbo–reminds me of ...” NYTimes, April 6, 2009 - Consults Blog

“Tom, in the meantime, stood perfectly motionless, with his arms folded akimbo on his breast, wet through, muddy, still tipsy, a sight miserable to behold.” Anthony Trollope, Ayala’s Angel

“--topped by a narrow path, where we walked in single file with arms akimbo to keep our balance in the gusts of wind.” Erskin Childers, Riddle of the Sands

“He passed one of his heavy hands over his crisp dark hair as if to sweep the broken thoughts out of his mind and sat a little forward, with one arm akimbo and the other resting on his leg, looking in a brown study at the ground.” Charles Dickens, Bleak House

[Guest]

1 : having the hand on the hip and the elbow turned outward

2 : set in a bent position <a tailor sitting with legs akimbo>

[D. Allan]

The tailor's legs - a perfect example! - his knees turned outward - the legs being keenly bent or bowed. akeenbow dAb