51吃瓜 of the Day
somnambulism
noun
sleepwalking.
More about somnambulism
Somnambulism, 鈥渟leepwalking,鈥� comes via French somnambulisme from New Latin somnambulismus, a pretty transparent compound of the noun somnus 鈥渟leep鈥� and the verb 补尘产耻濒腻谤别 鈥渢o walk, take a walk, stroll,鈥� source of English amble. Somnus is the Latin result of the very common Proto-Indo-European root swep-, swop-, sup– 鈥渢o sleep.鈥� In Latin, the derivative noun swepnos (or swopnos) becomes sopnos, then somnus. The derivative noun supnos becomes 丑媒辫苍辞蝉 in Greek. Another derivative noun, swep–os-, becomes sopor– “sleep” in Latin (via swop–os-, then sopor-), as in English soporific 鈥渃ausing sleep.鈥� Swepnos becomes swefn 鈥渟leep, dream鈥� in Old English and sweven 鈥渄ream, dream-vision鈥� in Middle English. William Langland, usually considered to be the author of Piers Plowman, fell into a merveilouse swevene, a 鈥渃urious dream,鈥� one May morning in the Malvern Hills in Hereford and Worcestershire, England, and Piers Plowman is the narrative of his dream. Somnambulism entered English at the end of the 18th century.
how is somnambulism used?
Sleepwalking, or听蝉辞尘苍补尘产耻濒颈蝉尘, doesn鈥檛 always involve walking. A person is said to be sleepwalking if they are performing a complex task鈥攖alking, sitting up in bed, getting dressed鈥攚hile in a state of deep sleep, according to the National Sleep Foundation.
Out and about, I spotted drowsy or dozing people everywhere; and I realized that a kind of mechanized mass somnambulism is an essential component of modern life ….
somnambulism
doddle
noun
something easily done, fixed, etc.: He was really worried about my finishing the fence repairs on my own, but it was a doddle.
More about doddle
Doddle, 鈥渟omething easy to do or fix,鈥� is a British colloquialism of uncertain origin. Some say it comes from Scottish doddle 鈥渁 small lump of toffee鈥� (and therefore attractive and easy to make away with). Some say doddle may come from the verb dawdle 鈥渢o waste time, idle.鈥� Doddle may also be a variant of the verb toddle 鈥渢o move with short unsteady steps鈥� (as a toddler does). Doddle entered English in the first half of the 20th century.
how is doddle used?
But it is a delusion to think we can solve Earth鈥檚 problems by relocating to Mars. I completely disagree with Musk and with my late colleague Stephen Hawking on that, because dealing with climate change on Earth is a doddle compared with聽terraforming Mars.
This [journey] would have been a doddle on Highway 1 at any other time of year, but a succession of winter storms had blocked the coast road with landslides in half a dozen places.
doddle
Promethean
adjective
creative; boldly original.
More about Promethean
Promethean is the adjective derived from Prometheus, one of the Titans, the race of divine beings that preceded the Olympian gods (there was bad ichor between the two races). The Greek poet Hesiod interpreted Prometheus as 鈥淔orethought鈥�; Prometheus鈥� twin brother Epimetheus was therefore 鈥淎fterthought.鈥� Prometheus and Epimetheus (and Atlas, too) were sons of Iapetus, whose Hebrew equivalent, Japheth, is a son of Noah (Genesis 5:32). Promethean entered English towards the end of the 16th century.
how is Promethean used?
While this work suggests man鈥檚 helplessness in the face of nature鈥檚 relentless power, Cai鈥檚 exhibit suggests an ironic thematic reversal: nature鈥檚 state of helplessness in the face of modern man鈥檚 relentless, Promethean drive to progress.
That ambivalence is the divided heart of the novel: Gatsby is a dreamer and a 鈥済o-for-broke Promethean overreacher,鈥� but鈥攁s Corrigan鈥檚 former high school teacher tells her, 鈥淕atsby was looking for the wrong things. .鈥�.鈥�. Money and clothes and Daisy.鈥� He embodies the best and worst qualities of America, resulting in a novel that is simultaneously buoyant and grim, as Corrigan notes.
Promethean