New (old) Words
Listed here are forgotten and newly acquired words discovered while reading
The The Selfish Gene by, Richard Dawkins.
We are reading The Selfish Gene in celebration of Richard Dawkins's birthday: March 26, 1971. "By all means let's be open-minded, but not so open-minded that our brains drop out." Richard Dawkins: the hidden benefit of Covid is science that could change our world Learn more about genetics: The Gene - Ken Burns Documentary
VOCIFEROUS: vehement or clamorous.
ReplyDeleteNECKER CUBE: The Necker cube is an optical illusion that was first published as a Rhomboid in 1832 by Swiss crystallographer Louis Albert Necker. It's a simple wire-frame drawing of a cube with no visual cues as to its orientation, so it can be interpreted to have either the lower-left or the upper-right square as its front side.
ReplyDeleteGLOBULE: a small round particle of a substance; a drop.
ReplyDeleteSEPTUAGINT: the oldest surviving Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, traditionally believed to have been written by 72 Jewish scholars sometime during the third century BC.
ReplyDeleteFECUNDITY: the ability to produce an abundance of offspring or new growth; fertility.
ReplyDeleteALLELE: one of two or more alternative forms of a gene that arise by mutation and are found at the same place on a chromosome.
ReplyDeleteTAUTOLOGOUSLY: Needless repetition of the same sense in different words; redundancy. An instance of such repetition.
ReplyDeleteDELETERIOUS: causing harm or damage.
ReplyDeleteCAVIL: make petty or unnecessary objections.
ReplyDeletePUGNACITY: a natural disposition to be hostile.
ReplyDeleteOSCILLATION: movement back and forth at a regular speed.
ReplyDeleteHACKLES: erectile hairs along the back of a dog or other animal that rise when it is angry or alarmed.
ReplyDeletePARADOXICAL: seemingly absurd or self-contradictory.
ReplyDeletePARSIMONIOUS: unwilling to spend money or use resources; stingy or frugal.
ReplyDeleteFREESIAS: Freesias are one of the world’s most popular cut flowers. They are loved for their pure colors, long vase life and sweet perfume.
ReplyDeleteHAPLODIPLOIDY: sex differentiation in which haploid males are produced from unfertilized eggs and diploid females from fertilized eggs (as in certain insects)
ReplyDeleteONUS: used to refer to something that is one's duty or responsibility.
ReplyDeletePARVENUS: a person of obscure origin who has gained wealth, influence, or celebrity.
ReplyDeleteEPIDEICTIC: characterized by or designed to display rhetorical or oratorical skill.
ReplyDeleteISOGAMY: sexual reproduction by the fusion of similar gametes.
ReplyDeleteDETUMESCE: subside from a state of stiffness, swelling, or sexual arousal.
ReplyDeleteSTOTTING: (also called pronking or pronging) is a behavior of quadrupeds, particularly gazelles, in which they spring into the air, lifting all four feet off the ground simultaneously. Usually, the legs are held in a relatively stiff position.
ReplyDelete