Monday, March 4, 2013

whipsaw \HWIP-saw\, verb:

1. to subject to two opposing forces at the same time: The real-estate market has been whipsawed by high interest rates and unemployment.
2. to cut with a whipsaw.
3. to win two bets from (a person) at one turn or play, as at faro.
4. (of a trailer, railroad car, etc.) to swing suddenly to the right or left, as in rounding a sharp curve at high speed.

noun:

1. a saw for two persons, as a pitsaw, used to divide timbers lengthwise.

Whipsaw entered into wide usage in the 1530s from a portmanteau combination of "whip" and "saw." "Whip" is derived from the Proto Germanic wippen meaning "to flap violently." "Saw" is derived from the Old English sagu referring to a cutting tool.

Soft Googling

• When some is bored on the computer and they're just aimlessly Googling random shit to pass the time.

The class was so boring, half the students were soft googling on their laptops just to stay awake.

Trivia

To focus world attention on the threat of global warming, in what unusual setting did the president of the Republic of Maldives hold a cabinet meeting?

• Underwater in a lagoon, with everyone attending the 2009 meeting wearing frogman suits. Some environmentalists believe rising seas caused by climate change could put the 1,192-island Indian Ocean archipelago—the lowest-lying nation in the world —underwater by the end of this century.

History

• US Constitution: went into effect as the United States Congress met for the first time, in New York City (1789)
• American Automobile Association: the "triple A" club was established; it now has 50 million members (1902)
• New Deal: economic recovery and social welfare plan was outlined by Franklin Delano Roosevelt during his inaugural address, in which he told Americans that "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself" (1933)
• John Lennon: the douchebag egomaniac sparked controversy by saying that The Beatles were more popular than Jesus, possibly during a drug enduced haze (1966)

Birthdays

• Prince Henry the Navigator 1394
• Antonio Vivaldi 1678
• Sir Henry Raeburn 1756
• Knute Rockne 1888
• Charles Goren 1901
• Harry Helmsley 1909
• John Garfield 1913
• Carlos Surinach 1915
• Margaret Osborne DuPont 1918
• Joan Greenwood 1921
• Miriam Makeba 1932
• Barbara McNair 1934
• Jim Clark 1936 - Race car driver
• Paula Prentiss 1939 - Actress
• Susan Clark 1944
• Bobby Womack 1944 - Singer
• Shakin' Stevens 1948
• Chris Squire 1948 - Musician (Yes)
• Chris Rea 1951 - Musician (Chris Rea Band)
• Kay Lenz 1953
• Emilio Estefan 1953 - Musician (Miami Sound Machine)
• Adrian Zmed 1954
• Catherine O’Hara 1954 - Actress
• Patricia Heaton 1958 - Actress ("Everybody Loves Raymond")
• Mykelti Williamson 1960
• Steven Weber 1961 - Actor ("Wings")
• Ray ‘Boom Boom’ Mancini 1961
• Jason Newsted 1963 - Musician (Metallica)
• Stacy Edwards 1965 - Actress ("Chicago Hope")
• Patrick Hannan 1966 - Musician (The Sundays)
• Evan Dando 1967 - Musician (Lemonheads)
• Patsy Kensit 1968
• Chastity Bono 1969 - Daughter of Sonny and Cher
• Jason Sellers 1971
• Fergal Lawler 1971 - Musician (The Cranberries)
• Whitney Port 1985 - Actress ("The Hills")
• Andrea Bowen 1990 - Actress ("Desperate Housewives")