Saturday, August 3, 2024

deflagrate \DEF-luh-greyt\, verb:
 

• To burn, especially suddenly and violently.

Deflagrate is derived from the Latin root flagrāre meaning "to burn." The common prefix de- can denote intensity, as well as removal.

 

L

• Catching an L means catching a loss. In this sense, you catch an L if you say something stupid or, if you try to sound intelligent but are proved wrong. 

Sarah says, "Has anyone ever noticed that "Santa" has the same letters as Satan? Isn't that weird? What are your thoughts?" 

Cathy responds, "And Santa is also the word for Saint in many languages. And since the figure of Santa Claus is based off SAINT Nicholas, its not surprising. So nice try, but you failed." 

In that case, Sarah caught an L because she tried to prove an invalid point.

History

• Christopher Columbus: set sail from Palos, Spain, on the voyage that would take him to America (1492)
• La Scala: leading opera house opened in Milan with a production of Salieri's opera Europa riconosciuta, which was not performed again until December 7, 2004, when La Scala reopened after renovations (1788)
• NBA: the National Basketball League and the Basketball Association of America merged to form America's professional basketball league (1949)
• USS Nautilus: the world's first nuclear-powered submarine sailed over the North Pole underwater in a journey under the Arctic ice cap (1958)
• Air Traffic Controllers Strike: PATCO workers walked out, leading to the firing of nearly all air traffic controllers by President Ronald Reagan two days later; in the wake of this event, US labor unions were weakened (1981)
• Statue of Liberty: pedestal reopened to the public for first time since 9/11 (2004)

Birthdays

• Ernie Pyle 1900
• John T. Scopes 1900
• Ray Bloch 1902
• Margaret Kuhn 1905
• Dolores Del Rio 1905
• John Gunther 1910
• Charlie Shavers (John Kirby Sextet) 1917
• Les Elgart 1918
• P.D. James 1920
• Richard Adler 1921
• Marilyn Maxwell 1921
• Leon Uris 1924
• Gordon Stoker 1924 - Musician (The Jordanaires)
• Tony Bennett 1926
• Gordon Scott 1927
• Alex Cord 1931
• Elsa Martinelli 1933
• Stephen Berkoff 1937
• Martin Sheen 1940
• Lance Alworth 1940
• Martha Stewart 1941
• Beverly Lee 1941 - Musician (The Shirelles)
• B.B. Dickerson 1949 - Musician (War)
• John Landis 1950
• JoMarie Payton 1950
• Jay North 1951
• Marcel Dionne 1951
• Johnny Graham 1951 - Musician (Earth, Wind & Fire)
• John C. McGinley 1959
• James Hetfield 1963 - Musician (Metallica)
• Ed Roland 1963 - Musician (Collective Soul)
• Dean Sams 1966 - Musician (Lonestar)
  Michael Ealy 1973 - Actor (Almost Human, Underworld 4)
• Shirley Manson 1966 - (Garbage)
• Evangeline Lilly 1979 - Actress ("Lost")
• Holly Artnstein (Dream) 1985