An engineer at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, says he and his colleagues refer to tangled underwater cables as wuzzles. Does anyone else? At least as early as the mid-19th century, the verb wuzzle has meant “to...
After researchers from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego discovered a seahorse-like creature called the ruby sea dragon, they described this brilliant red fish as a charismatic species. Many scientists use the word charismatic to...
Choosing language that helps resolve interpersonal conflict. Sometimes a question is really just a veiled form of criticism and understanding the difference between “ask culture” and “guess culture” can help you know how to...
Why do we measure the sea in knots? Why, to keep the ocean tide! This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Measuring The Sea Joke” You know, Grant, earlier we were talking about measuring the sea in knots. Do you know why...
A woman from Cape Cod is looking for a polite word that means the current wife of my ex-husband. She’s thinking about cur-wife, but somehow that doesn’t quite work. Neither does the phrase “that poor woman.” The hosts try to...