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A Derivative Podcast is Not a Financial Instrument The word “derivative” sprung up on Delancey Place last week. Delancey Place is a brief daily email with an interesting excerpt or quote from a book or magazine article. Reading it is a favorite daily ritual. I am constantly impressed with the quality and diversity of the excerpts. I strongly recommend [...]Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
A Derivative Podcast is Not a Financial InstrumentThe word “derivative” sprung up on Delancey Place last week. Delancey Place is a brief daily email with an interesting excerpt or quote from a book or magazine article. Reading it is a favorite daily ritual. I am constantly impressed with the quality and diversity of the excerpts. I strongly recommend [...]Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Happy Father’s Day From Mark TwainToday I would like to honor fathers and especially my father, Keith, with a quote from Mark Twain:
When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much he had [...]Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Happy Father's Day From Mark Twain
Happy Father's Day!
PlayToday I would like to honor fathers and especially my father, Keith, with a quote from Mark Twain:
When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much he had learned in seven years.
I love this quote because it captures the feelings I think most sons have about their fathers. During adolescence we tend to think our father don't really know what th ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Podcasting has a symbol but it is not as ubiquitous as the trefoil
I cannot apologize enough for the dearth of recent posts.
Today I came across an interesting word in an editorial by Cory Doctorow at the New York Times. Cory's editorial draws our attention to cheap programmable microchips that allow nearly anybody with an idea for a simple electronic device, say a whimsical watch or a feral robot dog, to produce one cheaply and in their own home.
The word is trefoil. Trefoil is a noun. A trefoil is any three leafed symbol. The best known trefoi ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Great Poems on English Language Idiosyncrasies
PlayOver at Boing Boing, I came across a link to some great poems on the idiosyncracies of spelling and pronounciation in the English language. They don't make for a great podcast. The joy is in reading them.
Here is my favorite:
WHY ENGLISH IS SO HARD TO LEARN
We must polish the Polish furniture.
He could lead if he would get the lead out.
The farm was used to produce produce.
The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
The soldier decided to desert in the desert.
This was ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Dell's Inanity Is Not Insanity, Just Frustrating
PlayI came across today's word in David Pogue's New York Times Circuits email newsletter. The word is inanity. When I first read it I suspected it was a typo; that Pogue meant insanity. As the author of many typos I was quite excited to find a typo in a New York Times article.
Alas, inanity is a word. It is an noun meaning total lack of meaning, or or as Merriam-Webster puts it, "the quality or state of being inane." Something that is inane lacks a point or significance.
Pogue's art ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
No, I have not fallen into an oubliette
Oubliette, this word popped up on two sites in one day so I had to include it in a podcast.
Oublette, as you can probably tell from the sound of oubliette is a French noun. An oubliette is a dungeon or cave with only an opening at the top. A hole in the ground could be an oubliette. A trap door in the floor may lead to an oubliette.Of the two pages that brought oubliette to my attention, the first, at kinkless.com, used oubliette on its 404- page-not-found error page. I clicked on ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Happy Millionth Wikipedia!
Today, March 1st, 2006, the one millionth English article was published at Wikipedia by Ewan Macdonald.
From the Jordanhill Railway Station article:
The Jordanhill Railway Station is a suburban railway station in the Jordanhill area on the west side of Glasgow, Scotland. The station (code "JOR"), which is governed by Transport Scotland and managed by First ScotRail, lies on the Argyle Line and the North Clyde Line. It is located near the Jordanhill Campus of the University of Strathcl ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Happy Mardi Gras, Enjoy Ash Wednesday!
Happy Mardi Gras! Today I would take a little time to discuss Mardi Gras, Ash Wednesday, Carnival and Lent.
Lent is the forty day Christian fasting season leading up to Easter. Christians, particularly Catholics, mark the period by giving up meat or some pleasure or comfort.
Carnival is the two week celebration leading up to Lent. The most famous Carnival is celebrated in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. I am sure you have seen the photos of revelers. The last day, the culmination of Carni ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Equanimity in a Desperate Podcast
I heard Felicity Huffman use the word equanimity on NPR's All Things Considered. Felicity Huffman plays Lynette on Desperate Housewives and recently received an Oscar nomination for her staring role in Transamerica- the story of a man who becomes a woman then discovers she has a teenage son.
The interview focuses on motherhood as it applies in the movie and in Desperate Housewives. Huffman uses equanimity to summarize one of the characteristics she observes in other mothers and asp ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Serendipity on the radio, soon in a podcastWelcome to the 131st Today's Podcast. November 1st marked the one year anniversary of Today's Podcast. This year my goal is to produce over 200 shows. Much closer to my promise of a daily show.Today's word is serendipity. I was reminded of this word by a recent interview with Yvon Choulnard on NPR'sDay to Day. No podcasts for Day to Day yet. But NPR does offer some podcasts.Only a few days before the interview I was in Boston for StartUpSchool. I stayed with some friends, one of whom ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
A copacetic podcastToday's word, copacetic, is a favorite of mine. Although I too often forget to use it.Copacetic is an adjective meaning completely or entirely satisfactory. I think its connotation is much more positive then satisfactory. For example if a boss told me my work was satisfactory I would be concerned it wasn't very good, that it was barely above unsatisfactory. But if they described the situation or my projects as copacetic I would be much happier.The etymology of copacetic is murky at best ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Mea Culpa- Adam Curry's favorite bit of latin for podcastingWelcome back. Today we have a celebrity inspired term, Mea Culpa.Recently Bill Gates used it when describing MS's failure to dominate the online music industry."Mea culpa" is a latin phrase uttered to accept guilt. It translates to "my fault." I think people like using the phrase because it is psychologically easier to say than "my fault."Bill Gates use of mea culpa is interesting. While I am sure Bill thinks he can dominate anything he directs MS to tackle. Apologizing for not domina ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Heliotropes- Plants and Zonker podcastWhile putting together yesterday's podcast on zoetrope I came across today's word- heliotrope.Heliotrope is a noun with several definitions. One is a purple or violet color. Another heliotrope is a surveying tool for civil engineers and map makers. It allows them to focus a beam of sunlight and signal a fellow surveyor up to twenty miles away. Using the heliotrope's signaling the engineerscan triangulate locations. These heliotropes are not used anymore. A heliotrope is any member of t ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
The Zoetrope Becomes a Movie PodcastZoetrope in motionOriginally uploaded by tempo.On a recommendation from Michael Geohegan I watched the Francis Ford Coppola movie the Conversation. Great movie.Frequent listeners of this podcast know I enjoy reading the credits. Well the credits for the Conversation include the name of Coppola's production company Zoetrope. What a beautiful word. And a great name for a movie company.A Zoetrope is a primitive movie toy that spins to animate a series of images. It is hard to describe so I ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
The next elections will include a potemkin podcast eventToday's word, Potemkin, is an entertaining political term. I have seen it on Boingboing.net many times. Recently it appeared in a post about the governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger.Grigori Aleksandrovich Potemkin was an 18th century Russian military officer and politician. Who was rumored to have built fake villages along the banks of the Dnieper river in order to impress EmpressCatherine II. Potemkin, who had recently conquered the area, wanted to impress Catherine II by demo ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Getting to work proving podcasting is rightToday we have a quote sent in by a listener. It is a quote I really appreciate because I am guilty of the behavior described. The words are from John Kenneth Galbraith a Canadian economist just like me.Here is the quote:Faced with the choice between changing one's mind and proving that there is no need to do so, almost everyone gets busy on the proof.-John Kenneth GalbraithI doubt I am the only soul guilty of this tendency. Hopefully this quote will make us more aware of our stubbornnessa ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
When will B.J. Fogg start a captology podcast?Another neologism for today. The word is captology. Captology is an emerging field of study related to the design, theory, and analysis of persuasive, not pervasive, technologies. It is the study of technologies that change attitudes and encourage behaviors instead of forcing behaviors. Captology lies at the intersection of computers and the art and science of persuasion. It is a sub-discipline of human factors or (HCI) human computer interaction. It is the study of technologies that ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Dave&Adam are podcast wonksToday's word, wonk, was spotted at boingboing.net.The dictionary describes the noun wonk as an excessively studious student, a nerd or a geek. The modern connotation is more nuanced. Today wonk usually connotes a someone well versed or at least very interested in the details and rules.The BoingBoing post describes Ben Hammersley as an RSS wonk- someone who know a great deal about the inner working and details of RSS. I suspect Dave Winer is the ultimate RSS wonk. Dave wrote the specs for ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Podcasting a Screencast about an UmlautToday we have a great new word that is both a neologism because you won't find it in a dictionary and it is a portmanteau because it is a combination of two other words. It is screencast.A screencast is a recording of a computer screen. It is usually narrated. Screencasts are often used to explain or demonstrate a software feature. For example if you want to see how I recordmy podcast I there is a link to a screencast of me recording this podcast.If you want to see a more interesting sc ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
A fathomless, fortnight long podcast about furlongsToday we have three f-words. Don't worry, this is a family friendly podcast. The three words are:FathomFurlongFortnightThese are all units of measurement.Fathom is a sailor's term for describing the depth of water. A fathom is six feet deep or 1.8 meters. Not living near an ocean I never hear anyone use the term, but I do hear a variation fathomless. Fathomless means too deep to be measures or understood. For example the fathomless world of Search Engine Optimization Fathom comes from ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
There is no antipode for this podcaster's homeToday's we have a rather obscure technical term from the world of geography. Antipodal is a word I came across in a BBC article. The article is about a replica of the U.K.'s famous stonehenge. This new henge is antipodal to the original. Which is to say it is on the opposite side of the Earth.Antipodal points also called antipodes are points on the surface of a sphere that are diametrically opposed. So if you could tunnel straight through the center of the earth you would emerge at the ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Who will be the podcasting ombudsman?Today's word was suggested by Brian over at the Mostly Trivial podcast. The word is ombudsman, and Brian found it in recent post at Slashdot.org.An ombudsman is person who acts as an mediator between an organization and its public or constituency. They are often charged with investigating complaints.The ombudsman in the Slashdot post is a blogger who writes on video games. You can read his posts at vgombud.blogspot.com.You can subscribe to the Mostly Trivial podcast at MostlyTrival.com ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
This is a redundant audio podcastToday's word is redundant. It is an adjective with several related definitions. It means extra, profuse, superfluous, no longer needed or duplicate. For example describing Adam Curry as a married husband is redundant. If he is married we know he is a husband.The term redundant is also used to describe backup systems that take over when the primary system fails. Redundant servers is one way major internet companies like Google, Amazon and Microsoft ensure you can always reach their sites ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
An acronym from last weeks podcast, not quiteToday we have a word that describes words- acronym. An acronym, like most words that end in -nym or -onym, describes a word or a name. An acronym is a word formed by the initial letters of a longer term. My favorite example is laser. Laser stands for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation.It is important to contrast an acronym with an abbreviation. An abbreviation, like IBM or ADR is not pronounced as a word. Each individual letter is pronounced.Some good acronyms inc ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
An beautiful photo podcast becomes a horseToday I have a word that was inspired by a photo taken by Will Simpson of PalousePhotography.com. When you are back at your computer be sure to take a look at the beautiful photo titled "Palouse Morning on Linville Road."Today's word is Palouse. It is a proper noun. It both the name of a river that flwos through north westernIdaho and south eastern Washington state. It flows west into the Snake River. Palouse is also the name of the fertile hilly region in the same region.I have never ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Happy Independence Day PodcastHappy Independence Day!A few word from the founding fathers of the United States.When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for onepeople to dissolve the political bands which have connected them withanother, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate andequal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitlethem, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that theyshould declare the causes which impel them to the separation.We hold these ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
I bet there aren't to many podcasters familiar with marching in lockstepToday's word is a request from a long time ago and country far away- Germany. Lockstep was requested by Nicole from Useful Sounds. Lockstep is a noun. It can be a way of acting in complete uniformity with someone or something else. A boy who follows his older brother around and imitates everything the brother does could be describe as being in lockstep with his brother. It can also be an specific inflexible process. Such as the rules for arming a nuclear weapon. I don't know the rule ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
I never knew I was an ADR editor and a podcasterToday's word is actually just initials. They are A.D.R.. And they have been haunting me for years now. When I see a movie at the theater I like to stay and watch the credits. I think it is interesting to see how many people it takes to make a movie and what interesting jobs they have. Like a gaffer, a best boy or the second assistant to Ms. Jolie's hairdresser.Now ADR always comes up with all the audio related jobs, but I have never figured out what they stand for. Well they stand for ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
An ad hominem argument against wireless ipods? Never.Ooh. Today we have a Latin term- ad hominemAd hominem is an adjective that describes an argument that appeals to personal considerations. It is most commonly used to describe arguments that attack a person instead of their logic. For example- Adam Curry thinks Apple should add wireless capabilities to their iPods. Adam Curry is an idiot, therefore Apple should not add wireless to iPods. This argument is a logical fallacy because it is predicated on Adam is an idiot. It attacks him per ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Voila a podcast requestWow. I am only back on the job one day an we already have a request. Voilà! It was suggested by Gary Lapointe. Who sent a nice welcome back message.Voilà is a interjection like wow, ouch or eureka. It means look I have completed this or here it is. It calls attention to something new or just completed. As in, "You enclose the audio file in the RSS feed and Voilà... you have a podcast." Sometimes the implication of voilà is this is the result of magic.Sinc ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
A precocious playmate without a podcastToday's word came to me from MindHacks.com. The word is precocious and it appeared in an a post describing Dr. Zdrok who earned her undergraduate degree by the age of 18.Appropriately, precocious describes exceptionally early development. I often hear it describing particularly mature or bright children. Precocious sometimes has a connotation implying a child is out of line, that the child's expectations or behavior is out of line with the child's age.In the movie Rushmore, the lead char ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
The sound of an ephemeral podcastWelcome back to Today's Podcast. I am sorry I have been gone for so long. As you may have heard my girlfriend and I just moved to Ohio. That combined with a trip to Boston, a new business and a road trip from Colorado to Ohio I have not made the time to podcast. But fear not I have built up quite a collection of words for future shows.For today we have the word ephemeral. I came across it on David Allan's blog. Ephemeral is a noun describing something short lived or fleeting. It can ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
A podcast of Bobby Knight quotes- I would subscribeToday we have a quote from Bobby Knight the famous or perhaps infamous coach of the legendary Indiana University basketball team. No it is not the one about losing to Purdue.In 1976 his Hossiers were undefeated, winning 32 games. No NCAA team has repeated that feat. He also coached the 1984 US Olympic team to a Gold. In short Bobby Knight is a winner.Here are his words:Most people have the will to win, few have the will to prepare to win.Bobby KnightThis quote reminds me that most of t ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
A Rad PodcastToday's Podcast is back. Again I would like to apologize for the long hiatus.Today's word is Radura. It is a proper noun. The Radura is the international symbol indicating a food product has been irradiated. All irradiated products sold since 1986 must carry the Radura. The Radura is usually green and resembles a plant in circle. The top half of the circle is dashed.The requirement is seen by consumer groups as a helpful warning to consumers concerned about irradiated foods. The food ind ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
A catholic podcast, not CatholicSorry for not posting any podcasts lately. I have had a very sore throat and it has cut into my talking and podcasting. In addition my girlfriend and I are moving to Ohio so I have had a few distractions as well.Today's word is catholic. I am sure many of us know Catholicism is a major world religion that just chose a new leader. But catholic is also an adjective that describes something universal or comprehensive in scope, something that included all of mankind.Catholic can also descri ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Podcasting seems like a good tool for a lively fiskI came across today's word, fisking, in a recent post over at Corante. At fist I thought fisking was a typo or a one-time-use, bit of jargon, but in fact fisking is neologism born from the blogosphere.The eponymous verb describes a detailed point by point refutation of a argument or article. The technique is named after the British journalist Robert risk. In late 2001, while covering the war in Afghanistan, Fisk published an account of a mob beating him and his subsequent rescue from the ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Podcasting, vocation or avocation?I am sorry for the dearth of podcasts last week. Work and life sometimes intrude on the joy of my avocation. But to make up for it I have two words today- dearth and avocation.A dearth is a shortage or lack of something. Like a dearth of Today's Podcast last week. It is a noun and it usually spelled D-E-A-R-T-H, but some older dictionaries list D-E-R-T-H as an acceptable spelling. It comes from the old english deore meaning precious or costly. It is related to dear.An avocation, unlike ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Begging the podcast questionLast week I misused a common phrase I thought I understood. But fortunately David Dawson let me know I was confused. The phrase is, "beg the question."Foolishly, I took it to literally mean asks the question or raises the question. But this is not the case. To "beg the question" is to assume what still has to be proved. A statement that "begs the question" is one that based on a questionable assumption. For example the statement, "Fax machines will probably be full color by 2010," begs ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
There is no drayage for shipping a podcastI overheard today's word around our office drayage. It is a noun and it is the sum paid for use of a dray. Duh. So what is that? A dray is a utility cart used to haul heavy items. They can range in size from a small two wheeled hand cart for moving luggage or barrels to much larger carts pulled by a horse.Now we don't use drays at work but the term drayage is used in the shipping world for the freight charge to pickup and deliver an ocean container.Oh and here is a sentence using drayag ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
Happy Easter PodcastTodays' podcast is an easter wish from my mother. It is a poem by Langston HughesI dream a world where manNo other will scorn,Where love will bless the earthAnd peace its paths adorn.I dream a world where allWill know sweet freedom's way,Where greed no longer saps the soulNor avarice blights the day.A world I dream where black or white,Whatever race you be,Will share the bounties of the earthAnd everyone is free,Where wretchedness will hang its head,And joy, like a pearl,Attend the needs o ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
This literally is a podcast about literallyToday's word, literally, is one I have debated including for several months. I wasn't sure it was an interesting enough word. This week Andrew requested it and that confirmed it was interesting enough for two of us. I hope you enjoy.What, at least for me and Andrew, makes literally interesting is how frequently it is misused. As Andrew mentioned in his email, not a day goes by that you don't find someone using literally instead of figuratively.Litterally is an adverb. It means actually ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
A couple of months in the podcast labWelcome to the 100th Today's Podcast!I used to work at AT&T Broadband Labs and one of my favorite saying we had around the office was,"A couple of months in the laboratory can save a couple of hours in the library."I love this saying for two reasons one it reminds us that a lot was accomplished before you showed up. Check out the library or the Internet and you can learn a lot from others. The second reason is the statement speaks to a common truth- that people love to find things out for ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
If podcasting is pirate radio maybe we should fly the Jolly RogerToday's let's learn about pirate flags. Or at least the most famous, the Jolly Roger.While piracy on the high seas is still a real threat to mariners the high times (1550 to 1750) of piracy are long gone. What we have left is some fun myths, affectations, and the classic flag- the Jolly Roger.Yes that is right, flags have names. The classic skull and cross bones pirate the is known as the Jolly Roger. The name is probably an English corruption of the French joli rouge, which means pretty ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
If Microsoft jumped into podcasting maybe they could spend less time on spoliationToday's word is a great recommendation from Brian of the MostlyTrivial.com podcast. He came across spoliation in an I, Cringley, Column- Robert Cringley's column on PBS's site.The article is about a recent Microsoft case related to patent law. Cringley uses spoliation, to describe damaged evidence. Spoliation is a noun with two closely related definitions. One, the act of plundering or injuring beyond repair. Two, the state of having been injured or plundered.I recently had a request f ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
At the museum of podcasting perhaps I can be a docentToday's word is one I have learned over and over again. Sadly I forget it over and over again too. This week I was reminded of it again by the TV cartoon The Simpsons. The word is docent.A docent is a person who lead tours through museums or art galleries. Merriam-Webster also lists a docent as a university lecturer or teacher.The word is derived from the Latin docere, meaning to teach.Technorati Tags: docent | Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
If you are synaesthetic you smell a podcast?Todays word, synaesthetic, can be found in a recent post a MindHacks.com.The word synaesthetic is spelled s-y-n-a-e-s-t-h-e-t-i-c and s-y-n-e-s-t-h-e-t-i-c. The first spelling, the one with the a is the British/English style. Synaesthetic is an adjective that describes an experience that involves more than one of the five senses. More specifically it describes an experience when one type of stimulation causes the sensation of another sense.An example of an synesthetic experience is seein ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website
podcasters looking for a working, if not correct, business modelToday we have an enlightening quote from Kelvin Throop III. I have no idea who Throop is. His name and his quotes are all over the net but damned if I can find a biography. I think Throop maybe a pseudonym or nom de plum for a science fiction writer.Anyway here is a the quote:"Celestial navigation is based on the premise that the Earth is the center of the universe. The premise is wrong, but the navigation works. An incorrect model can be a useful tool.'Kelvin Throop III"I like this quot ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | |
