Methylphenidate, a mild stimulant used to treat ADHD and narcolepsy, was first synthesized in 1944 by Italian chemist Leandro Panizzon. He named it for his wife Marguerite, who went by Rita, which is why methylphenidate is more commonly called Ritalin. This is part of a complete episode.
A Winter Dictionary (Bookshop|Amazon) by Paul Anthony Jones includes some words to lift your spirits. The verb whicken involves the lengthening of days in springtime, a variant of quicken, meaning “come to life.” Another word, breard, is...
Rosalind from Montgomery, Alabama, says her mother used to scold her for acting like a starnadle fool. The more common version of this term is starnated fool, a term that appears particular to Black English, and appears in the work of such writers...
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