Thursday, June 17, 2010

oscitant \OS-i-tuhnt\, adjective:

1. Yawning, as with drowsiness; gaping.

2. Drowsy or inattentive.

3. Dull, lazy, or negligent.

Oscitant derives from the Latin oscitare, "to gape or yawn."

vuvuzela

• A mind-numbing torture device made of cheap, brightly colored plastic. It resembles a horn but its pitch cannot be changed. It is being used during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

I thought I heard an angry swarm of bumblebees, but it was the sound of vuvuzelas playing at the World Cup.

Trivia

When it comes to high-altitude flight, what is Armstrong’s Line?

• It’s the point—about 63,000 feet above the earth—at which atmospheric pressure is so low that a person’s blood would begin to boil if he or she were not wearing a pressurized flight suit. It’s named for Harry Armstrong, the Air Force doctor who discovered it.

History

• California: was claimed by Sir Francis Drake for England; he called it Nova Albion (1579)
• Taj Mahal: Mumtaz Mahal, wife of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan I, died; her death inspired her husband to build a white domed mausoleum masterpiece (1631)
• Battle of Bunker Hill: first great battle of the Revolutionary War began (1775)
• Statue of Liberty: gift from France arrived in New York (1885)
• Watergate: office break-in at Democratic Headquarters in Washington began a scandal that would bring down a government (1972)

Birthdays

• John Robert Gregg (1867-1948): invntr/ shrt-hnd
• Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971): composer of The Rite of Spring; composers Charles Gounod (1818-1893) and Sammy Fain (1902-1989) shared this birth date
• M. C. Escher (1898-1972): graphic artist with the brain-teasing prints
• Barry Manilow (67): singer of "Copacabana", other musicians: Eric Stefani (42), Jello Biafra (51) punk rocker
• Greg Kinnear (47): starred in Little Miss Sunshine and Flash of Genius; other actors born on this date include Joe Piscopo (59), Mark Linn-Baker (56), Thomas Haden Church (49) and Jason Patric (44)
• Venus Williams (30): Olympic tennis champion; also, speed-skating champ Dan Jansen (45)