Rod's Word of the Day

Schrödinger’s cat is a famous physics thought experiment, which presents a paradox in which a cat in a box is somehow simultaneously both alive and dead. Wikipedia: In quantum mechanics, Schrödinger's cat is a thought experiment that illustrates a paradox of quantum superposition. In the thought experiment, a hypothetical cat may be considered simultaneously both alive and dead as a result of its fate being linked to a random subatomic event that may or may not occur.  This thought experiment was devised by physicist Erwin Schrödinger in 1935,[1] in a discussion with Albert Einstein,[2] to illustrate what Schrödinger saw as the problems of the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics. ( link ) Context: "A few weeks passed, then a few more; 34 weeks on, the JCPOA looks like Schrodinger's cat, not quite alive or dead."  An unenriching debate,  The Economist . September 10, 2022, p51

Lacuna : la·cu·na, [ləˈk(y)o͞onə], NOUN, an unfilled space or interval; a gap:"the journal has filled a lacuna in Middle Eastern studies" synonyms: gap · space · absence · lack · deficiency · blank. a missing portion in a book or manuscript. Context : The lacuna in Smith's theory partly reflects technical difficulties in modeling growth. "We Still Need Growth," National Review , p24, May 2, 2022.

hagiographical: hag·i·og·ra·phy, haɡēˈäɡrəfē,ˌhāɡēˈäɡrəfē/, noun, the writing of the lives of saints. adulatory writing about another person. biography that idealizes its subject. Context: Newspaper account's of Ruth's  wife and daughter hadn't always added up, and now fans could fill in some of the holes in the hagiographical treatment that sports writer had given his personal life, although ....  National Review , The Truth About Ruth, by Nicholas Frankovich, Feb. 11, 2019, p42

Rabelaisian:  Ra·​be·​lai·​sian | \ ˌra-bə-ˈlā-zhən  , -zē-ən.  adjective, of, relating to, or characteristic of Rabelais or his works. 2: marked by gross robust humor, extravagance of caricature, or bold naturalism. François Rabelais was a French Renaissance writer, physician, Renaissance humanist, monk and Greek scholar. He is primarily known as a writer of satire, of the grotesque, and of bawdy jokes and songs. Context: Ruth was shameless too, so blush not for him, and more amoral than immoral, so temper your head-shaking as this Rabelaisian overindulgence in food and sex. National Review , The Truth About Ruth, by Nicholas Frankovich, Feb. 11, 2019, p42

Spenglerian: Spen·​gle·​ri·​an | \ ˌshpeŋ-ˈglir-ē-ən  , ˌspeŋ-, -ˈlir- \ adjective: of or relating to the theory of world history developed by Oswald Spengler which holds that all major cultures undergo similar cyclical developments from birth to maturity to decay Context: Murray is not putting forward a Spengleria thesis that the collapse of the West is inevitable or that..... Reviling the West by Peter W. Wood, National Review , May 30, 2022, p34.

miasma: \ mī-ˈaz-mə  , mē- \ plural miasmas also miasmata\ mī-​ˈaz-​mə-​tə  , mē-​ \. a vaporous exhalation formerly believed to cause disease. also : a heavy vaporous emanation or atmosphere. a miasma of tobacco smoke 2: an influence or atmosphere that tends to deplete or corrupt.  Context: "All of this makes for an interesting story, but also a somewhat suffocation one, with an air as sour as the unhealthy miasma that hangs about the queenly bed." Anne the Unreal, by Ross Douthat, National Review , Feb. 11,2019. p 47

  ar·ri·viste   [ˌärēˈvēst]  NOUN,  an ambitious or ruthlessly self-seeking person, especially one who has recently acquired wealth or social status. Context: "But by the second half of The Favorite, the coldness of Abigail's machinations has thrown the virtues of the queen's older lover into shart relief, and it's clear that arriviste is more cynical her courtship of the queen and more likely to be corrupted by her climb- ...." Anne the Unreal, by Ross Douthat,  National Review , Feb. 11,2019. p 47

uxorious:   ux·o·ri·ous   [əkˈsôrēəs, ˌəɡˈzôrēəs]   ADJECTIVE  having or showing an excessive or submissive fondness for one's wife. Context : "That the duke of Marlborough was one of English history's extraordinary (and uxorious) figures rather than the limp oldster portrayed here?" Anne the Unreal, by Ross Douthat, National Review , Feb. 11,2019. p 47

 cri de eoeur:    noun \ ˌkrē-də-ˈkər  \ plural cris de coeur\ ˌkrē-​də-​ˈkər  \ Definition of cri de coeur : a passionate outcry (as of appeal or protest)  l ink to Marium Webster to hear the word . To save this word, you'll need to log in. Log In  Context: Perhaps this is why Carson's cri de coeur felt right to many commentators even though many of its specific points do not hold up. Neither Idol nor Tool, by Ramesh Ponnuru, National Review, Feb.11, 2019, p.34

Desiderata:   plural noun,   singular   de·sid·er·a·tum.  things wanted or needed; the plural of   desideratum . Context : But all these ruling-class desiderata are helped along by maintaining the prevailing quasi-literacy. The Spectator, May 2022, p.27

Thucydides Trap , also referred to as Thucydides's Trap, is a term popularized by American political scientist Graham T. Allison to describe an apparent tendency towards war when an emerging power threatens to displace an existing great power as a regional or international hegemon. It was coined and is primarily used to describe a potential conflict between the United States and the People's Republic of China. The term is based on a quotation of ancient Athenian historian and military general Thucydides, in which he posited that the Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta had been inevitable because of Spartan fears of the growth of Athenian power. link , link .  Context: We were aware of Russia, but we tended to regard it as the little yapping dog to China’s larger and more patient beast. I can mumble the arguments in my sleep: Russia’s economy is the size of Italy’s; it has one tenth the population of China; its aggression is really just desperation by Putin; haven’t you...

 “social desirability bias”—people say what they think they’re supposed to say. 

in·sen·sate. [inˈsensāt, inˈsensət] ADJECTIVE. lacking physical sensation: "a patient who was permanently unconscious and insensate" lacking sympathy or compassion; unfeeling:"a positively insensate hatred" completely lacking sense or reason:"insensate jabbering" 

 ou·tré [o͞oˈtrā] ADJECTIVE. unusual and startling: "in 1975 the suggestion was considered outré—today it is orthodox"

  Dispensationalism   is a   hermeneutic system   for the   Bible . It considers biblical history as divided by God into   dispensations , defined periods or ages to which God has allotted distinctive administrative principles. According to dispensationalism, each age of God's plan is thus administered in a certain way, and humanity is held responsible as a   steward   during that time. Dispensationalists' presuppositions start with the inductive reasoning that biblical history has a particular discontinuity in the way God reacts to humanity in the unfolding of their, sometimes supposed,   free wills . [1] Dispensationalism stands in contrast to the traditional system of  covenant theology  used in biblical interpretation.

Filioque   National Review, The Tuesday: BY KEVIN D. WILLIAMSON December 14, 2021-  I do not know many Americans, including very devout Christians, who are losing any sleep about the filioque or transubstantiation, and nobody who is much interested in dispensationalism other than those with a professional interest in the subject. link Filioque (/ˌfɪliˈoʊkwi, -kweɪ/ FIL-ee-OH-kwee, -⁠kway; Ecclesiastical Latin: [filiˈokwe]) is a Latin term ("and from the Son") added to the original Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed (commonly known as the Nicene Creed), and which has been the subject of great controversy between Eastern and Western Christianity. It is a term that refers to the Son, Jesus Christ, as an additional origin point of the Holy Spirit.

  pasquinade [ˌpaskwəˈnād] NOUN a satire or lampoon, originally one displayed or delivered publicly in a public place. Context:   In January, when Biden took his oath of office, a few commentators predicted that he would represent a “return to normalcy” after the prolonged P. T. Barnum spectacle that was the Trump administration. Instead, we got a pasquinade, with the protagonist cut out of the joke. Source:  Joe Biden Is a Joke | National Review

Context One person enjoying these negotiations from the sidelines is Mitch McConnell. The Senate Minority Leader described the Democratic dilemma as lose-lose, with the Democrats either looking hopelessly ineffectual or dangerously liberal. ‘It’ll have a serious negative impact if they don’t pass it, and it’ll have a serious negative impact if they do pass it,’ he said recently with more than a hint of schadenfreude. From a Spectator email.  [ˈSHädənˌfroidə] NOUN pleasure derived by someone from another person's misfortune. "a business that thrives on schadenfreude" ·  [more] synonyms: delight  ·  pleasure  ·  happiness  ·  joy  ·  joyfulness  ·  gladness  ·  elation  ·  euphoria  ·  exhilaration  ·  cheerfulness  ·  amusement  ·  mirth  

 Adamantine ad·​a·​man·​tine | \ ˌa-də-ˈman-ˌtēn , -ˌtīn, -ˈman-tᵊn  Definition of adamantine: 1: made of or having the quality of adamant 2: rigidly firm: UNYIELDING adamantine discipline 3: resembling the diamond in hardness or luster Context: For all the seeming relentlessness of the rise of China under and increasingly adamantine authoritarianism, politics can pack surprises that suddenly change the country's trajectory. Source: The Economist , The darkest corners, March 6-March 12, p.12

  Febrile Adjective: marked or caused by fever : FEVERISH Context: The mood was febrile Source: The Economist , January 9, 2021, The Arabs get in line ,  p39