A voicemail from a Hawaii listener leads to a discussion of the correct pronunciation for Aegis, a naval combat system. Is it EE-jiss or AY-jiss? In Greek myth, an aegis was a protective shield, and today, to be under the aegis means to be...
The books we love as children may influence our careers more than we realize. As a child, Martha was fascinated with stories of cracking codes, and Grant loved books with glossaries–not that far from the kind of work they do today. A caller...
The saying “I don’t chew my cabbage twice,” means I’m not going to repeat myself. The ancient Romans, by the way, ate cabbage as a protection against hangovers, but detested the smell of twice-cooked cabbage. This is part of...
cut sign v. phr.—Gloss: To track someone by their trail marks. Note: Used inside the US Customs and Border Protection, which patrols the United States border. «He knew that the coyotes who led groups of undocumented workers, as well as...
v-spam n.— «V-spam is a dangerous strain of “virus spam” that is designed to deceive recipients, causing them to invite viruses into their computers. Virus spam, or v-spam, attempts to circumvent anti-virus protection by...
bandit barrier n.— «Kelly said there needs to be a return to the measures put in place in 2003, such as the installation of the bullet-resistant glass, better known as “bandit barriers.”» —“NYPD’s Kelly: Banks need more...