Predictive text on cellphones can result in some amusing accidental substitutions. The word for that: textonym. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Textonym” Hello, you have A Way with Words. Hi, how are you? Doing well. Who’s this...
mailbox money n.— «The recurring revenue SCR earns as a result of switching its clients to Mercury is what Milligan refers to as “mailbox money.” That is, once a client is switched over, SCR receives a monthly residual check from Mercury based on...
halo effect n.— «Children in non-fluoridated communities consume sodas and beverages bottled in fluoridated localities using fluoridated water. This is known in fluoridation debate circles as “the halo effect.” Grapes and grape products, teas and...
skimming n.— «The last step in processing is the separation of data into different streams based on the event types apparent in each collision. This process, called skimming, was performed at the computing centers—SLAC, GridKa in Germany, and RAL...
gang-cutting n.— «Prosecutors allege he led a multi-state ring that clipped bundles of coupons at a time from newspaper inserts—a practice known as “gang-cutting”—and sent them to IOS for processing, pretending they’d been redeemed by consumers...
baghouse n.— «Environmental protection laws have codes limiting water flows and particulate and smoke emissions from oil refineries and asphalt processing plants, and not only dust but sulfur dioxides, smoke and other emissions are rigorously...