American linguist and lexicographer
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That's right, your very favorite comedy podcast about America's Favorite Quiz Show is BACK for Season 3 of our show and Season 42 of Jeopardy!'s. And we go all the way deep on this one as we reconnect with Jonathan Hugendubler, we meet a few listeners of our show who find success on the J! stage, and the week proves ripe for anecdote and response of the week candidates. Plus, J! fans are fuming over Ken becoming an empty nester and we dive deep on the Spelling Bee. For our patrons, of course, our show never stopped, as we did bonus episodes all summer long over at patreon.com/jeopardypodcast, and had a blast doing it. John got a crash course in Broadway from Louis Peitzman, we watched Matt LeBlanc's porno, and we got lots more where that came from. Join today and never miss a new bonus episode PLUS hang out in our Discord with our very cool listeners! SOURCE: The Outline: "When Spellers Became Athletes" by Ann-Derrick Gaillot; The Boston Globe: "At This Year's Spelling Bee, Make Way for Meaning" by Ben Zimmer; New York Times: "Frank Neuhauser, A Speller's Speller" by Margalit Fox This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert. Special thank you to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan.
This was a splendid crossword by Ben Zimmer. There were no rebuses, but the ingenious theme was a surprise and a delight. We give it a 5 squares on the JAMCR scale, and for the reasons why, have a listen to today's episode.A logistical note: we are going to be taking Friday and Saturday off, due to anticipated connectivity issues. But we will, of course, be doing the crossword, and will be back to talk about our cruciverbial exploits on Sunday.Show note imagery: The Minceta Tower (Dubrovnik) in CROATIA, the real home of the Game of ThronesWe love feedback! Send us a text...Contact Info:We love listener mail! Drop us a line, crosswordpodcast@icloud.com.Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!
This week, Ryan is on vacation, so Ben Zimmer saves the day and joins Brian with renewed excitement over the National Spelling Bee, the National Puzzlers' League, and the National League East-leading Mets. Also: follow-up news on the 2025 Tonys Anti-Match Quiz, as well as several upcoming puzzle get-togethers (Westwords, SPAMcon, Boswords, and Lollapuzzoola)! If you get bored (how could you?!), write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, kealoa, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, sandwiches, soup, trivia, words
This week, Ben Zimmer joins Brian in the FMI studio for a thorough recap of the 2024 Word of the Year! Also: NYT games, the ORCAs, a little known fact about Russian poetry, and a Brian Wecht sighting! If you get bored (how could you?!), write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, kealoa, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, sandwiches, soup, trivia, words
On this week's Tech Nation, Moira speaks with MIT Technology Review's Mat Honan about the 10 breakthrough technologies of the past year, including Generative AI and green steel. Then, Ben Zimmer, CEO of Priovant Therapeutics, discusses their breakthrough drug in phase 3 trials targeting severe autoimmune diseases.
On this week's Tech Nation, Moira speaks with MIT Technology Review's Mat Honan about the 10 breakthrough technologies of the past year, including Generative AI and green steel. Then, Ben Zimmer, CEO of Priovant Therapeutics, discusses their breakthrough drug in phase 3 trials targeting severe autoimmune diseases.
It's the annual parade of Bonus Bits - things this year's guests said that I couldn't fit into their episodes, and/or weren't about language, but now is their time to shine. We've got tricorn hats, changing your dog's name, Boston cream pie, parmesan vs vomit, the placebo effect's negative sibling, the universal blank, headache poetry and bawdy riddles. And more! Thanks to, in order of appearance: Joanna Kopaczyk, Juliana Pache, Ben Zimmer, Stacey Mei Yan Fong, A.J. Jacobs, Zazie Todd and Caroline Crampton. Visit theallusionist.org/bonus2024 for the transcript of this episode, more information about the topics therein, links to all the guest and their original episodes, and all the previous years' bonus episodes. Content note: this episode contains mentions of cancer and death, and anti-fat culture - but I tell you when that section is about to start, so you can skip ahead by five and a half minutes if you need to. To help fund this independent podcast, take yourself to theallusionist.org/donate and become a member of the Allusioverse. You get regular livestreams with me reading from my ever-expanding collection of dictionaries, inside scoops into the making of this show, and watchalong parties - coming up, we've got Great Pottery Throwdown 2025, and Cold Comfort Farm (1995). And best of all, you get the company of your fellow Allusionauts in our delightful Discord community. And go to theallusionist.org/events for information about the Allusionist's big 10th birthday live show in Vancouver BC on 12 January 2025. This episode was produced by me, Helen Zaltzman, with music and production assistance from Martin Austwick of palebirdmusic.com. Find @allusionistshow on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Threads, Bluesky, TikTok, etc. Our ad partner is Multitude. If you want me to talk about your product or thing on the show, sponsor an episode: contact Multitude at multitude.productions/ads. This episode is sponsored by:• Rosetta Stone, language-learning programs available for 25 different languages. Allusionist listeners get 50% off lifetime memberships at rosettastone.com/allusionist. • Audio Maverick, a new 9-part documentary podcast from CUNY TV about radio maven Himan Brown. Hear about the dawn of radio and Brown's remarkable career, via archive footage and new interviews with audio mavericks, by subscribing to Audio Maverick in your podcast app.• Squarespace, your one-stop shop for building and running your online forever home. Go to squarespace.com/allusionist for a free 2-week trial, and get 10 percent off your first purchase of a website or domain with the code allusionist.• Rocket Money, the personal finance app that helps find and cancel your unwanted subscriptions and monitors your spending. Go to rocketmoney.com/allusionist to save money and lower your outgoings.Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionistSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
It's Round Two (the round of 32) of Ryan's Middle Name -- vote AGAIN in the bracket (and see the previous round's scores here). This week, Ryan and Brian do some non-NYT puzzles in the Thunder Round, so solve them if you haven't: Sat. 9/28/24 Spyscape ("Bridge of Spies") by Shannon Rapp and Will Eisenberg (online link) Tues. 10/8/24 Universal by Shmuel Schmell (PUZ link) Wed. 10/9/24 Vulture ("With a Twist") by J. Smith-Cameron, Kate Hawkins, and Rachel Fabi (online link) Wed. 10/23/24 AVCX ("Down the Drain") by Rebecca Goldstein (free trial subscription available) Fri. 11/1/24 People ("Thanks for the Memories") by Robyn Weintraub (online link) Fri. 11/8/24 Slate by Ben Zimmer (online link) And there's also a Contest of Still Going On, available at https://bemoresmarter.com/contest If you get bored (how could you?!), write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, kealoa, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, sandwiches, soup, trivia, words
Ryan is away this week so once again, Brian is joined by The Great and Powerful Barnacle, Ben Zimmer! Topics include baseball nightmares, rhyming word etymology, #rip Googlewhacks, and a brand new Contest of Now at bemoresmarter.com/contest Stuff to click: Ben's new newsletter at https://buttondown.com/benzimmer Ben's old "From A to Zimmer" post on hapax legomenon Ben's passion project, The Crossword Craze If you get bored (how could you?!), write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, kealoa, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, sandwiches, soup, trivia, words
Send us a textBen Zimmer is CEO of Priovant Therapeutics ( https://www.priovanttx.com/ ), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on delivering novel therapies for autoimmune diseases associated with the greatest morbidity and mortality. Priovant is developing oral brepocitinib, a potential first-in-class dual inhibitor of TYK2 and JAK1, across multiple severe autoimmune indications, unlocking new treatment options for patients who are underserved by existing therapies.Ben joined Priovant from Roivant, where he was a member of the founding team in early 2015 and held multiple leadership roles across the organization, including President, Roivant Health, Chief Operating Officer, and Head, Public Affairs. As President, Roivant Health, Ben led and oversaw the launch of Roivant's Chinese biopharmaceutical subsidiaries, healthcare technology companies (including Datavant), and computationally powered drug discovery platform (including VantAI). Earlier in his career, Ben was a consultant at McKinsey & Co and co-founded and led a public policy non-profit. He holds a BA magna cum laude from Harvard College and a JD from Yale Law School.#BenZimmer #PriovantTherapeutics #AutoimmuneDiseases #Brepocitinib #TYK2 #JAK1 #Dermatomyositis #NonInfectiousUveitis #Pfizer #Roivant #VivekRamaswamy #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show
Ben Zimmer, CEO of Priovant Therapeutics, focuses on developing therapies for rare autoimmune diseases specifically dermatomyositis, which affects the skin, muscles, and organs, and non-infectious uveitis, a severe ocular inflammatory condition. While these conditions are symptomatically different, mechanistically, they have features in common related to the underlying pathology of the diseases. The drug in development is an oral once-daily therapy that addresses the inflammatory conditions and cytokines driving the pathology. Ben explains, "During COVID, there was a lot of talk about the cytokine storm and these are molecules involved in immune cell signaling. So, they're basically ways that different types of immune cells signal to each other to do different things. There's a large variety of different cytokines and some autoimmune diseases. There are only maybe one or two cytokines or a small number that are driving the pathology of the disease." "Both dermatomyositis and non-infectious uveitis are highly inflammatory conditions with a lot of different pathogenic cytokines, a lot of different inflammatory axes involved. And so, one of the neat things about our drug, brepocitinib, is that it works on a set category of enzymes called JAKs, and then there are four different types of JAKs, JAK1, JAK2, JAK3, and you might guess JAK4, but it's actually called TYK2. And our drug inhibits TYK2 and JAK1. And by doing that, it suppresses the signaling of a large number of different cytokines." "Uveitis and dermatomyositis have a number of overlapping pathogenic cytokines involved, as well as some different cytokines, but they are both suppressed through the inhibition of TYK2 and JAK1, which our drug does. So, our thesis is to find these highly inflammatory indications, highly inflammatory diseases with high morbidity, which can be expressed in many different organ systems." #PriovantTherapeutics #RareDisease #OrphanIndication #Uveitis #NIU #Dermatomyositis #JAK1 #TYK2 priovanttx.com Listen to the podcast here
Ben Zimmer, CEO of Priovant Therapeutics, focuses on developing therapies for rare autoimmune diseases specifically dermatomyositis, which affects the skin, muscles, and organs, and non-infectious uveitis, a severe ocular inflammatory condition. While these conditions are symptomatically different, mechanistically, they have features in common related to the underlying pathology of the diseases. The drug in development is an oral once-daily therapy that addresses the inflammatory conditions and cytokines driving the pathology. Ben explains, "During COVID, there was a lot of talk about the cytokine storm and these are molecules involved in immune cell signaling. So, they're basically ways that different types of immune cells signal to each other to do different things. There's a large variety of different cytokines and some autoimmune diseases. There are only maybe one or two cytokines or a small number that are driving the pathology of the disease." "Both dermatomyositis and non-infectious uveitis are highly inflammatory conditions with a lot of different pathogenic cytokines, a lot of different inflammatory axes involved. And so, one of the neat things about our drug, brepocitinib, is that it works on a set category of enzymes called JAKs, and then there are four different types of JAKs, JAK1, JAK2, JAK3, and you might guess JAK4, but it's actually called TYK2. And our drug inhibits TYK2 and JAK1. And by doing that, it suppresses the signaling of a large number of different cytokines." "Uveitis and dermatomyositis have a number of overlapping pathogenic cytokines involved, as well as some different cytokines, but they are both suppressed through the inhibition of TYK2 and JAK1, which our drug does. So, our thesis is to find these highly inflammatory indications, highly inflammatory diseases with high morbidity, which can be expressed in many different organ systems." #PriovantTherapeutics #RareDisease #OrphanIndication #Uveitis #NIU #Dermatomyositis #JAK1 #TYK2 priovanttx.com Download the transcript here
At the Scripps National Spelling Bee, behind the spectacle of kids vying to be champion spellers, a whole lot of work goes on to make words into this word sport. Offering a peek into the apiary are the Bee's executive director Corrie Loeffler, and Ben Zimmer and Jane Solomon from the Bee's word panel. Find out more about this episode, get the transcript, hear the other Beelusionist episode about the Spelling Bee, and listen to the rest of the Word Play series, at theallusionist.org/wordsport. And visit spellingbee.com for all the information about this year's tournament. The Allusionist is going on tour in the UK (and hopefully Ireland) in August and September! Some tickets are already on sale, with more dates to come: keep an eye on theallusionist.org/events. Members of the Allusioverse get perks at the live shows; they also got daily Beecaps from my time at Bee Week, so if you want to read those, head to theallusionist.org/donate. Plus, you get regular livestreams with me and my collection of reference books, inside scoops into the making of this show, watchalong parties, and the company of your fellow Allusionauts in our delightful Discord community. AND you'll also be keeping this independent podcast going. This episode was produced by me, Helen Zaltzman, with Martin Austwick of palebirdmusic.com. Our ad partner is Multitude. If you want me to talk about your product or thing on the show, sponsor an episode: contact Multitude at multitude.productions/ads. This episode is sponsored by: • Understance: comfortable, stylish, size-inclusive bras and undies. Shop the range and learn about your own branatomy at understance.com.• Squarespace, your one-stop shop for building and running your online empire/new home for your cryptic puzzle that takes months to solve. Go to squarespace.com/allusionist for a free 2-week trial, and get 10 percent off your first purchase of a website or domain with the code allusionist. • Bombas, whose mission is to make the comfiest clothing essentials, and match every item sold with an equal item donated. Go to bombas.com/allusionist to get 20% off your first purchase. Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionistSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
994. What began as a simple word game in 1913 sparked a nationwide craze just a decade later, causing a moral panic and changing American publishing forever. This week, Ben Zimmer, a prolific crossword constructor and language commentator, takes us through the crossword puzzle's surprising early history and enduring legacy. He also explores the modern crossword scene, including competitions, digital tools, and how new puzzle constructors are shaping the future of the game.Links mentioned in the show:* Wall Street Journal piece on the centennial of the crossword craze: https://on.wsj.com/3U3zMPk* Crossword Craze: https://crosswordcraze.today/* Daily Crossword Links: https://dailycrosswordlinks.com/* Slate crosswords: https://slate.com/crossword| Edited transcript with links: https://grammar-girl.simplecast.com/episodes/videen/transcript| Please take our advertising survey. It helps! https://podsurvey.com/GRAMMAR| Grammarpalooza (Get texts from Mignon!): https://joinsubtext.com/grammar or text "hello" to (917) 540-0876.| Subscribe to the newsletter for regular updates.| Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.| Peeve Wars card game. | Grammar Girl books. | HOST: Mignon Fogarty| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475) or https://sayhi.chat/grammargirl| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.Audio Engineer: Nathan SemesDirector of Podcast: Brannan GoetschiusAdvertising Operations Specialist: Morgan ChristiansonMarketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina TomlinDigital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon.References for the Aging segmentvan Boxtel, W, Lawyer, L. Sentence comprehension in ageing and Alzheimer's disease. Lang Linguist Compass. 2021;e12430.Payne, B. R., Gao, X., Noh, S. R., Anderson, C. J., & Stine-Morrow, E. A. (2012). The effects of print exposure on sentence processing and memory in older adults: Evidence for efficiency and reserve. Aging, Neuropsychology and Cognition, 19(1–2), 122–149.
This week, Ryan and Brian are joined by correspondent and superlinguist Ben Zimmer, who chats it up on topics like fluffles, ghost words, mountweazels, Hamburglars, Horshacks, and hurkle-durkles. Also, the Content of Still Going On still goes on — solve it here! If you get bored (how could you?!), write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, kealoa, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, sandwiches, soup, trivia, words
“The Casting Couch (c. 1924), a classic title in the stag film genre,[12] was an early depiction of the casting couch as a pornographic trope that later became mundane as it grew in popularity.[13] In the sixteen-minute film, a casting director tells a young actress to wear a swimsuit during an audition, spies on her in a voyeuristic manner while she undresses in a different room, and enters the room to solicit sex from her. The actress initially rebuffs his advances with disgust, but returns to the director after taking advice from a book titled How to Become a Movie Star. She performs fellatio and vaginal intercourse in exchange for a role in his film; the latter takes place on a couch. The Casting Couch concludes with an intertitle that states, "the only way to become a star is to get under a good director and work your way up".[12] Zimmer credited the film with popularizing the term casting couch.[11] The trend of casting couch scenarios used on pornography websites began with Backroom Casting Couch in 2007.[14] GirlsDoPorn sex trafficking edit From 2009 to 2020, the pornographic company GirlsDoPorn produced hundreds of videos of casting couch pornography mostly featuring women aged 18–22 who had not otherwise appeared in pornography.[15][16][17][18] The depicted women were manipulated, coerced, lied to, given marijuana or other drugs or physically forced to have sex, according to the accounts of victims and material from a lawsuit against the company.[19][16][18][20] Six people involved in the website were charged with sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion in November 2019.[18] Official videos from the company were viewed over a billion times, including a paid subscription service on its website, and an estimated 680 million views on the tube site Pornhub, where the official channel was among the site's top 20 most viewed. Pirated copies of the videos were also viewed hundreds of millions of times.[16][21][22] According to a lawsuit, the videos could still be found on mainstream pornography websites up to at least December 2020.[23] In 2020, twenty-two women were awarded a cumulative $12.75 million in damages as a result of a lawsuit which alleged that women who filmed for the website were lied to throughout the process.[15][16][17][24] “The casting couch is illegal under United States and California law. In the United States, the majority of lawsuits related to the practice are settled, resulting in a lack of case law.[10] Etymology edit In The Atlantic, linguist Ben Zimmer described the casting couch as "a metonym for the skewed sexual politics of show business", which has been normalized into a cliché due to the prevalence of sexually aggressive men with positions of authority in Hollywood cinema and Broadway theatre.[11]” -Wikipedia. “When it comes to sex and romance, I avoid passive acceptance resignation acceptance acceptance of the inevitable stoicism defeatism pessimism negativism negative thinking gloominess doom and gloom gloom predeterminism predestinarianism necessitarianism fate fatedness. I don't sleep with people and I don't date people who embrace discriminatory traditions, discriminatory policies, discriminatory ideas, discriminatory practices, discriminatory systems, discriminatory industries, discriminatory entities, discriminatory individuals, and discriminatory laws. When it forms to sex and romance, I also avoid cynicism, empathy vampires, compassion fatigue, nihilism, reclusion, Saudade, Schadenfreude, projection, deflection, useless excuses, needless justifications, unnecessary explanations, Weltschmerz, tribalism, cronyism, clannism, nepotism, elitism, toxic positivity, spiritualizing, spiritual bypassing, being too nice, cold heartedness, narcissistic sexual abuse, comfort addiction, ambition addiction, and approval addiction.” -Antonio Myers. “ I hate Self-abasement, Self-blame, Self-destructive behaviour, Self-harm, Self-hatred, Self-neglect, and Self-victimization.” Antonio Myers. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/antonio-myers4/support
January! Again! Ryan's back for a Kealoa he wishes he could avoid, and Ben Zimmer returns with a Word of the Year recap. There's some saucy language (courtesy of the WOTY content), so let this be your warning. Stuff to click: Westport Library crossword tournament Great British Bake Off hosts discuss American snack foods American Dialect Society (and their recent post on the 2023 WOTY) If you get bored (how could you?!), write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, kealoa, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, sandwiches, soup, trivia, words
Happy New Year! To celebrate, Ryan has gone AWOL, so we're delighted to bring Ben Zimmer back into the studio. We've got announcements and teasers and puzzles and Lingo and ... does anyone have a Hebrew word list? Stuff to click: Natan Last's essay in The New Yorker, "Can Crosswords Be More Inclusive?" David Steinberg's swan song? Daily Crossword Links News & Notes T Campbell's "The Year In Crosswords, 2023" (Fill Me In is the curiously uncited "audio interview" about halfway down the page) The American Dialect Society Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon's puzzle archive Chaac, the Maya god of rain, thunder, and lightning. If you get bored (how could you?!), write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, kealoa, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, sandwiches, soup, trivia, words
"Rizz." "Authentic." "Hallucinate." Ben Zimmer, linguist, language columnist at The Wall Street Journal and chair of the New Words Committee of the American Dialect Society, discusses what the words of the year chosen by various dictionaries and groups say about our language and culture, and previews the American Dialect Society's selection process for their word of the year.
This week, Ryan is at ComiCon, so Ben Zimmer sails through to join Brian in talks of gridspotting, baseball+word nerdery, and potential new FMI clubs. All that plus a new Contest of Now, courtesy of Shannon Rapp and Will Eisenberg! Stuff to click: The Defector Crossword The Spam Haiku Archive If you get bored (how could you?!), write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Google Voice (315-510-9892) We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, kealoa, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, sandwiches, soup, trivia, words
This week, Ryan and Brian are joined by Ben Zimmer for a spot of spelling and a piece of apizza. There's also the return of Kealoa and a fantastic contest puzzle from Brian Gubin! If you get bored (how could you?!), write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Google Voice (315-510-9892) We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, kealoa, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, sandwiches, soup, trivia, words
In this solo episode, Mike explores a fun little word called “jabroni” and explains what it means, where it came from, and why it's so interesting. The inspiration for this episode came from an article by Ben Zimmer for the Wall Street Journal. Each week, Ben has a column called “Word on the Street,” and recently, he dove into the meaning and origin of “jabroni.” When the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Championship game this season, the Chief's tight end Travis Kelce addressed Cincinnati's Mayor for having mocked the Chiefs before the game. Kelce said, “Know your role and shut your mouth, you jabroni.” What does this funny word mean, and where did it come from? Tune in to learn more.Key highlights:Mike reads from an article by Ben Zimmer for the Wall Street Journal which covers the interaction between Travis Kelce and Cincinnati's mayor Aftab Pureval in which Travis called Aftab a “jabroni”Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and his use of this wordThe origin and meaning of jabroniMike's thoughts on this exchange between Kelce and PurevalTo Connect with Mike: Website LinkedIn Instagram Twitter YouTube Coaching Get Mike's book: Owner Shift Please LIKE
In this solo episode, Mike explores a fun little word called “jabroni” and explains what it means, where it came from, and why it's so interesting. The inspiration for this episode came from an article by Ben Zimmer for the Wall Street Journal. Each week, Ben has a column called “Word on the Street,” and recently, he dove into the meaning and origin of “jabroni.” When the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Championship game this season, the Chief's tight end Travis Kelce addressed Cincinnati's Mayor for having mocked the Chiefs before the game. Kelce said, “Know your role and shut your mouth, you jabroni.” What does this funny word mean, and where did it come from? Tune in to learn more.Key highlights:Mike reads from an article by Ben Zimmer for the Wall Street Journal which covers the interaction between Travis Kelce and Cincinnati's mayor Aftab Pureval in which Travis called Aftab a “jabroni”Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and his use of this wordThe origin and meaning of jabroniMike's thoughts on this exchange between Kelce and PurevalTo Connect with Mike: Website LinkedIn Instagram Twitter YouTube Coaching Get Mike's book: Owner Shift Please LIKE
Welsh champion Richard Plackett talks about returning to the game after a successful career as a hedge fund manager, the pleasure and challenge of difficult hands, and the importance of killing off your emotions. Plus, he shares his top tip for developing players. But first, we kibitz!Read more about "kibitz" at vocabulary.com You can find the link to Ben's Spectacular Vernacular podcast episode about "kibitz" here. And learn more about Ben Zimmer here.SUPPORT THE SHOW!!-Become part of the Sorry, Partner Posse at Patreon: SORRY, PARTNER/PATREON. Benefits include a monthly newsletter, stickers, mugs, tote bags, Insta shout-outs, and bonus audio from time to time. Not to mention our undying gratitude!!-Looking for some Sorry, Partner SWAG? Check out the SORRY, PARTNER MERCH STORE.-Take a gander at our SPONSOR OFFERS & DISCOUNTS.GET IN TOUCH ...-Join our MAILING LIST here. We'll email you a link to every new episode and occasional other information.-Send your bridge stories and comments to sorrypartnerpodcast@gmail.com.-Or @sorrypartnerpodcast on INSTAGRAM.-Or send us a VOICE MESSAGE (it's FREE!).These links are also available on our website at sorrypartner.comPLEASE SHARE THE SHOW ...If you have a bridge-playing friend who is not yet listening to podcasts in the car, on walks, or while doing the dishes, why not show them how easy it is. Available for FREE at sorrypartner.com, Apple podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you like to listen!Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/sorry-partner. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
This week, Ryan and Brian are graced with the return of The Barnacle! Ben Zimmer stops by with the inside scoop on the Word of the Year (which earned us an "explicit" rating). Other news: 64-card decks, Brian doesn't know the difference between Latin and French, and this week's "Kealoa," featuring ACME vs. APEX. Stuff to click: American Dialect Society's 2022 Word of the Year wrapup another article about it, this time in Rolling Stone Follow Ben Zimmer on Twitter! Follow the American Dialect Society on Twitter! 500, the card game with 64 cards upcoming cryptic crossword stream on January 18 with Will Nediger, Hayley Gold, and guests from The Rackenfracker spend $478.56 to get the framed crossword from "All About Steve" If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Google Voice (315-510-9892) We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words
This week, Ryan and Brian welcome Shannon Rapp back to the program with a fantastic extended Thunder Round all about indie puzzles! It's quite spoiler-laden, so if you want to check out the puzzles first, here are links to the sources: girlbosswords: Themeless 20: Difficult Women (September 15, 2022 by Malaika Handa and Brooke Husic) Completing the Square: Puzzle 44: Quadz (October 16, 2022 by carter) AVCX: "Can We Solve It? Yes, We Can!" (October 14, 2022 by Rafael Musa and Kate Chin Park) crosstina aquafina: themeless no. 19 [feat. erik agard] (October 12, 2022 by Kelsey Dixon) Crossword Nexus: All In Love Is Fair (October 21, 2022 by Alex Boisvert and Ben Zimmer) xwordswithbabka: Bread Week (September 18, 2022 by Dan Schwartz) And if you're looking for more information and access to non-major-outlet puzzles, check out Daily Crossword Links and Will Nediger's monthly indie roundup (linked is the September edition). If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Google Voice (315-510-9892) We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words
This week, Ryan and Brian conclude Season Seven without having achieved "the arc" (which was apparently to have made a movie?!) -- and Ben Zimmer shows up to talk us through the highlights of Lollapuzzoola from behind the scenes. It's a long show, and we considered cutting out the vegetable talk and the Thunder Round ... but Ben Zimmer makes everything better. He's like bacon that way. You can still get the puzzles from Lollapuzzoola! Other stuff to click: Learned League Ben Zimmer's column on crudité Lollapuzzoola Local Division champion Ada Nicolle's crossword website, Lucky Streak Crosswords Lollapuzzoola Express Division champion Matt Gritzmacher's Daily Crossword Links (with a new internet home!) If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Google Voice (315-510-9892) We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words
Er war von Anfang an dabei: Mati Sójka gründete 2013 gemeinsam mit Ben Zimmer die nun größte deutsche Podcast-Hosting-Plattform Podigee. Damals waren Podcasts als Medium noch lange nicht so verbreitet wie heute und auch viel schwerer zugänglich. Inzwischen hostet Podigee etwa 15.000 aktive Podcasts und kommt dabei monatlich auf ca. 150 Millionen Downloads. Diesen Erfolg erreicht das Unternehmen laut Mati vor allem durch die Durchsetzung einer klaren Agenda und Roadmap. Es bringe dabei nichts, kurzfristigen Trends hinterherzurennen. Doch wie erkennt man, welche Trends langfristige Auswirkungen haben? Und welche relevanten Trends sagt Mati in der Podcast-Welt voraus? In PodTalk Folge #45 spricht Mati über seine ersten Kontakte mit Podcasts und den großen Erfolg von Podigee. Zudem verrät er, warum das Medium vermehrt für die interne Kommunikation von Unternehmen eingesetzt werden soll und erklärt, in welche Richtung sich die Monetarisierung von Podcasts entwickelt.
In this, The Faces of Business, our guest, Ben Zimmer, CEO, Sidekick Training, talks about how corporate learning systems technology changes are making corporate learning systems reach effectively and engage employees in legacy, hybrid, and remote business settings. Ben Zimmer has been developing and delivering innovative courseware and learning technology resources for learners in industry, in the lab, and in the classroom for over 15 years through his company Enable Education. The radically changing workplace learning requirements inspired him and his team to develop a learning engagement platform “Sidekick Training” to address the needs of corporate learning and development departments. Check out the Blog post here: Building Effective Corporate Learning Systems Thanks for taking the time to listen today. Find Damon Pistulka on LinkedIn talking about life & building businesses you can sell or succeed. On Twitter as @dpistulka with inspiration and sharing thoughts. Find out more about Damon when he's not working. @damonpistulka on Instagram, or Damon Pistulka on Facebook. More information on building businesses you can sell or succeed and the Exit Your Way method on our website View our blog page for this episode here. Email us for more information info@exityourway.com
This week, the Fill Me In studio is invaded by barnacles! Or actually, just one barnacle -- THE Barnacle, a.k.a. Ben Zimmer, linguist to the stars. There's still some baseball and sandwich talk, but it's word-related, so stick around for that. Also in the news: Lollapuzzoola, the greatest crossword puzzle tournament ever held annually on a Saturday in August! Hayley Gold & friends are doing a Twitch stream on Thursday, August 18 at 9pm Eastern Ben Zimmer's "sunsetted" podcast, Spectacular Vernacular, is still available online. Also available, his new video content with Wired If you get bored, write something for the Fill Me In wiki. And if you're feeling philanthropic, donate to our Patreon. Do you enjoy our show? Actually, it doesn't matter! Please consider leaving us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. This will help new listeners find our show, and you'll be inducted into the Quintuple Decker Turkey Club. Drop us a note or a Tweet or a postcard or a phone call — we'd love to hear from you. Helpful links: Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fill-me-in/id1364379980 Google Play link: https://player.fm/series/fill-me-in-2151002 Amazon/Audible link: https://www.amazon.com/item_name/dp/B08JJRM927 RSS feed: http://bemoresmarter.libsyn.com/rss Contact us: Email (fmi@bemoresmarter.com) / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Google Voice (315-510-9892) We're putting these words here to help with search engine optimization. We don't think it will work, but you probably haven't read this far, so it doesn't matter: baseball, crossword, crosswords, etymology, game, hunt, movies, musicals, mystery, oscar, pizza, puzzle, puzzles, soup, trivia, words
Lingthusiasm - A podcast that's enthusiastic about linguistics
The Rosetta Stone is famous as an inscription that let us read Egyptian hieroglyphs again, but it was created in the first place as part of a long history of signage as performative multilingualism in public places. Choosing between languages is both very personal but it's not only personal -- it's also a reflection of the way that the societies we live in constrain our choices. In this episode, your hosts Lauren Gawne and Gretchen McCulloch get enthusiastic about language policy and how organizations and nation-states make language decisions that affect people's everyday lives. We also talk about the excellent recent lingcomm book Memory Speaks by Julie Sedivy, the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (currently ongoing!), and many ways of unpacking the classic quote about a language being a dialect with an army and a navy. Read the transcript here: https://lingthusiasm.com/post/682191718408388608/transcript-episode-67-what-it-means-for-a Announcements: In this month's bonus episode we're getting enthusiastic about word games and puzzles with Nicole Holliday and Ben Zimmer of Spectacular Vernacular! We talk about patron questions, including lots of Wordle content: what Ben and Nicole learned from interviewing the creator of Wordle, our favourite Wordle variants such as IPA Wordle and Semantle, and comparing our Wordle solving strategies with a demo game on air. www.patreon.com/lingthusiasm Join us on Patreon to listen to this and 60+ other bonus episodes. You'll also get access to the Lingthusiasm Discord server where you can play and discuss word games and puzzles with other language nerds! www.patreon.com/lingthusiasm For links to all the things mentioned in this episode: https://lingthusiasm.com/post/682191350734667776/episode-67-what-it-means-for-a-language-to-be
They're not in American dictionaries yet, but the terms, 'punching up' and 'punching down' are on the lips of many comedians. With the help of linguist and journalist Ben Zimmer and British comedian Richard Herring, we trace the migration of these words from sports to cable news to comedy. Along the way, we catch up with the history of performers and writers targeting the rich and powerful (punching up) or mocking the oppressed and vulnerable (punching down). In reporting this episode, we owe a debt of gratitude to this piece in The Baffler and this episode of WTF with Marc Maron. Music in this episode by: Zorro; Sarah, The Illstrumentalist; peerless; Farrell Wooten; Hell Nasty; Tigerblood Jewel; Mary Riddle; Divorce Applause; Amaranth Cove; VARPU. Read a transcript here.
They're not in American dictionaries yet, but the terms, 'punching up' and 'punching down' are on the lips of many comedians. With the help of linguist and journalist Ben Zimmer and British comedian Richard Herring, we trace the migration of these words from sports to cable news to comedy. Along the way, we catch up with the history of performers and writers targeting the rich and powerful (punching up) or mocking the oppressed and vulnerable (punching down). In reporting this episode, we owe a debt of gratitude to this piece in The Baffler and this episode of WTF with Marc Maron. Music in this episode by: Zorro; Sarah, The Illstrumentalist; peerless; Farrell Wooten; Hell Nasty; Tigerblood Jewel; Mary Riddle; Divorce Applause; Amaranth Cove; VARPU. Read a transcript here.
Listen along with us as Press and WUSB staff share some of their favorite releases from last year, hosted by music editors Rafael Cruvinel and Lauren Canavan. Guests include Ben Zimmer, Nick Lyons, Ashton Arbus, Matt Hono, Antonio Mochmann, Dylan Gallo and Jayden Feisthamel.
With so limited information about North Korea, why are the issues surrounding the Hermit Kingdom important for the future of regional security in Asia and the fight against totalitarianism? We invite a former guest Ben Zimmer back to share with us more about the history of North Korean leaders, as well as the economic hardships, nuclear threats, and human rights abuses of the authoritarian DPRK regime.Supplementary links:Liberty in North KoreaDatabase Center for North Korean Human RightsCommission of Inquiry into North Korean Human Rights (UN Human Rights Council)38 North (Stimson Center)Daily NK (Defector-run North Korea News site based in Seoul)Wilson Center's North Korea International Documentation ProjectNK NewsSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/friendsfellowcitizens)
In this two-part episode, Dr. William Norris, an Associate Professor at Texas A&M University's Bush School of Government and Public Service and head of its Chinese studies concentration, shares an overview of the historical and political dynamics of China's grand strategy from the Cultural Revolution to the present day. A friend of Sherman's and former Bush School classmate Ben Zimmer joins us in a thoughtful, lively conversation on one of the most important contemporary topics facing America and the world.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/friendsfellowcitizens)
In this two-part episode, Dr. William Norris, an Associate Professor at Texas A&M University's Bush School of Government and Public Service and head of its Chinese studies concentration, shares an overview of the historical and political dynamics of China's grand strategy from the Cultural Revolution to the present day. A friend of Sherman's and former Bush School classmate Ben Zimmer joins us in a thoughtful, lively conversation on one of the most important contemporary topics facing America and the world.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/friendsfellowcitizens)
Ever present in the Snowden and Manning era, the word "whistleblower" is again dominating the airwaves. But where exactly did the word come from? Who gets to decide who qualifies as a whistleblower? Back in 2015, Brooke spoke to language columnist Ben Zimmer, legal director for the Government Accountability Project Tom Devine, and progressive icon Ralph Nader--who "rehabilitated" the word in the 1970's--about the history of the popular epithet. On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.
John McWhorter talks to Ben Zimmer about the Vietnam Graffiti Project and other slangy topics. Twitter: @lexiconvalley Facebook: facebook.com/LexiconValley Website: booksmartstudios.com/LexiconValley
We encounter “meta” most often in the word metaphor. We create metaphors when we see the same pattern in two, unrelated things.Shakespeare wrote, “All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players. They have their exits and their entrances, and one man in his time plays many parts.” But Shakespeare wasn't the first to see the similarity between the world and a stage. Seneca the Younger – sixteen hundred years before Shakespeare – wrote, “Life is like a play: it's not the length, but the excellence of the acting that matters.” In his marvelous new book, Metaphors Be With You, Dr. Mardy Grothe reveals the importance of metaphors in everyday communication: “Metaphor is the energy charge that leaps between images, revealing their connections.” – Robin Morgan “Effective metaphor does more than shed light on the two things being compared. It actually brings to the mind's eye something that has never before been seen.” –Rebecca McClanahan The poet Robert Frost said, “An idea is a feat of association, and the height of it is a good metaphor.” “Metaphor isn't just for poets; it's in ordinary language and is the principal way we have of conceptualizing abstract concepts like life, death, and time.” – More Than Cool Reason, George Lakoff and Mark Turner “Meta” has recently evolved a second meaning.It now refers to things that are self-referential. Ben Zimmer tells of a librarian named Lauren Dodd who recently tweeted, “Just saw a librarian shush other librarians at a library conference.” (Indy Beagle is chuckling his signature, “Heh, heh, heh,” after reading that over my shoulder.) Educational psychologist Jerome Bruner talks about “how to get students to reflect, to turn around on themselves, to go ‘meta,' to think about their ways of thinking.” Yep, “to think about your ways of thinking” would definitely qualify as self-referential. In his book, Tilting Cervantes, my friend Bruce Burningham says, “We delight in the notion of a stand-up comedian named Jerry Seinfeld who creates a sitcom on NBC in which he plays a stand-up comedian named Jerry Seinfeld who eventually creates a sitcom on NBC in which he plays a stand-up comedian named Jerry Seinfeld.” If triple-meta were a recognized designation, I believe Bruce Burningham's sentence would qualify. To understand a thing that is new and different, you need only search for what it is like.Monkfish is the poor man's lobster. Success is a bastard with many fathers, but failure is an orphan. America is a melting pot. You are my sunshine. He drowned in a sea of grief. Every new concept, invention, innovation or idea reflects an established pattern. That pattern has just never been used in this application before. Contemplate a metaphor. See the pattern. Consider how it might be used as a solution to your problem. Do this again and again and your spinning brain will soon be flinging ideas like a grinding wheel throwing sparks at the darkness. Perhaps you'll discover a miraculous solution. Perhaps you'll just have fun. Give it a try and see. As Indy walked away just now, he called to me over his shoulder, “Anything you can do, I can do meta.” I'm going to have to ponder that one awhile. Roy H. Williams
The curious case of a conspiratorial coinage: Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo talk about a mystery word or phrase with lexicographer Ben Zimmer. Twitter: @lexiconvalley Facebook: facebook.com/LexiconValley Website: booksmartstudios.com/LexiconValley
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss the early 20th-century origins of a bizarre food-industry code with lexicographer Ben Zimmer. Twitter: @lexiconvalley Facebook: facebook.com/LexiconValley Website: booksmartstudios.com/LexiconValley
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a word that was popularized during the 1940s folk movement with lexicographer Ben Zimmer. Twitter: @lexiconvalley Facebook: facebook.com/LexiconValley Website: booksmartstudios.com/LexiconValley
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a piece of old American slang with lexicographer Ben Zimmer. Twitter: @lexiconvalley Facebook: facebook.com/LexiconValley Website: booksmartstudios.com/LexiconValley
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a mystery word or phrase with lexicographer Ben Zimmer. Twitter: @lexiconvalley Facebook: facebook.com/LexiconValley Website: booksmartstudios.com/LexiconValley
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss the origin of a Spanish-language pejorative with lexicographer Ben Zimmer. Twitter: @lexiconvalley Facebook: facebook.com/LexiconValley Website: booksmartstudios.com/LexiconValley
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a mystery word or phrase with lexicographer Ben Zimmer. Twitter: @lexiconvalley Facebook: facebook.com/LexiconValley Website: booksmartstudios.com/LexiconValley
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a mystery word or phrase with lexicographer Ben Zimmer. Twitter: @lexiconvalley Facebook: facebook.com/LexiconValley Website: booksmartstudios.com/LexiconValley
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a mystery word or phrase with lexicographer Ben Zimmer. Twitter: @lexiconvalley Facebook: facebook.com/LexiconValley Website: booksmartstudios.com/LexiconValley
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss the origin of the word "seersucker" with lexicographer Ben Zimmer. Twitter: @lexiconvalley Facebook: facebook.com/LexiconValley Website: booksmartstudios.com/LexiconValley
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