Category: Notes from Stonehaven
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One Word: Turmeric
The word âturmericâ fascinates me. So, for that matter, does the actual spice — as distinct from the word. Hereâs the scoop: Turmeric powder ranges in color from bright yellow to deep orange. It has a pungent, gingery-peppery flavor and is a main component of curry. Because of its color, itâs sometimes called âIndian saffronâ.…
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One Word: Reunion
Reunion strikes me as possibly the most sublime of all English words. I love its sound. Even more, I love its meaning. Phonetically, reunion is a word that could be classified as “euphonious” or “mellifluous”. These are neat words, too: The first refers to sounds that please the ear; the second, to sounds that flow…
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The Gary Matthews Anagrams
Wordsmith.org quotes a supposed sage as saying, “All the life’s wisdom can be found in anagrams. Anagrams never lie.” Is this so? Can we really learn hidden truth by rearranging the letters of a name or phrase? I had to find out! For me, a natural place to start was with my dear departed mom. Her…
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Crock-pot Turkey: Best Ever!
For the juiciest, tastiest, tenderest turkey you’ll ever enjoy — bake it in a crock-pot! Here’s how. Cheri and I taught ourselves this trick, this past Thanksgiving. We acted on pure impulse. Nothing wrong with turkeys we’ve baked before, for ourselves and family. But we were in a mood for something more. We ransacked the Internet for turkey…
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Hoth’s Deadly Crystal Lattice Creature
If you’re a fan of Star Wars VÂ (The Empire Strikes Back), you’ll remember two featured creatures: the tauntaun, a snow lizard ridden by Luke Skywalker; and the wampa, a white-furred predator of amazing stealth and power. Both are denizens of the ice planet Hoth, a one-time Rebel outpost. You probably won’t remember the crystal lattice…
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The SAE Anagrams
Let’s see — how many words and phrases can we find in “Sigma Alpha Epsilon”? It’s a timely question, now that this national college fraternity (SAE for short) is back in the news: It’s taking heat for running its parties on a “White Girls Only” basis. This won’t help it recover from last March’s viral video…
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Supermoon Eclipse: What They’re Not Telling You
Blood moon. Supermoon. Total lunar eclipse. When these effects coincide (as they will Sunday evening, 10:11 p.m. Eastern time), itâs a very Big Deal. For all the scientific reasons youâre already hearing everywhere. And one non-scientific, personal reason youâll hear á´É´ĘĘ from me. First, the science: ⌠Total lunar eclipse: The earth comes directly between the…
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One Word: Vasty
Glendower: âI can call spirits from the vasty deep.â Hotspur: âWhy, so can I, or so can any man. But will they come when you do call for them?â (Shakespeare, Kɪɴɢ Há´É´ĘĘ á´Ęá´ Fá´á´Ęá´Ę, Pá´Ęá´ I, Act 3, Scene 1) This famous passage was my introduction to the word âvastyâ. I came across it while…
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Revisiting the Higgs Boson
Itâs hard to believe my report on the elusive Higgs particle is nearly a year old. If youâre reading these blog posts by email, you may have missed it: My âNotes from Stonehavenâ email newsletter was in recess last September. But the article is still evergreen. Catch it here: http://garymatthews.com/2014/09/still-chasing-god-particle/ Youâve almost certainly heard of…
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Treating Friends Like Enemies
We all naturally want to keep our enemies in the dark. But why should we expect to improve outcomes by keeping our ŇĘÉŞá´É´á´ s á´É´á´ sá´á´á´á´Ęá´á´Ęs in the dark? Even in dealing with enemies, this impulse isnât always smart. But what sense can it ever make in our relations with supposed allies? Sense or nonsense, it happens…
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One Word: Blog
Am I the only person annoyed by the word âblogâ? It reminds me of blob, glob, bog, grog, flog, and other words none of which do much for me either. Simply stated, blog is a word I experience as grating and vaguely unpleasant. That of course is only in terms of the way it sounds.…
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One Word: Disinterested
Disinterested is a word I find most interesting. Not á´É´ĘĘ because itâs so often misused. (Although it is — like âcompriseâ and so many more.) No, âdisinterestedâ fascinates me because it expresses a subtle, absolutely indispensable concept about which we need to think and talk. And because I canât think of any equivalent word we…