Pages 489-508
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489 · Back to Steeply and Marathe
Contents
Page 489
plexus
an intricate network
tête
French: head
Page 490
I/O
Input/Output
C'est ça
French: that's that
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ALGOL
a short term for Algorithmic language
491 · Flashback to Himself's Childhood
Page 491
Endnote 208
Institut für Neutronenphysik und Reaktortechnik, Kernforschungszentrum
German: Institute for Neutron Physics and Reactor Engineering, Nuclear Research Center (a real organization)
Karlsruhe
a city in Germany about 90 miles south of Frankfurt (Main)
U.R.G.
probably United Republic of Germany
Springer-Verlag
one of the largest publishers in Germany
Wien
the German name for Vienna, capital of Austria
Page 491 (cont'd)
Bazin
André Bazin (1918-1958) was a French film theorist and director.
Page 492
Eureka
Ancient Greek for "I've found it," made famous by Archimedes
metastisate
He means "metastatize."
gibber
to chatter unintelligibly
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Synchronicity
the state of happening simultaneously
Concord
agreement
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declivity
downward slope or hill
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hypotenuse
the longest arm of a right triangle
right dihedral triangle
A right triangle is one whose largest angle is 90º. Dihedral means "having two sides."
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ebullient
zestfully enthusiastic
caster
wheel
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rodential
like a rodent
stalactite
the kind of V-shaped rock formations in caves that come down from the top
Page 502
Powell's Peeping Tom
Michael Latham Powell (1905-1990) was a British filmmaker, and Peeping Tom was one of his films.
hex
i.e., hexagonal, having six sides
L'Hôpital
Guillaume François Antoine, Marquis de l'Hôpital (1661-1704), was a French mathematician.
Bernoulli
Jacob Bernoulli (1654-1705) was a Swiss mathematician.
Brachistochrone
a reference to a brachistochrone curve
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503 · NA Meeting
Page 503
anechoic vestry
Anechoic means "characterized by a low level of reverberation"; a vestry is where the priests' vestments (clothing for mass) are kept between ceremonies.
lassitude
weariness of body
catalepsy
suspension of sensation, which bodily rigidity
circadian arrhythmia
sleep disturbance
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anhedonia
inability to feel pleasure
peristyle
a colonnade surrounding an open space, or the space so encircled
astrolabes
a type of navigational device used before the invention of the sextant
prickets
sharp metal points on which to stick candles
Knights of Columbus
a Catholic fraternal order
Penn Station
the chief national train station in New York, at 34th Street and Eighth Avenue
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styptic
contracting tissue
dis
act of disrespect
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anorak
a hooded pullover jacket
bonhommic
a neologism, meaning "denoting good-heartedness"
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Keds
a brand of sneaker
507 · More Steeply and Marathe
Page 507
C'est la guerre
French: That's war
Perseus
the constellation of the flying horse
jongleur
a wandering minstrel
pantalone
a stock mime character, often the butt of jokes
Castor and Pollux
stars in the constellation Gemini, named for twin sons of Zeus and Leda in Greek mythology
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