英文人行道 et cetera, et cetera

bastion, moneyed

2009-11-25T23:23:00.000-08:00

Military commanders say they will devote most of the 20,000 to 40,000 fresh troops expected from the U.S. to secure Afghanistan's south.

Slump Hits Home for Venture Capitalists
Sand Hill Road is the moneyed center of Silicon Valley, where venture-capital firms reside. But this bastion of high-end commercial real estate is cracking.

01.03. - Innovative ways to beat Germany’s smoking ban

Until recently, Germany was one of western Europe's last bastions for
smokers.

The DW-WORLD Article
http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evxruiI44va89pI4

bastion Hide phonetics
noun [C]
1 something which maintains or defends especially a belief or a way of life that is disappearing or threatened:
British public schools are regarded as one of the last bastions of upper-class privilege.

2 a part of the wall of a castle that sticks out from it in order to protect it

━━ n. （城の）稜堡(りょうほ); 拠点.

n.

A projecting part of a fortification.
A well-fortified position.
One that is considered similar to a defensive stronghold: You are a bastion of strength. See synonyms at bulwark.

[French, from Old French bastillon, from bastille, fortress. See bastille.]

A bastion is a structure projecting outward from the main enclosure of a fortification, situated in both corners of a straight wall (termed curtain), with the shape of a sharp point, facilitating active defense against assaulting troops. It allows the defenders of the fort to cover adjacent bastions and curtains with defensive fire.

The point of a bastion on a reconstructed French fort in Illinois.

Bastion - Castle Siklós in Hungary

moneyed Show phonetics

adjective FORMAL

rich:

a moneyed family

snap, fasten, snap-fastener, or press-stud, sagebrush

2009-11-25T21:18:00.000-08:00

snap election

snapping behind

Hazard: The snaps on these garments can detach, posing a choking hazard to young children.
snap fastener 按扣, 撳扭

An accomplished man: no trouble with strange fastenings.

IN THE annals of fashion the snap-fastener, or press-stud, holds a humble place. Few care that it was invented in Germany, as the Federknopf-Verschluss, in the 1880s. Not many appreciate that some varieties have discs and grooves, while others boast sockets with studs. And almost no one considers that they give a man style. But Jack Weil did.

Mr Weil reckoned that a cowboy on a horse, if wearing a shirt with buttons, was liable to get snagged on sagebrush or cactus or, worse than that, get a steerhorn straight through his fancy buttonhole. He was pretty certain, too, that a cowboy losing a button would feel disinclined to sew it on again. The answer to all those difficulties was to make shirts with snap-fasteners. And for 62 years, in a red-brick warehouse in the LoDo district of Denver, Mr Weil did exactly that.

press stud UK noun [C] (US snap)
a small clothes fastener with two usually round parts, one of which is pushed into the other

WordNet: sagebrush

Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: any of several North American composite subshrubs of the genera Artemis or Seriphidium
Synonym: sage brush

http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=SAGEBRUSH&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2

<– Back to results

fasten Show phonetics
verb [I or T]
1 to (cause something to) become firmly fixed together, or in position, or closed:
Make sure your seat belt is securely fastened.
This shirt fastens at the back.

2 fasten sth on/to/together, etc. to fix one thing to another:
I fastened the sticker to the windscreen.

fastener Show phonetics
noun [C]
a button, zip or other device for temporarily joining together the parts of things such as clothes

fastening Show phonetics
noun [C]
a device on a window, door, box, etc. for keeping it closed

snap

v., snapped, snap·ping, snaps. v.intr.

To make a brisk sharp cracking sound: "Logs snapped in the grate" (James Fox).
To break suddenly with a brisk, sharp, cracking sound.
1. To give way abruptly under pressure or tension: With so many people crowding onto the platform, its supports snapped.
2. To suffer a physical or mental breakdown, especially while under stress: feared that the troops would snap from fatigue.
To bring the jaws briskly together, often with a clicking sound; bite.
To snatch or grasp suddenly and with eagerness: snap at a chance to go to China.
To speak abruptly or sharply: snapped at the child.
To move swiftly and smartly: snap to attention. See synonyms at jerk¹.
To flash or appear to flash light; sparkle: eyes that snapped with anger.
To open, close, or fit together with a click: The lock snapped shut. The jacket snaps in front.

v.tr.

To snatch at with or as if with the teeth; bite.
To pull apart or break with a snapping sound.
To utter abruptly or sharply: The sergeant snapped out a command.
1. To cause to emit a snapping sound: snap a whip.
2. To close or latch with a snapping sound: snapped the purse shut.
To cause to move abruptly and smartly: "His head was snapped back by a sudden scream from the bed" (James Michener).
1. To take (a photograph).
2. To photograph: snapped the winner on the podium.
Football. To center (a football); hike.

A sudden sharp cracking sound or the action producing such a sound.
A sudden breaking.
A clasp, catch, or other fastening device that operates with a snapping sound.
A sudden attempt to bite, snatch, or grasp.
1. The sound produced by rapid movement of a finger from the thumb tip to the base of the thumb.
2. The act of producing this sound.
The sudden release of something held under pressure or tension.
A thin, crisp, usually circular cookie: a ginger snap.
1. Capacity to make a snapping sound; elasticity: This waistband has lost its snap.
2. Informal. Briskness, liveliness, or energy.
A brief spell of brisk, cold weather.
Something accomplished without effort. See synonyms at breeze¹.
1. A snapshot.
2. The taking of a snapshot.
A snap bean.
Football. The passing of a football from the center to a back that initiates each play. Also called hike.

adj.

Made or done suddenly, with little or no preparation: a snap decision.
Fastening with a snap: snap pockets.
Informal. Simple; easy: a snap assignment.

adv.
With a snap.

phrasal verbs:

snap back

To recover quickly.

snap to

To pay attention or begin complying abruptly.

snap up

To acquire quickly: snapped up the tickets.

idiom:

snap out of it Informal.

To move quickly back to one's normal condition from an undesirable condition, such as depression, grief, or self-pity.

[Probably from Middle English snappe, a quick bite, probably from Middle Low German or Middle Dutch snappen, to seize, snap.]

owe, transient, trance, medium

2009-11-25T17:10:00.000-08:00

a medium in trance.

Spotlight:


Monet's 'Water Lilies'

How did the Impressionist art movement get its name? Impressionist painter Claude Monet was born in Paris, on this date in 1840. Enamored of painting outdoors, Monet made a practice of painting the same scene at different times of day and season, showing the effects of light and atmosphere on the subject. He particularly loved painting flowers and his paintings of water lilies are among his most famous works. One of Monet's paintings was called Impression: Sunrise, which was the inspiration for the name Impressionism to describe the movement of artists who worked to paint a scene accurately and objectively, while using the transient effects of light on color and texture. Monet remarked on the importance of nature to his work: "I am following Nature without being able to grasp her... I perhaps owe having become a painter to flowers."

Quote:

"People discuss my art and pretend to understand as if it were necessary to understand, when it's simply necessary to love." — Claude Monet

owe (ō)
v., owed, ow·ing, owes. v.tr.

To be indebted to the amount of: He owes me five dollars.
To have a moral obligation to render or offer: I owe them an apology.
To be in debt to: We owe the plumber for services rendered.
To be indebted or obliged for: owed their riches to oil; owes her good health to diet and exercise.
To bear (a certain feeling) toward a person or persons: You seem to owe your neighbors a grudge.
Archaic. To have as a possession; own.

v.intr.
To be in debt: She still owes for the car.

[Middle English owen, from Old English āgan, to possess.]

trance (trăns)

A hypnotic, cataleptic, or ecstatic state.
Detachment from one's physical surroundings, as in contemplation or daydreaming.
A semiconscious state, as between sleeping and waking; a daze.

tr.v., tranced, tranc·ing, tranc·es.
To put into a trance; entrance.

[Middle English traunce, from Old French transe, passage, fear, vision, from transir, to die, be numb with fear, from Latin trānsīre, to go over or across. See transient.]

trancelike trance'like' adj.

tran·si·ent (trăn'zē-ənt, -zhənt, -shənt)

adj.

Passing with time; transitory: "the transient beauty of youth" (Lydia M. Child).
Remaining in a place only a brief time: transient laborers.
Physics. Decaying with time, especially as a simple exponential function of time.

One that is transient, especially a hotel guest or boarder who stays for only a brief time.
Physics. A transient phenomenon or property, especially a transient electric current.

[Alteration of Latin trānsiēns, trānseunt-, present participle of trānsīre, to go over : trāns-, over; see trans- + īre, to go.]

transiently tran'si·ent·ly adv.

medium
pl., mediums. A person thought to have the power to communicate with the spirits of the dead or with agents of another world or dimension. Also called psychic.

lumbar, pelvis, girdle, vertebrae

2009-11-25T04:34:00.000-08:00

An art collector has found a tooth, thumb and finger of the renowned Italian scientist Galileo Galilei, Florence’s History of Science museum announced.

佛羅倫斯的科學史博物館宣布，一名藝術收藏家發現了義大利知名科學家伽利略．伽利萊的一顆牙、一根拇指與手指。魏國金

The body parts, along with another finger and a vertebrae, were cut from Galileo’s corpse by scientists and historians during a burial ceremony held 95 years after his death in 1642. The newly-found relics had passed from one collector to another until they went missing in 1905.

這些遺骸，連同另一根手指與一段椎骨，是死於1642年的伽利略在95年後舉行的葬禮中，被科學家與歷史學家從其遺體切割下來的。這些新發現的遺骸從一位收藏家傳遞到另一位收藏家，直到1905年遺失為止。

Describing the airline’s prem-plus cabin, which has 28 seats with a roomy 52-inch pitch (the distance between the back of the seat and the seat in front of it), Mr. Moss emphasized, “It’s a business-class seat as opposed to a business-class bed.”

The leather seat is 20 inches wide and reclines to a 140-degree angle (flat would be 180 degrees) with an adjustable leg rest and lumbar support.

lumbar

(lŭm'bər, -bär')

adj.

Of, near, or situated in the part of the back and sides between the lowest ribs and the pelvis.

A lumbar artery, nerve, vertebra, or part.

[New Latin lumbāris, from Latin lumbus, loin.]

━━ a., n. 腰（部）の; 腰椎(ようつい).
lumbar vertebrae　【解】腰椎.

Definition

girdle Show phonetics
noun
1 [C] OLD-FASHIONED an elastic piece of underwear for women worn around the waist and bottom to shape the body

2 [C] OLD USE a long strip of cloth worn tied around the waist

3 [C usually singular] LITERARY something which surrounds another thing

girdle Show phonetics
verb [T] LITERARY
a garden girdled (= surrounded) by oak trees

gir・dle

━━ n., vt. 帯（で巻く）; ガードル; 取巻く物; 囲む ((about, around)); 樹皮を輪状にはぎ取る［取ったあとの輪］; 【解】帯(たい) ((骨や神経繊維の帯状の集まり)).

這主要是西方古代用來表示"婚姻"的信物

pelvis Hide phonetics
noun [C]
the bones which form a bowl-shaped structure in the area below the waist at the top of the legs, and to which the leg bones and spine are joined
━━ n. （pl.～es, pelves ）【解】骨盤.
pel・vic

pelvic fin　【生物】腹鰭(びれ).
pelvic girdle　【解】（脊椎動物の）腰帯.
pelvic inflammatory disease　【医】（女性の）骨盤内炎症性疾患.

pelvic Hide phonetics
adjective
the pelvic region/area
骨盆底肌肉運動（pelvic floor muscle exercise） ...

pel・vis

boneheaded

2009-11-25T01:14:00.000-08:00

boneheaded decision

bone·head (bōn'hĕd')

n. Informal
A stupid person; a dunce.

boneheaded bone'head'ed adj.
boneheadedness bone'head'ed·ness n.

Online Newsstand

2009-11-25T01:12:00.000-08:00

Group of Magazine Publishers Is Said to Be Building an Online Newsstand

By BRIAN STELTER

Published: November 24, 2009

A consortium of magazine publishers including Time Inc. and Condé Nast are plan to jointly build an online newsstand for publications in multiple digital formats, according to people with knowledge of the plans.

The formation of a new company to run the online newsstand — sometimes characterized as an “iTunes for magazines” — may be announced in early December. Time, Condé Nast, Hearst and Meredith all intend to be equity partners in the new company, although the deals have not yet been signed.

In the face of slumping print circulations for many magazines, the publishing houses are eager to exert some control over digital readership, said people at the companies, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk about the plans. Some newspaper owners have also expressed interest in the joint venture.

In other media sectors, rivals have already formed joint ventures for the Web. Several television networks are stakeholders in Hulu, an online television and film Web site. Some music labels are partners in Vevo, a music video site powered by YouTube that will make its debut next month.

The new magazine company would, in theory, make it easy to buy print and electronic copies of publications like The New Yorker, Sports Illustrated, Esquire and Better Homes and Gardens from a single Web site. While mostly leaving the hardware to others, the alliance of competing publishers would develop software standards for magazine viewing on iPhones, BlackBerrys, e-book readers and other platforms, people with knowledge of the plans said.

Executives have talked about an iTunes model for magazines for months.

The New York Observer reported Tuesday that John Squires, the Time Inc. executive, would become the new company’s interim chief executive while the partners looked for a permanent head. In June, Ann Moore, the Time Inc. chairwoman, gave Mr. Squires the responsibility of creating a digital road map for the company.

“It’s increasingly clear that finding the right digital business model is crucial for the future of our business,” Ms. Moore said in a memorandum at the time. She added, “We need to develop a strategy for the portable digital world and to refine our views on paid content.” A Time Inc. spokeswoman declined to comment Tuesday.

The magazine industry has been generally slow in experimenting with digital products, but they have shown more interest this year in extending the print experience and audience. This month Condé Nast became one of the first publishers to repurpose an entire magazine issue for the iPhone, selling a copy of GQ as an application for $2.99.

“We know that the world of digital is far grander than display advertising,” Charles H. Townsend, Condé Nast’s chief executive, said at a demonstration of the application last month.

Stephanie Clifford contributed reporting.

flourish

2009-11-25T01:05:00.000-08:00

Modern Flourishes as Obamas Host State Dinner
By RACHEL L. SWARNS
At their first state dinner, President Obama and his wife, Michelle, made sure to infuse the glittering gala with distinctive touches.

flour·ish (flûr'ĭsh, flŭr'-)
v., -ished, -ish·ing, -ish·es. v.intr.

To grow well or luxuriantly; thrive: The crops flourished in the rich soil.
To do or fare well; prosper: "No village on the railroad failed to flourish" (John Kenneth Galbraith).
To be in a period of highest productivity, excellence, or influence: a poet who flourished in the tenth century.
To make bold, sweeping movements: The banner flourished in the wind.

v.tr.
To wield, wave, or exhibit dramatically.

n.

A dramatic or stylish movement, as of waving or brandishing: "A few ... musicians embellish their performance with a flourish of the fingers" (Frederick D. Bennett).
An embellishment or ornamentation: a signature with a distinctive flourish.
An ostentatious act or gesture: a flourish of generosity.
Music. A showy or ceremonious passage, such as a fanfare.

[Middle English florishen, from Old French florir, floriss-, from Vulgar Latin *flōrīre, from Latin flōrēre, to bloom, from flōs, flōr-, flower.]

flourisher flour'ish·er n.

SYNONYMS flourish, brandish, wave. These verbs mean to swing back and forth boldly and dramatically: flourished her newly signed contract; brandish a sword; waving a baton.

in good form , return to form

2009-11-25T01:02:00.000-08:00

After a Humbling Spiral, Kerry Returns to Form
By MARK LEIBOVICH
After some painful losses — the 2004 election, Ted Kennedy’s death — Senator John Kerry is in a position of influence again.

FORM
n. - 形狀, 形式, 表格
v. tr. - 形成, 塑造, 構成, 構
v. intr. - 成形, 排, 列, 被形成, 開始形成

idioms:

form feed 換頁
form letter 信件, 套用信函
form of address 敬稱
in good form 狀況良好
off form 狀態不佳
on form 根據形式, 狀態良好
take form 具有看得見的形狀, 思想等的形成, 產生

1. The shape and structure of an object.
2. The body or outward appearance of a person or an animal considered separately from the face or head; figure.
1. The essence of something.
2. The mode in which a thing exists, acts, or manifests itself; kind: a form of animal life; a form of blackmail.
1. Procedure as determined or governed by regulation or custom.
2. A fixed order of words or procedures, as for use in a ceremony; a formula.
A document with blanks for the insertion of details or information: insurance forms.
1. Manners or conduct as governed by etiquette, decorum, or custom.
2. Behavior according to a fixed or accepted standard: Tardiness is considered bad form.
3. Performance considered with regard to acknowledged criteria: a good jump shooter having an unusual form.
1. Proven ability to perform: a musician at the top of her form.
2. Fitness, as of an athlete or animal, with regard to health or training.
3. The past performance of a racehorse.
4. A racing form.
1. Method of arrangement or manner of coordinating elements in literary or musical composition or in organized discourse: presented my ideas in outline form; a treatise in the form of a dialogue.
2. A particular type or example of such arrangement: The essay is a literary form.
3. The design, structure, or pattern of a work of art: symphonic form.
1. A mold for the setting of concrete.
2. A model of the human figure or part of it used for displaying clothes.
3. A proportioned model that may be adjusted for fitting clothes.
A grade in a British secondary school or in some American private schools: the sixth form.
1. A linguistic form.
2. The external aspect of words with regard to their inflections, pronunciation, or spelling.
1. Chiefly British. A long seat; a bench.
2. The resting place of a hare.
Botany. A subdivision of a variety usually differing in one trivial characteristic, such as flower color.

v., formed, form·ing, forms. v.tr.

1. To give form to; shape: form clay into figures.
2. To develop in the mind; conceive: form an opinion.
1. To shape or mold (dough, for example) into a particular form.
2. To arrange oneself in: Holding out his arms, the cheerleader formed a T. The acrobats formed a pyramid.
3. To organize or arrange: The environmentalists formed their own party.
4. To fashion, train, or develop by instruction or precept: form a child's mind.
To come to have; develop or acquire: form a habit.
To constitute or compose a usually basic element, part, or characteristic of.
1. To produce (a tense, for example) by inflection: form the pluperfect.
2. To make (a word) by derivation or composition.
To put in order; arrange.

v.intr.

To become formed or shaped.
To come into being by taking form; arise.
To assume a specified form, shape, or pattern.

[Middle English forme, from Latin fōrma.]

formability form'a·bil'i·ty n.
formable form'a·ble adj.

SYNONYMS form, figure, shape, configuration, contour, profile. These nouns refer to the external outline of a thing. Form is the outline and structure of a thing as opposed to its substance: a brooch in the form of a lovers' knot. Figure refers usually to form as established by bounding or enclosing lines: The cube is a solid geometric figure. Shape implies three-dimensional definition that indicates both outline and bulk or mass: "He faced her, a hooded and cloaked shape" (Joseph Conrad). Configuration stresses the pattern formed by the arrangement of parts within an outline: The map shows the configuration of North America, with its mountains, rivers, and plains. Contour refers especially to the outline of a three-dimensional figure: I traced the contour of the bow with my finger. Profile denotes the outline of something viewed against a background and especially the outline of the human face in side view: The police took a photograph of the mugger's profile.

jaunt

2009-11-25T00:54:00.000-08:00

As Travelers Cut Costs, Holiday Jaunts Grow Longer
By MICHELINE MAYNARD
The holiday crush at the nation’s airports has taken hold several days earlier as travelers sought less expensive flights.

jaunt (jônt, jänt)
n.
A short trip or excursion, usually for pleasure; an outing.

intr.v., jaunt·ed, jaunt·ing, jaunts.
To make a short journey.

[Origin unknown.]

size sth/sb up, groundswell

2009-11-25T00:51:00.000-08:00

India’s Guard Is Up, but Weaknesses Remain
By LYDIA POLGREEN and VIKAS BAJAJ
A year after the deadly assault in Mumbai that killed 163 people, the public outrage that many thought would usher in a political groundswell has dissipated.

Economy Shrinks At Staggering Rate
The prospects for an economic recovery by year's end dimmed yesterday, as government data showed that the economy contracted at the end of 2008 by the fastest pace in a quarter-century. The worse-than-expected data fueled doubts about whether the Obama administration had adequately sized up the...
(By Annys Shin and Neil Irwin, The Washington Post)

"When we size up the job ahead, it is obvious that a long thorny road lies ahead -- decades." (Deming, 1986, Preface for Out of the Crisis)

Arab Bloggers Size Up Obama
Introduction by JOSIE DELAP
Excerpts from a dozen Middle Eastern blog posts reflect the region's hopes for — and doubts about — the president-elect.

Europe’s football fans pack up their kits in preparation for Euro 2008

Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Euro 2008 Football Championship

There’s just one week to go until the Euro 2008 Football Championship kicks off.

16 teams from around the continent will be competing over three weeks for Europe’s most coveted football trophy. Austria & Switzerland are joint hosts for the championships. Today inside Europe goes visits Vienna to size up the preparations & the groundswell of enthusiasm there for this feast of football.

size sth/sb up phrasal verb [M]
to examine something or someone carefully and decide what you think about them:
We must size up the situation before we decide what to do.
The two cats walked in circles around each other, sizing each other up.

groundswell Hide phonetics
noun [S]
a growth of strong feeling among a large group of people:
There is a groundswell of opinion against the new rules.

kit Hide phonetics
noun
1 [C] a set of things, such as tools or clothes, used for a particular purpose or activity:
a first-aid/tool kit
a pregnancy-testing kit

2 [C] a set of parts sold ready to be put together:
He's making a model car from a kit.

3 [U] MAINLY UK the particular clothing worn by a sports team, or the particular clothing and small pieces of equipment worn and used by people such as soldiers and sailors:
football kit

Light Electric Vehicle

2009-11-25T00:44:00.000-08:00

台灣開始在行政部門主導下開發LEV（Lightelectric Vehicle）。LEV意為小型電動車。目前雖沒有明確定義，多指電動兩輪車、電動三輪車以及醫療福祉用電動四輪車……

Muscular Christianity

2009-11-25T00:26:00.000-08:00

Muscular Christianity is a term for a movement during the Victorian era which stressed the need for energetic Christian activism in combination with an ideal of vigorous masculinity. It was most associated with the English writers Charles Kingsley and Thomas Hughes, though the name was bestowed by others.

Kingsley and Hughes promoted physical strength and health (at least for men) as well as an active pursuit of Christian ideals in personal life and politics.

The term has also been applied to later movements that combine physical and Christian spiritual development.

[hide]

mus·cu·lar (mŭs'kyə-lər)
adj.

Of, relating to, or consisting of muscle: muscular contraction.
Having well-developed muscles: a muscular build.
Having or suggesting great forcefulness, especially at the expense of subtlety: muscular reasoning that does not bother with the finer points; muscular advocacy groups.

[From Latin mūsculus, muscle. See muscle.]

muscularity mus'cu·lar'i·ty (-lăr'ĭ-tē) n.
muscularly mus'cu·lar·ly adv.

SYNONYMS muscular, athletic, brawny, burly, sinewy. These adjectives mean strong and powerfully built: a muscular build; an athletic swimmer; brawny arms; a burly stevedore; a lean and sinewy frame.

Recollections

2009-11-25T00:22:00.000-08:00

"The cataracts blow their trumpets from the steep

" No more shall grief of mine the season wrong;
I hear the Echoes through the mountains throng,
The Winds come to me from the fields of sleep."

William Wordsworth, Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of

Early Childhood.

rec·ol·lec·tion (rĕk'ə-lĕk'shən)
n.

The act or power of recollecting.
Something recollected.

ecclesiastical authorities, contrary

2009-11-24T21:50:00.000-08:00

Galileo, born in Pisa in 1564, is considered one of the fathers of modern science due to his studies in physics, mathematics and particularly astronomy, where he led great advances in developing the telescope.1564年生於比薩的伽利略因其在物理、數學，以及特別在天文學的研究，而被認為是一名現代科學之父；在天文領域，他促使望遠鏡的發展有長足進步。

For 95 years after his death, ecclesiastical authorities refused to allow Galileo to be buried in consecrated ground because his findings were considered contrary to the teachings of the Catholic church. His body now lies in Florence’s Santa Croce church, opposite the tomb of Michelangelo.在伽利略死後長達95年，教會當權者拒絕讓他下葬於聖地，因為他的發現被認為與天主教教會的教導相牴觸。他的遺體現在長眠於佛羅倫斯的聖十字教堂，對面就是米開朗基羅的墓地。

ec·cle·si·as·ti·cal (ĭ-klē'zē-ăs'tĭ-kəl)
adj.

Of or relating to a church, especially as an organized institution.
Appropriate to a church or to use in a church: ecclesiastical architecture; ecclesiastical robes.

ecclesiastically ec·cle'si·as'ti·cal·ly adv.

contrary︰形容詞，對立的、天氣不作美的。例句︰The tour was postponed because of the contrary weather.（這個旅遊因天氣不佳而延期。）

darkened theater, Shrinking Window for Movie Releases

2009-11-24T21:46:00.000-08:00

Marketing
Reel Time: The Incredible Shrinking Window for Movie Releases
A decade ago, movie fans who wanted to forgo paying theater admission waited an average of five months before they could watch a film in their own living rooms. Today, the window between theatrical releases and distribution via other channels like DVDs and cable television has shrunk to four months or less -- and in some cases has even disappeared, with films making their debuts simultaneously in multiple channels. According to Wharton faculty, declining DVD sales and other pressures mean that studios are likely to continue experimenting aggressively with movie release timing. Still, the pleasure of watching a movie in a darkened theater is not likely to go away any time soon, they say.
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/2394.cfm

spiritism, spiritualism

2009-11-24T21:33:00.001-08:00

spiritism

n.

The belief that the dead communicate with the living; spiritualism.
The practices or doctrines of those holding such a belief.

spiritist spir'it·ist n.
spiritistic spir'it·is'tic adj.

doublet, triplet

2009-11-24T21:25:00.000-08:00

dou·blet (dŭb'lĭt)
n.

A close-fitting jacket, with or without sleeves, worn by European men between the 15th and 17th centuries.
1. A pair of similar or identical things.
2. A member of such a pair.
3. Physics. A multiplet with two members.
Linguistics. One of two words derived from the same historical source by different routes of transmission, such as skirt from Scandinavian and shirt from English.
An imitation gem composed of two parts, as of an inferior stone layered beneath a precious gem.
doublets Games. A throw of two dice in which the same number of dots appears on the upper face of each.

[Middle English, from Old French, diminutive of double, double. See double.]

triplet crossing

Dictionary: trip·let (trĭp'lĭt)
n.

A group or set of three of one kind.
One of three children born at one birth.
A group of three lines of verse.
Music. A group of three notes having the time value of two notes of the same kind. Also called tercet.
Physics. A multiplet with three components.
Genetics. A unit of three successive nucleotides in a molecule of DNA or RNA that codes for a specific amino acid; a codon or anticodon.

[TRIPL(E) + (DOUBL)ET.]

loads of washing

2009-11-24T21:23:00.001-08:00

juggling loads of washing

load

n.

1. A weight or mass that is supported: the load on an arch.
2. The overall force to which a structure is subjected in supporting a weight or mass or in resisting externally applied forces.
1. Something that is carried, as by a vehicle, person, or animal: a load of firewood.
2. The quantity that is or can be carried at one time.
1. The share of work allocated to or required of a person, machine, group, or organization.
2. The demand for services or performance made on a machine or system.
The amount of material that can be inserted into a device or machine at one time: The camera has a full load of film.
A single charge of ammunition for a firearm.
1. A mental weight or burden: Good news took a load off my mind.
2. A responsibility regarded as oppressive.
The external mechanical resistance against which a machine acts.
Electricity.
1. The power output of a generator or power plant.
2. A device or the resistance of a device to which power is delivered.
A front-end load.
Informal. A great number or amount. Often used in the plural: loads of parties during the holiday season.
Slang. A heavy or overweight person.
Genetic load.

v., load·ed, load·ing, loads. v.tr.

1. To put (something) into or onto a structure or conveyance: loading grain onto a train.
2. To put something into or onto (a structure or conveyance): loaded the tanker with crude oil.
To provide or fill nearly to overflowing; heap: loaded the table with food.
To weigh down; burden: was loaded with worries.
To insert (a necessary material) into a device: loaded film into the camera; loaded rounds into the rifle.
To insert a necessary material into: loaded the camera with film.
Games. To make (dice) heavier on one side by adding weight.
To charge with additional meanings, implications, or emotional import: loaded the question to trick the witness.
To dilute, adulterate, or doctor. See synonyms at adulterate.
To raise the power demand in (an electrical circuit), as by adding resistance.
To increase (an insurance premium or mutual fund share price) by adding expenses or sale costs.
Baseball. To have or put runners on (first, second, and third base).
Computer Science.
1. To transfer (data) from a storage device into a computer's memory.
2. To mount (a diskette) onto a floppy disk drive.
3. To mount (a magnetic tape) onto a tape drive.

v.intr.

To receive a load: Container ships can load rapidly.
To charge a firearm with ammunition.
To put or place a load into or onto a structure, device, or conveyance.

idioms:

get a load of

SlangTo look at; notice. To look at; notice.
To listen to: Get a load of this!

have a load on

SlangTo be intoxicated. To be intoxicated.

take a load off

To sit or lie down.

[Middle English lode, alteration (influenced by laden, to load) of lade, course, way, from Old English lād.]

carry the day

2009-11-24T21:20:00.001-08:00

carry the day
Win, prevail, as in At auctions the wealthiest bidders usually carry the day. [Late 1600s]

foolproof, filibuster-proof majority, Child-Proof Toy Fair

2009-11-24T20:15:00.000-08:00

However, DFL boss Christian Seifert cautioned that no early-warning system could be fool-proof.

"While the early-warning system is in place, no federation in the world is 100 percent safe against organised crime gangs who want to manipulate matches," Seifert said.

Obama Tactic Shields Health Care Bill From a Filibuster
By CARL HULSE
The president’s new stance suggests he may be much less willing to compromise on health care, his top legislative priority, even if it means a partisan fight.

German Inspectors Try to Child-Proof Toy Fair

Lethal Legos. Death-inducing dolls. Nasty Nintendos. Gruesome games and
action figures made to kill and maim -- not necessarily in that order.
Good thing there are officials to keep the Nuremberg Toy Fair safe.

The DW-WORLD Article
http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=ew0607I44va89pI0

這foolproof 是1902年在美國針對汽車開始使用的: The car...is comparatively "fool-proof".

foolproof
adjective
(of a plan or machine) so simple and easy to understand that it is unable to go wrong or be used wrongly:
I don't believe there's any such thing as a foolproof scheme for making money.
This new video-recorder is supposed to be foolproof.

"...However, the group raised fears that the new service could invite bogus comments from people posing as others. While it promised to "work with each author to confirm their identity individually" - by the traditional methods of contacting the organisation affiliated with the author, contacting local officials, or collaborating with journalists - it did admit "no method is foolproof". In which case, anyone wrongly attributed should contact news-comments@google.com..."

Misquoted? Hit back with Google

THE Democratic Party may yet scrape a 60-seat filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. A run-off race takes place in Georgia on Tuesday December 2nd where Saxby Chambliss, the sitting Republican, failed to win the 50% of the vote required to retain his seat under state rules. A prolonged recount is expected to end in Minnesota where Norm Coleman, the sitting Republican senator, may possibly be unseated by Al Franken, a comedian. The race may yet be decided in the courts. Another prolonged recount in Alaska recently handed a victory to the Democratic candidate, Mark Begich, over Ted Stevens, the long serving Republican who was convicted on corruption charges shortly before the election.

fil・i・bus・ter

━━ n. （外国に侵入する）略奪兵; 海賊; 議事妨害（者）.
━━ v. 略奪［侵攻］する; 海賊行為をする; 議事を妨害する.
fil・i・bus・ter・er　━━ n.

<– Back to results

-proof (PROTECTED) Hide phonetics
suffix
protecting against, or not damaged by, a particular thing:
a bullet-proof vest
a waterproof/wind-proof jacket
frost-proof pots for the garden

proof Hide phonetics
adjective FORMAL
No household security devices are proof against (= protect completely against) the determined burglar.
Her virtue would be proof against his charms.

proof Hide phonetics
verb [T]
to treat a surface with a substance which will protect it against something, especially water

abject, restive, propel, indolence, indolent

2009-11-24T19:25:00.000-08:00

Iran Expanding Effort to Stifle the Opposition
By ROBERT F. WORTH
The government appears to be launching an ambitious effort to discredit its opponents and re-educate the country’s young and restive population.

Both authors contrast Johnson’s abject youth with his adult fame, his physical awkwardness with his conversational fluency, his self-diagnosed “indolence” with his superhuman literary output.

根據這個定義，能不能說PSA檢測方法過於敏感，因此把稍有、

甚至沒有前列腺癌症狀的人全認定為癌患者呢？格雷絲解釋說："PSA檢測方法並非過於敏感，它的問題在於不善於區分溫和型（Indolent）和猛烈型（Aggressive）癌症。由於無法確定哪些癌變會發展成危及生命的猛烈型癌症，大多數被診斷出PSA呈陽性的人都接受了治療。過度診斷和過度治療的問題就是這樣產生的。

Alcatel-Lucent executives tried to reassure restive shareholders that the telecom-gear maker's long-term growth prospects were strong, despite mounting competitive pressures.

mounting, roadblock

These, then, are the global challenges that the G8’s leaders will attempt to address (while also finding time to condemn Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe and gauge progress on North Korea’s denuclearisation). If only electorates were behind them. President Nicolas Sarkozy of France has yet to regain the popularity and authority that propelled him to office. Mr Bush, unpopular at home, is nearing the end of his term. Mr Fukuda will possibly not be around in a year’s time, with Mr Brown’s future only a little less assured. Popular restiveness against national leaders, even if it is not allowed to show itself in Toyako, puts the G8’s goals in even greater question.

restive Show phonetics
adjective ━━ a. 落ち着かない, いらいらする; （馬などが）前に進もうとしない; 御しにくい, 反抗的な.
unwilling to be controlled or be patient:
The audience was becoming restive as they waited for the performance to begin.

propel Show phonetics
verb [T] -ll-
1 to push or move something somewhere, often with a lot of force:
a rocket propelled through space
The Kon-Tiki sailed across the Pacific Ocean propelled by wind power.

2 propel sb into/to/towards sth to cause someone to do an activity or be in a situation:
The film propelled him to international stardom.

propellant Show phonetics
noun [C or U]
1 an explosive substance or fuel which causes something to move forwards

2 a gas which is used in aerosols to force the liquid out in very small drops

propeller Show phonetics
noun [C] (INFORMAL prop)
a device which causes a ship or aircraft to move, consisting of two or more blades which turn round at high speed
See picture .

propulsion Show phonetics
noun [U]
a force that pushes something forward:
wind propulsion
a propulsion system
See also jet propulsion.

The Uighurs are the native people of Eastern Turkestan, also known as Xinjiang Uighur Autunomous Region.

Chinese History - Huigu 回鶻, Weiwur 維吾爾, Uighurs (www ...

The Uighurs, an ethnic minority in China

Although it's the world's fourth largest economy, China is still a place where extreme affluence and abject poverty exist side by side. The province of Xinjiang in China's Northwest, one of the poorest regions in the Middle Kingdom, is a world apart from cities like Shanghai or Beijing, with their hustle and bustle.

Covered by inhospitable deserts and high mountain ranges, the vast province is home to the minority called Uighurs, who are mainly Muslim. Their culture, language and religion set them apart from the Han Chinese, the dominant ethnic group in China.

For several years the central government has been trying to develop the region - to narrow the wide income gap between the poor West and the booming coastal provinces in the East. But the campaign also aims to bring stability to this restive region where the Uighurs resent the continuing influx of Han Chinese. Ruth Kirchner sent this report from Xinjiang.

abject (EXTREME) Hide phonetics
adjective FORMAL
abject misery/poverty/terror, etc. when someone is extremely unhappy, poor, frightened, etc:
They live in abject poverty.
This policy has turned out to be an abject failure.

indolent Hide phonetics
adjective LITERARY
lazy; showing no real interest or effort:
an indolent wave of the hand
an indolent reply

indolently Hide phonetics
adverb LITERARY

indolence Hide phonetics
noun [U] LITERARY
After a sudden burst of activity, the team lapsed back into indolence.

bluff, maximize, call sb's bluff

2009-11-24T19:23:00.000-08:00

Lehman Brothers's bankruptcy filing has set the stage for hard-fought negotiations in and out of the courtroom, as potential buyers pick through its remaining assets and creditors seek to maximize their recoveries.
Can News Corp. afford calling Google's bluff?
CNET News
s content from Google and striking an exclusive deal with Microsoft's Bing. For years, Google has all but dared traditional media companies trying to ...

bluff
n.
A steep headland, promontory, riverbank, or cliff.

adj., bluff·er, bluff·est.

Rough and blunt but not unkind in manner. See synonyms at gruff.
Having a broad, steep front.

[Probably from obsolete Dutch blaf or Middle Low German blaff, broad.]

bluffly bluff'ly adv.
bluffness bluff'ness n.

1.
v. tr. - 以假像欺騙, 愚弄, 嚇唬
v. intr. - 虛張聲勢嚇唬人
n. - 虛張聲勢, 虛張聲勢者, 嚇唬, 嚇唬別人的人

idioms:

call sb's bluff
to make someone prove that what they are saying is true, or to make someone prove that they will really do what they say they will do, because you do not believe them

call someone's bluff 誘使某人交底

2.
n. - 陡岸, 懸崖, 峭壁
adj. - 坦率的, 寬而垂直的, 粗率的, 壁立的, 陡峭的

bluff (PRETEND) Show phonetics
verb [I or T]
to deceive someone by making them think either that you are going to do something when you really have no intention of doing it, or that you have knowledge that you do not really have, or that you are someone else:
Is he going to jump or is he only bluffing?
Tony seems to know a lot about music, but sometimes I think he's only bluffing.
She bluffed the doorman into thinking that she was a reporter.

bluff Show phonetics
noun [C or U]
an attempt to bluff:
When she said she was leaving him, he thought it was only a bluff.

bluff (CLIFF)
noun [C]
a cliff or very steep bank
bluff (TOO HONEST) Show phonetics
adjective
direct or too honest, often in a way that people find rude:
Despite her bluff manner, she's actually a very kind woman.

bluff your way into/out of sth
If you bluff your way into or out of a situation, you get yourself into or out of it by deceiving people:
However did Mina manage to bluff her way into that job?
He's one of those people who is very good at bluffing their way out of trouble.
double bluff noun [C] UK
a clever attempt to deceive someone, especially by telling them the truth when they think you are telling lies

(from Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 絶壁, はったり
adj. - ぶっきらぼうな, 率直な, 絶壁の
v. - はったりをかける

bluff²

━━ n., v. こけおどし（する）, 威嚇（する）; はったりで切抜ける ((through, out of)).
bluff into　相手をおどして…させる.
bluff it out　〔話〕はったりで難をのがれる.
call …'s bluff　（相手のこけおどしに）しっぺ返しをする.

這BLUFF 的美國"新義"之發展也頗有義思:

Word Origin: bluff

Origin: 1666

Bluff was a nautical term that underwent a sea change when it crossed the ocean to North America. English sailors had used bluff to refer to the front of a ship that was vertical instead of leaning out. They also used bluff for a coastline with a similar look, one that was "bold and almost perpendicular." Americans took the word ashore in Savannah, Georgia, and by 1666 were speaking there of bluff land, high land that rises steeply from its surroundings. Before long the second part of the phrase was dropped, and Americans in Georgia and South Carolina referred to high or steeply sloping river banks simply as bluffs. Eventually there were bluffs throughout English-speaking North America, sometimes even when there was no river.

Because bluffs were often covered with trees, both in the Southeast and the northern plains some Americans used bluff to mean an isolated clump of trees rather than the land. But from the more familiar meaning of bluff, that towering river bank, came a more significant American innovation. Since a bluff puts up a high imposing front, we said that someone or something that put on a show of intimidation was bluffing, a use attested as early as 1839. And we particularly applied that verb to the game of poker, where bluffing about the worth of one's hand is a fine art. Bluffing is so important to the poker player that the game itself was sometimes called bluff, also in the 1830s. For that matter, the word poker first entered the English language in the United States, borrowed from the French as long ago as 1834.

February 11, 2008, 10:59 am

Yahoo Shareholders Believe Company Is Bluffing Microsoft

By Saul Hansell

So far, investors are showing modest support for Yahoo’s board of directors, which formally rejected Microsoft’s $31-per-share buyout offer this morning.

Yahoo shares opened up today a tad higher than they have been trading for the last week as the board has been mulling Microsoft’s offer.

That means that investors appear confident that Yahoo is simply posturing to get a better deal from Microsoft (most likely) or someone else (if they can).

If Yahoo’s board, instead, appeared committed to digging in their heels and remaining independent, Yahoo shares would drop like a rock.

In the statement, Yahoo asserted that the $44 billion bid from Microsoft was too low and indicated it was looking for alternatives:

After careful evaluation, the Board believes that Microsoft’s proposal substantially undervalues Yahoo! including our global brand, large worldwide audience, significant recent investments in advertising platforms and future growth prospects, free cash flow and earnings potential, as well as our substantial unconsolidated investments. The Board of Directors is continually evaluating all of its strategic options in the context of the rapidly evolving industry environment and we remain committed to pursuing initiatives that maximize value for all stockholders.

The Times of London reported that Yahoo’s bankers are interested in some sort of combination with AOL. This isn’t a bad deal. It would create a very strong player in display advertising, instant messaging, video, and Web portals in general. It doesn’t merge two search operations—the most risky part of the proposed Microsoft-Yahoo deal that also could produce the greatest value in the long run.

But a combination of Yahoo and AOL is largely dependent on Time Warner’s willingness to own Yahoo shares. Yahoo probably can’t afford to buy AOL for cash, and it’s not clear that Time Warner would want to get out of the Internet business entirely. So the only deal would be for Time Warner to trade AOL to Yahoo in return for a large stake in the company.

To do that Jeff Bewkes, Time Warner’s chief executive, needs to feel comfortable that Yahoo can find a path to growth and profit. And even more importantly, Yahoo shareholders will need to believe that this path is in fact better than taking the offer from Microsoft.

The other interesting question here is how Microsoft responds. Yahoo, of course, is asking the company to bid more. Looking at Microsoft’s history, that’s a smart move. When the company really wants something, money has been no object. Look at the $6 billion it spent, for example, on aQuantive, the advertising firm, a high price by any measure.

That said, in the absence of another player, there is no reason for Microsoft to raise its own bid. In many ways this deal may be like Rupert Murdoch’s bid for Dow Jones. He bid $60 a share, waited while the company looked for alternatives and found none, then bought it for $60 a share.

Christopher P. Liddell, Microsft’s chief financial officer, told Andrew Ross Sorkin last week that “You have to be willing to walk away” from deals. But it’s not clear that Microsoft is that disciplined of a poker player.

For now, Yahoo shareholders are sitting behind the board rooting it on as it tries to bluff more money out of Microsoft. But if it looks like Yahoo is playing too long on its weak hand, there will be a revolt.

maximize

max・i・mize

━━ vt. 最大限まで増大する; 最大限に活用する; 【コンピュータ】（ウインドウを）最大化する.
max・i・mi・za・tion　━━ n.

splice, pack, packing

2009-11-24T19:22:00.000-08:00

Microsoft, News Corp. Discuss Web Pact

Microsoft and News Corp. have held discussions about a partnership that could result in News Corp. removing its newspaper content from Google's search engine while continuing to feature it on Microsoft's online properties.

The world’s largest fast-food company said earlier that all three of its restaurants in Iceland would shut down October 31. The outlets have been packed since the announcement, with lines at one restaurant backing up out the door and onto the street.
這家全球最大速食公司先前表示，冰島的三間麥當勞餐廳會在10月31日關閉。自從這項消息宣布後，麥當勞餐廳就擠滿了顧客，其中一間餐廳的排隊人龍更一直排到門外的街道上。俞智敏

pack
n.

1. A collection of items tied up or wrapped; a bundle.
2. A container made to be carried on the body of a person or animal.
The amount, as of food, that is processed and packaged at one time or in one season.
A small package containing a standard number of identical or similar items: a pack of matches.
1. A complete set of related items: a pack of cards.
2. Informal. A large amount; a heap: earned a pack of money.
1. A group of animals, such as dogs or wolves, that run and hunt together.
2. A gang of people: a pack of hoodlums.
3. An organized troop having common interests: a Cub Scout pack. See synonyms at flock¹.
A mass of large pieces of floating ice driven together.
Medicine.
1. The swathing of a patient or a body part in hot, cold, wet, or dry materials, such as cloth towels, sheets, or blankets.
2. The materials so used.
3. A material, such as gauze, that is therapeutically inserted into a body cavity or wound; packing.
An ice pack; an ice bag.
A cosmetic paste that is applied to the skin, allowed to dry, and then rinsed off.

v., packed, pack·ing, packs. v.tr.

To fold, roll, or combine into a bundle; wrap up.
1. To put into a receptacle for transporting or storing: pack one's belongings.
2. To fill up with items: pack one's trunk.
To process and put into containers in order to preserve, transport, or sell: packed the fruit in jars.
1. To bring together (persons or things) closely; crowd together: managed to pack 300 students into the lecture hall.
2. To fill up tight; cram.
Medicine.
1. To wrap (a patient) in a pack.
2. To insert a pack into a body cavity or wound.
To wrap tightly for protection or to prevent leakage: pack a valve stem.
To press together; compact firmly: packed the clay and straw into bricks.
Informal. To carry, deliver, or have available for action: a thug who packed a pistol; a fighter who packs a hard punch.
To send unceremoniously: The parents packed both children off to bed.
To constitute (a voting panel) by appointment, selection, or arrangement in such a way that it is favorable to one's purposes or point of view; rig: "In 1937 Roosevelt threatened to pack the court" (New Republic).

v.intr.

To place one's belongings in boxes or luggage for transporting or storing.
To be susceptible of compact storage: Dishes pack more easily than glasses.
To form lumps or masses; become compacted.

idiom:

pack it in Informal.

To cease work or activity: Let's pack it in for the day.

[Middle English pak, possibly of Low German origin.]

packability pack'a·bil'i·ty n.
packable pack'a·ble adj.

splice Show phonetics
verb [T]
to join two pieces of rope, film, etc. together at their ends in order to form one long piece:
Scientists have discovered how to splice pieces of DNA.

splice Show phonetics
noun [C]
a join between two pieces of something so that they form one long piece

Electrical Wire Splices Recalled Due to Shock and Fire Hazards

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Electrical Wire Splices (also known as Butt Splice Connectors)

Units: About 53,000

Manufacturer: Molex, of Lisle, Ill.

Hazard: The splice can fail to hold the wires adequately together, posing a shock and fire hazard to consumers.

Incidents/Injuries: Gardner Bender has received one report of a recalled butt splice failing to hold wires together. No injuries have been reported.

Description: The recalled butt splices are used to connect electrical wires to one another. They are typically used for wiring small electrical appliances, like audio equipment, or in automotive applications. The splices are yellow insulated vinyl and measure about one inch long and ¼ inch wide. They were intended for use with 12-10 AWG wire. 12-10 is stamped on the side of the splices. Model numbers 10-126, or 21-126, and Gardner Bender are printed on the product’s packaging. They were sold in packages of 8 or 50.

Sold at: Electrical distributors, hardware stores, and home centers nationwide from June 2005 through April 2008 for between $1 and $5.

Manufactured in: United States

Remedy: Consumers should immediately stop using products that contain the recalled butt splices and contact the firm for free replacement splices.

Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact Gardner Bender at (800) 624-4320 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. CT Monday through Friday, or visit the firm’s Web site at www.gardnerbender.com

---

claymation, animation, anime

2009-11-24T18:41:00.000-08:00

Discontent in Japan's Anime Studios

Behind the scenes of Japan's popular anime movies, discontent among low-paid artists is growing and DVD demand is slipping.

Adam Elliot won his first Oscar for his half-hour claymation called "Harvie
Krumpet" in 2004 .

The DW-WORLD Article
http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=ew0aocI44va89pI4

anime
n.
A style of animation developed in Japan, characterized by stylized colorful art and often adult themes.

[Japanese, short for animēshon, animation, from EnglishANIMATION .]

Clay animation is one of many forms of stop motion animation. Each animated piece, either character or background, is "deformable"—made of a malleable substance, usually Plasticine clay. The portmanteau term "Claymation" is a registered trademark in the United States, registered by Will Vinton in 1978 to describe his clay animated films. While the word is not considered a genericized trademark, it has become a trademark which is often used generically in the US to refer to any animation using plasticene or similar substance.

All traditional animation is produced in a similar fashion, whether done through cel animation or stop-motion. Each frame, or still picture, is recorded on film or digital media and then played back in rapid succession. When played back at a frame rate greater than 10-12 frames per second, a fairly convincing illusion of continuous motion is achieved. While the play-back feature creating an illusion is true of all moving image (from zoetrope, to films to videogames), the techniques involved in creating CGI are generally removed from a frame-by-frame process.

A clay animation scene from a Finnish TV commercial.^[1]

Clay・ma・tion

━━ n. 【商標】クレイメーション ((粘土模型を使ったアニメ映画（手法）)).

go out, extinguish

2009-11-24T17:58:00.000-08:00

8o年代戴明博士經常說起 :"我點燃過許多處的火苗可它們都熄滅了" (Dr. Deming often said, "I lit many fires, but they all went out.)

Firefighters carry a man rescued from a fire Sunday at a Japanese-style "izakaya" restaurant in Tokyo's Suginami Ward, while others try to extinguish the blaze.(JUN UEDA/ THE ASAHI SHIMBUN)

extinguish
tr.v., -guished, -guish·ing, -guish·es.

To put out (a fire, for example); quench.
To put an end to (hopes, for example); destroy. See synonyms at abolish.
To obscure; eclipse.
Law.
1. To settle or discharge (a debt).
2. To nullify: extinguished their title to the property.
Psychology. To bring about the extinction of (a conditioned response).

[Latin exstinguere : ex-, intensive pref.; see ex- + stinguere, to quench.]

go out
1. Be extinguished, as in All the lights went out. [c. 1400]
2. Die; also, faint. For example, I want to go out before I become senile, or At the sight of blood he went out like a light. The first usage dates from about 1700 and was at first put go out of the world. For the variant, see under out cold.
3. Take part in social life outside the home, as in We go out a lot during the holiday season. This usage dates from the second half of the 1700s and gave rise to go out with someone, meaning "to date someone."
4. Stop working, as in To show their support of the auto workers, the steel workers went out too. This expression is short for go out on strike. [Late 1800s]
5. Become unfashionable, as in Bell-bottom pants went out in the 1970s but made a comeback in the 1990s. This usage is sometimes amplified to go out of fashion or go out of style, as in This kind of film has gone out of fashion, or These boots are going out of style. [Late 1400s]
6. Cease to function as before. This sense appears in go out of print, said of a book that will no longer be printed. Also see the subsequent idioms beginning with go out.

英文人行道 et cetera, et cetera

bastion, moneyed

snap, fasten, snap-fastener, or press-stud, sagebrush

owe, transient, trance, medium

lumbar, pelvis, girdle, vertebrae

lumbar

Definition

gir・dle

pel・vis

boneheaded

Online Newsstand

Group of Magazine Publishers Is Said to Be Building an Online Newsstand

flourish

in good form , return to form

jaunt

size sth/sb up, groundswell

Arab Bloggers Size Up Obama Introduction by JOSIE DELAP Excerpts from a dozen Middle Eastern blog posts reflect the region's hopes for — and doubts about — the president-elect.

Europe’s football fans pack up their kits in preparation for Euro 2008

There’s just one week to go until the Euro 2008 Football Championship kicks off.

Light Electric Vehicle

Muscular Christianity

Contents

Recollections

ecclesiastical authorities, contrary

darkened theater, Shrinking Window for Movie Releases

spiritism, spiritualism

doublet, triplet

loads of washing

carry the day

foolproof, filibuster-proof majority, Child-Proof Toy Fair

Misquoted? Hit back with Google

fil・i・bus・ter

abject, restive, propel, indolence, indolent

Chinese History - Huigu 回鶻, Weiwur 維吾爾, Uighurs (www ...

bluff, maximize, call sb's bluff

bluff2

Yahoo Shareholders Believe Company Is Bluffing Microsoft

max・i・mize

splice, pack, packing

Microsoft, News Corp. Discuss Web Pact

Electrical Wire Splices Recalled Due to Shock and Fire Hazards

claymation, animation, anime

Clay・ma・tion

go out, extinguish

Arab Bloggers Size Up Obama
Introduction by JOSIE DELAP
Excerpts from a dozen Middle Eastern blog posts reflect the region's hopes for — and doubts about — the president-elect.

bluff²