Pylimitics

The Victorian Era, at least when it’s depicted in fiction, boasts any number of charming eccentrics; generally upper-class British gentlemen enjoying, shall we say, “interesting” hobbies. Besides current steampunk-genre characters, Philias Fogg (who traveled around the word in 80 days) and Caractacus Potts (who built Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang, the magic car) are a couple of good examples. … Continue reading

In 1616 (or thereabouts), Shakespeare included this in his play Coriolanus: “You must enquire your way.” Then in 1633, Joseph Hall wrote a book (with one of those absurdly long 17th century titles), in which he wrote: “To inquire my interpretation of this dreame.” Ever since, some people have been using “enquire” where others think it ought to be “inquire,”… Continue reading

In 1876 Mortimer Collins referred to “The dusty and deliquescent pedestrian.” In 1845, Charles Darwin noted “Those salts answer best for preserving cheese which contain most of the deliquescent chlorides.” In 1874 Mordecai Cubitt Cooke pointed out that “It is very difficult to observe the structure of the hymenium, on account of its deliquescent nature.” And in 1866, in a textbook… Continue reading

When you’re “stumped”, you’re stopped in your metaphorical tracks by a puzzle, a conundrum, something you can’t immediately figure out. And various things can leave a stump when the main part of it is removed, the best example being what’s left in the ground when a tree is cut down.  “Stump” came (in the 1300s)… Continue reading