51吃瓜 of the Day
autonomy
noun
independence or freedom, as of the will or one's actions.
More about autonomy
Autonomy 鈥渇reedom of the will鈥� comes from Ancient Greek 补耻迟辞苍辞尘铆补 鈥渋ndependence,鈥� which is based on the adjective 补耻迟贸苍辞尘辞蝉 鈥渨ith laws of one鈥檚 own.鈥� 础耻迟贸苍辞尘辞蝉, in turn, is a compound of the elements 补耻迟贸蝉 鈥渟elf鈥� and 苍贸尘辞蝉 鈥渓aw, custom, management, regulation.鈥� 础耻迟贸蝉 should look all too familiar, as its stems aut- and auto- appear in English terms such as authentic (literally 鈥渄one by oneself鈥�), automatic (鈥渢hinking for oneself鈥�), and autopsy (鈥渟eeing for oneself鈥�). Meanwhile, 苍贸尘辞蝉 is also the ultimate source of the words astronomy (鈥渟tar regulation鈥�), Deuteronomy (鈥渟econd law鈥�), and economy (鈥渉ousehold management鈥�). Autonomy was first recorded in English circa 1620.
how is autonomy used?
This freedom has sometimes been a source of friction in political quarters. 鈥淭his extensive autonomy is desirable for designing and carrying out research, but should not necessarily extend to aspects of personnel,鈥� says Holger Becker, a physicist who is a lawmaker in the German parliament and is on the parliament鈥檚 research committee.
draconian
adjective
rigorous; unusually severe or cruel.
More about draconian
Draconian 鈥渦nusually severe or cruel鈥� is based on Latin 顿谤补肠艒 (stem 顿谤补肠艒n-), plus the adjectival suffix -ian. In ancient Athens, a city-state that is now the capital of Greece, Draco (known to his fellow Athenians as 顿谤谩办艒苍) was a statesman who was famous鈥攐r infamous鈥攆or the unusually harsh laws he enacted. The Latin common noun 诲谤补肠艒 means 鈥渄ragon, serpent鈥� and appears in the motto of the school Hogwarts, from the Harry Potter series: 顿谤补肠艒 dormi膿ns nunquam t墨tillandus, meaning 鈥淎 sleeping dragon must never be tickled.鈥� Latin 诲谤补肠艒, originally an adaptation of Ancient Greek 诲谤谩办艒苍, is the source of English dragon, dragoon, and drake. Draconian was first recorded in English in the 1810s.
how is draconian used?
Wyatt was both a victim and a collaborator in a new kind of political system: the totalitarian state. The 16th century may have been the golden age of English literature, but it also fostered an increasingly draconian monarchy.
The U.S. Federal Reserve risks weak economic growth throughout this year due to its backward-looking, 鈥�draconian鈥� rate hikes, warned Wall Street鈥檚 best-known tech sector bull [Cathie Wood].
dissent
noun
disagreement with the philosophy, methods, goals, etc., of a political party or government.
More about dissent
Dissent 鈥渄isagreement with a party or government鈥� comes by way of Middle English and Middle French from the Latin verb 诲颈蝉蝉别苍迟墨谤别, 鈥渢o differ, disagree,鈥� which is based on the prefix dis- 鈥渁part鈥� and the verb 蝉别苍迟墨谤别 鈥渢o feel, observe.鈥� Dissent is both a verb and a noun, and the noun sense arose in the late 16th century, well over one hundred years after the verb first appeared in English. The Latin verb 蝉别苍迟墨谤别 has two stems: sent- and sens-. The first of these is found in English sentence, sentient, sentiment, and sentinel, while the second appears in consensus, sense, sensible, and sensual鈥攁ll of which relate in some way to feeling, thought, opinion, or observation. 厂别苍迟墨谤别 is also the source of numerous Romance language words and phrases related to emotion and perception, including Spanish lo siento 鈥淚 am sorry鈥� (literally 鈥淚 feel it鈥�). Dissent was first recorded in English in the early 15th century.
how is dissent used?
Newsrooms should reflect the country, the world that they are covering, and the world is in the middle of some dissent and disagreement and debate right now. I don鈥檛 know how we鈥檙e supposed to escape that.
Art not only makes concrete the notion that dissent is possible in times of darkness but also reminds viewers that dissent can manifest itself in beautiful and complex forms. Art is a strategy for political activism.