Page 10
The Behrend Beacon
The origins of
by Merriam-Webster
(KRT)
Q. I recently came across a word I have
| never heard before. What is an “enco
'mium”? It sounds like something medi
cal, but it didn't appear in such a context.
P.K., Worcester, Mass.
! A. Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dic
tionary, Tenth Edition, defines "enco
imium" as "glowing and warmly enthusi
astic praise." "Encomium" can also mean
;an expression of such praise. The word
Iderives from Greek "enkomion," itself
;formed from the prefix ”en-," meaning
| "in," and "komos," meaning "celebration."
! There are several other words that mean
*a formal expression of praise. "Tribute"
implies deeply felt praise conveyed either
; through words or through a significant act.
"Panegyric" suggests an elaborate, of
ten poetic compliment.
• "Eulogy" applies to a prepared speech
jor writing extolling the virtues and ser
vices of a person. Finally, "citation" ap
plies to the formal praise accompanying
the mention of a person in a military dis
patch or in awarding an honorary degree.
‘ Q. Now that we've entered a new year
•and started using new calendars, I won
‘der if you could tell us anything about the
origins of the names for the months of the
year.
, A. The earliest Roman calendar suppos
edly was introduced about 738 B.C. by
Romulus, the legendary founder of Rome.
jThe year consisted of 304 days and was
divided into ten months, each month be
;ing the period between one full moon and
'the next. These Romans seemed to have
'.ignored or at least left uncounted about
•two months during the winter. The year
Through the Looking Glass
BUT SATISFACTION ISN’T GUARANTEED
The first brothel for female customers in Leibstadt, Switzerland, took a very unconventional business approach from the
beginning.
When men go to a house of ill repute, they pay their money up front before having their fun with the ladies. But the ladies
were allowed to pay AFTER trysting with the male prostitutes.
As a result, they paid only what they thought the service was worth, and the establishment went bankrupt
WOULD YOU LIKE THAT UNDER GLASS?
Conrad the peregrine falcon has returned to his perch in the sign atop the 18-story Hilton Hotel in Knoxville, Tenn., for the
1 winter.
People on the streets below get their first hint that he is in residence when they see pigeon feathers floating to the ground
indicating that Conrad has just had lunch.
Crossword
ACROSS
1 Shell-game item
4 Humiliates
10 Norwegian
capital
14 The whole of
15 No-good-nlk
16 Lead balloon
17 Hypocritical
respect
19 Phony
20 Chow down
21 Like nonbelievers
23 Caroled
25 Blast letters
26 Team cheer
27 Inarticulate
comment
28 Class writing
30 Honorable
34 Proof of
authenticity
37 Lena or Ken
38 Peruke
39 Pursuing
41 Furnish, for a
time
42 Makassar Strait
outlet
44 Ford failure
46 Hayworth film,
"Miss
Thompson"
47 Earmark
48 Boat propeller
50 Payable
51 In this place
52 Downplay
56 Knightfe address
57 Diva's number
58 Goodyear
purchase
62 Coarse seaweed
63 Right now!
64 Fall mo.
65 of Man
66 Pestered
67 Holy smokel
DOWN
1 Buddy
2 Lilly or Whitney
3 20-foot-long
instruments
4 Fence the loot,
eg
5 Cake of soap
Wordwatch:
52002 TrttKin* Madia Sandcaa, Inc
rlghta raaarved.
Solutions
6 Favorable
positions
7 Infatuated
8 Per person
9 Haughty look
10 Branches
11 Louver
12 Mischievous
Norse god
13 Oil cartel’s
letters
18 Droop
22 Charteson of
“Chariots ot Fire’
23 Pliant
24 Want along
(with)
25 Qinto partner
28 Innovative
29 Setting times
31 Intensely hot 43 Terhune book
32 Narrow and 45 Kiddie seat?
ftloopntaH 49 Aired again
33 Employ 51 Smack
35 Home movie 52 H.H. Munro in
36 Composer Blake print
40 Bench born 53 Mineral deposits
began with the vernal equinox, which sig
naled the beginning of the growing sea
son.
The first month was named "Martius"
after Mars, originally a god of agriculture
before becoming the god of war. "Martius"
was taken into Old French as "march,"
which middle English borrowed as
"March" at the beginning of the 13th cen
tury.
The second month was named" Aprilis,"
a word of unknown origin but with a folk
etymology that goes back to the Roman
scholar Varro (116-27 8.C.), who said it
was likely formed from the verb "aperire,"
"to open," since this is the period when
the buds of leaves and flowers begin to
open. "Aprilis" became "avrill" in Old
French and was borrowed into Middle
English as "Averil," "Aperil," and finally
"April."
The third month, "Maius," was probably
named for the goddess Maia, the mother
of Mercury by Jupiter. In Old French this
name became "mai," which was taken into
Middle English as "May."
"Junius," the fourth month, was prob
ably named in honor of the goddess Juno.
Old English used the form "Junius" for
this month, which became "June" in the
14th century.
"Quintilis," the name of the fifth month,
was formed from the adjective "quintus,"
meaning "fifth." In 44 B.C. the Roman
senate renamed this month in honor of
Julius Caesar, who was bom in this month.
Old English kept the Latin form "Julius,"
which eventually became "July" in late
Middle English.
"Sextilis," the name of the sixth month,
was appropriately formed from the adjec
tive "sextus,” meaning "sixth." In 8 8.C.,
the weekly column that asks if there is intelligent life out there
by Mike Pingree
KRT Campus
54 Stuff
55 Information
56 Luge
59 High card
60 Agile deer
61 Vwrd after
Christmas
FEATURES
Friday, February 15, 2002
words
the senate renamed this month
"Augustus" in honor of Augustus Caesar,
the first emperor of Rome. In Old English
the Latin form was anglicized to "Au
gust."
"September," being the seventh month,
was formed from "septem," meaning
"seven." This name became "septembre"
in Old French and then "September" in
Middle English. Eventually the influence
of Latin fixed the spelling as "Septem
ber." In like manner, "October" was
formed from "octo," meaning "eight,"
"November" from "novem," meaning
"nine," and "December" from "decern,"
meaning "ten.”
The second King of Rome, Numa
Pompilius (715? - 673? 8.C.), decided to
fill in the two-month winter gap with
"Januarius," which was derived from "Ja
nus," the god of gates and later of begin
nings, and "Februarius," so named be
cause the "Februa," a feast of spiritual
cleansing and expiation, took place dur
ing this period.
This calendar was basically a lunar
reckoning that had become increasingly
out of phase with the seasons. To correct
this Julius Caesar, in 46 B.C. employed
the astronomer Sosigenes to review the
calendar and suggest ways of improving
it. His suggestions included using the sun
instead of the moon as the basis for reck
oning, allowing a leap year, and moving
the beginning of the year from March 1
to Jan. 1. Since January was now the first
month, September, October, November,
and December were no longer the sev
enth, eighth, ninth, and tenth months.
However etymologically inappropriate
these names had become, they were re
tained.
IK Recipes for You!
.r“> Pork with celery
Cut meat into 5-6 portions. Put into a saucepan with 1/2 cup
of butter, onion, carrots, salt and pepper; add 4 cups boiling
water, cover and cook for 1 1/2 hours.
Peel the strings from stalks, using a vegetable peeler. Cut
each stalk lengthwise, then crosswise into 2-inch pieces.
Parboil for 3 minutes, drain and cook with the meat. Cover
and cook for 30 minutes. Just before serving, prepare egg
and lemon sauce. Sprinkle with parsley and serve hot.
and pepper Salt
1 bunch Celery
2 tablespoons Flour
2 Egg Yolks
1 -2 Lemon
We want your recipes! X.
Send your submissions to >
behrcollß@aol. com.
Don’t cop out and raid your mom’s recipe
box. We want recipes from college stuy
dents, for college students!
••••••••••••••••••••••• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
i Movie offers tips for
| the aspiring ladies' man
The path that leads one to becoming
a ladies' man is beset by perils. First a
man must face the requisite learning
curve in which every woman looks
upon him as a bona fide clown. Then
he is forced to make behavior-altering
decisions that could have long-range
effects on his ability to be truly happy.
Back in the days when we were
fuzzy and innocent and dating was
simple, throwing our hearts at passers
by was natural. Over time, however,
we have learned that complete open
ness, while sounding like a good idea,
may lead to more headaches than it is
worth. So we start to wise up and think
with our heads instead of our hearts _
or whatever.
Ingredients:
2 1/2 lbs. Pork
3/4 cup Butter
1 chopped Onion
2 sliced Carrots
chopped Parsley
by Eric Edwards
The Orlando Sentinel
Since I look to Hollywood for all of
life's answers, it is no surprise that a
movie called "The Tao of Steve"
(2000) struck me as the perfect lesson
in how modifying attitudes is key to
becoming successful with women.
This film, which applies the writings
of the Chinese philosopher Lau Tzu to
the art of picking up women, is not
only an important lesson in how to go
about being smooth, but also how not
to lose yourself behind your slick, new
facade.
The trick to prospering as a Don
Juan, according to Tao, is to first
eliminate desire. That's because the
more you want to hook up with some
one, the less likely it becomes that they
will reciprocate. (Of course, I can't
help but think that if we achieve this
state of emotional disarmament, then
what fun is to go after someone? We
may end up reaching our goals, but
Karl Benacci, Features Editor
then don’t we run the risk of not caring
enough to enjoy them properly?)
Watching this film, I learned that
people will pursue that which retreats
from them. But the rub is that the men
who are most "successful" at applying
this philosophy are constantly running
away from women who want them.
It makes sense, doesn't it? After all, the
major complaint most women have
about men is that they're too good at
disconnecting their emotions and re
treating when faced with an honest op
portunity to put those emotions to good
use. Be honest, most men are more in
timate with their fantasy football teams
then they ever are with women.
And although men have no problem
being physically intimate, they gener
ally are unwilling to communicate on
the level women want them to.
Of course men do not need to bear
full responsibility for this debacle. The
reason "The Tao of Steve" is effective
is because women are looking for the
sort of cool that is bred by detachment.
It is positive reinforcement at its*
worst. If women respond to men who •
retreat when things get going, then men *
repeat that behavior. *
And arriving at this coveted intimacy •
is no short journey when a person has J
been trained to share the least amount •
of emotional insight for fear of push- #
ing other people away. •
But still people get together, and*
from time to time even have reward- •
ing relationships with each other. So*
there must be a middle ground out there J
somewhere where a woman is willing*
to accept a little less coolness at the*
outset, and a man willing to offer a de- •
gree more warmth later on. •
DITHERED TWfTS
Have any ideas for the
Features Page? Is there
something you like or dis
like? Let us know! We give
a darn about what you
think! E-mail
us at Behrcolls@aol.com
for suggestions or com
ments.