whiff-whaff/wiff-waff

From Whiff-Waff, coined by Slazenger & Sons in 1900.

Noun  (uncountable)  (archaic) Table tennis. quotations ▼

Noun  Onomatopoeia

Noun  The breathy sound of something rushing quickly; whoosh. quotations ▼

Etymology  South Lancashire dialect for nonsense, unspecified words or deeds.

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/whiff-whaff   

Deadpan, dry humour, or dry-wit humour is the deliberate display of emotional neutrality or no emotion, commonly as a form of comedic delivery to contrast with the ridiculousness or absurdity of the subject matter.  The delivery is meant to be blunt, ironic, laconic, or apparently unintentional.  The term deadpan first emerged early in the 20th century, as a compound word (sometimes spelled as two words) combining "dead" and "pan" (a slang term for the face).  It appeared in print as early as 1915, in an article about a former baseball player named Gene Woodburn written by his former manager Roger Bresnahan.  Bresnahan described how Woodburn used his skill as a ventriloquist to make his manager and others think they were being heckled from the stands.  Woodburn, wrote Bresnahan, "had a trick of what the actors call 'the dead pan.'  He never cracked a smile and would be the last man you would suspect was working a trick."  George M. Cohan, in a 1908 interview, had alluded to dead pans without using the actual term "deadpan". Cohan, after returning from a trip to London, told an interviewer that "the time is ripe for a manager to take over about a dozen American chorus girls and wake up the musical comedy game.  The English chorus girls are dead–their pans are cold.” The Oxford English Dictionary cites a 1928 New York Times article as having the first appearance of the term in print.  That article, a collection of film slang compiled by writer and theatrical agent Frank J. Wilstach, defines "dead pan" as "playing a role with expressionless face, as, for instance, the work of Buster Keaton."  There were several other uses of the term, in theater and in sports, between the 1915 Bresnahan article and the 1928 article in the Times.  The usage of deadpan as a verb ("to speak, act, or utter in a deadpan manner; to maintain a dead pan") is recorded at least as far back as 1942.  The English music hall comedian T. W. Barrett, working in the 1880s and 1890s, is credited with being the first to perform in a deadpan manner, standing completely still and without a smile.  Early in his vaudeville days, Buster Keaton developed his deadpan expression.  Keaton realised that audiences responded better to his stony expression than when he smiled, and he carried this style into his silent film career. The 1928 Vitaphone short film The Beau Brummels, with vaudeville comics Al Shaw and Sam Lee, was performed entirely in deadpan.  The 1980 film Airplane! was performed almost entirely in deadpan; it helped relaunch the career of one of its supporting actors, Leslie Nielsen, who transformed into a prolific deadpan comic after the film.  Actor and comedian Bill Murray is known for his deadpan delivery.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deadpan   

April 25, 2023  Attempts to ban books in the United States have exploded over the past two years:  2,571 titles were targeted in 2022, compared with 223 in 2020.

These figures come from a recent report by the American Library Association, which has been tracking censorship in libraries for over 20 years.  And most of those titles, the organization found, deal with L.G.B.T.Q. themes or race.  The books that received the most challenges in 2022?  An illustrated memoir about the experience of being nonbinary.  A writer’s account of growing up queer and Black. Toni Morrison’s debut novel, “The Bluest Eye.”

 

The rise of book bans—and their politicization—has been a defining issue over the past several years.  Until fairly recently, most book removals occurred when a parent raised concerns about a title with a teacher or librarian.  Complaints were typically resolved quietly, after a school board or committee evaluated the material and determined whether it was appropriate for students.  But now, challenges to books are increasingly driven by organized efforts led by elected officials or activists groups whose actions can affect a whole district or state.

Separately, a new report from the free speech organization PEN America details this rise of censorship efforts across the United States, exploring how organized efforts or new legislation contributed to book removals.  Thank you, Muse reader! 

Long before Harper Lee and Truman Capote gained literary fame for To Kill a Mockingbird and In Cold Blood, their respective midcentury masterpieces, they were childhood friends, palling around Monroeville, Ala. just like Scout and Dill do in Lee’s fictional Maycomb.  The duo remained friends into adulthood, and their literary relationship is the stuff of legend.  Capote based a tomboy character in his first novel, Other Voices, Other Rooms, on Lee.  When Mockingbird was so well received, some derisively speculated Capote (who already had a strong literary reputation) must have helped—or even ghostwritten it, a rumor that persisted for decades.  Lee certainly helped Capote:  she was his research assistant for In Cold Blood, contributing 150 pages of notes, and was reportedly hurt to be included only in the “Acknowledgments” section of the book; they grew apart after its publication in 1965.  Sarah Begley  https://time.com/4230925/harper-lee-truman-capote-friendship/  Thank you, Muse reader!   

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com   Issue 2663  April 28, 2023 

On November 30, 2022, OpenAI released ChatGPT (“Generative Pre-trained Transformer”) to the public.  OpenAI is a research company that works in the area of artificial intelligence and is a hybrid for-profit/non-profit organization.  ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence language model that can generate human-like text based on a given prompt.  It is trained on huge data sets consisting of a massive amount of text data.  The Harvard Business Review notes, “while versions of GPT have been around for a while, this model has crossed a threshold:  It’s genuinely useful for a wide range of tasks, from creating software to generating business ideas to writing a wedding toast.”  https://www.llrx.com/2023/02/the-efficacy-of-chatgpt-is-it-time-for-the-librarians-to-go-home/  Thank you, Muse reader!  

"To rob Peter to pay Paul", or other versions that have developed over the centuries such as "to borrow from Peter to pay Paul", and "to unclothe Peter to clothe Paul", are phrases meaning to take from one person or thing to give to another, especially when it results in the elimination of one debt by incurring another.  There are many other variants and similar phrases in numerous languages.  "Maneuvering the Apostles", which has the same meaning, was derived from this expression.  In patchwork, "Rob Peter to pay Paul" is an alternative name for the Drunkard's Path patchwork block.  English folklore has it that the phrase alludes to an event in mid-16th century England in which the abbey church of Saint Peter, Westminster was deemed a cathedral by letters patent; but ten years later it was absorbed into the diocese of London when the diocese of Westminster was dissolved, and a few years after that many of its assets were expropriated for repairs to Saint Paul's Cathedral.  However, the phrase was popular even before that, dating back to at least the late 14th century.  This phrase may have originated in Middle English as a collocation of common names–similar to, for example, Tom, Dick, and Harry–with the religious connotations accruing later, or alternatively as a reference to Saint Peter and Saint Paul (who are often depicted jointly in Christian art and regarded similarly in theology.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/To_rob_Peter_to_pay_Paul 

The Pennsylvania Center for the Book was approved by the Library of Congress to begin operation on January 1, 2000, joining 41 other state centers for the book in the United States.  An Act of Congress established the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress on October 13, 1977, to serve as a focal point for celebrating the legacy of books and the printed word.  The function of the center has expanded dramatically since 1984 with the establishment of affiliated centers for the book in 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. https://pabook.libraries.psu.edu/about-pennsylvania-center-book  

Aldi (stylised as ALDI) is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 10,000 stores in 20 countries.  The chain was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946, when they took over their mother's store in Essen.  The business was split into two separate groups in 1960, that later became Aldi Nord, headquartered in Essen, and Aldi Süd, headquartered in Mülheim.  In 1962, they introduced the name Aldi (a syllabic abbreviation for Albrecht Diskont).  In Germany, Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd have been financially and legally separate since 1966, although both divisions' names may appear as if they were a single enterprise with certain store brands or when negotiating with contractor companies.  The formal business name of Aldi Nord is Aldi Einkauf GmbH & Co., while the formal business name of Aldi Süd is ALDI SÜD Dienstleistungs-SE & Co.  Each company is owned and operated independently, but do have contractual business with one another.  Aldi's German operations consist of Aldi Nord's 35 individual regional companies with about 2,500 stores in western, northern, and eastern Germany, and Aldi Süd's 32 regional companies with 1,900 stores in western and southern Germany.  Internationally, Aldi Nord operates in Denmark, France, the Benelux countries, Portugal, Spain and Poland, while Aldi Süd operates in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Hungary, Switzerland, Australia, China, Italy, Austria and Slovenia.  Both Aldi Nord (as Trader Joe's) and Aldi Süd (as Aldi) also operate in the United States with 1,600 stores between them as of 2017, and the U.S. is the only country to have both Aldi companies operating outside of Germany.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldi#:~:text=Internationally%2C%20Aldi%20Nord%20operates%20in,%2C%20Italy%2C%20Austria%20and%20Slovenia.  

Celebrate National Library Week (April 23-29, 2023) with the theme "There's More to the Story."  Libraries are full of stories in a variety of formats from picture books to large print, audiobooks to ebooks, and more.  But there's so much more to the story.  Libraries of Things lend items like museum passes, games, musical instruments, and tools.  Library programming brings communities together for entertainment, education, and connection through book clubs, storytimes, movie nights, crafting classes, and lectures.  Library infrastructure advances communities, providing internet and technology access, literacy skills, and support for businesses, job seekers, and entrepreneurs.  https://www.ala.org/conferencesevents/celebrationweeks/natlibraryweek 

DNA  noun (biochemistry, genetics) Initialism of deoxyribonucleic acid (“a nucleic acid found in all living things (and some non-living things such as certain viruses) which consists of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix;  encoded in its structure are genetic instructions for development, functioning, growth, and reproduction”).  DNA  verb (transitive) To examine a sample of (someone's) deoxyribonucleic acid.  James Watson and Francis Crick published their academic paper proposing the double-helix structure of the DNA molecule in the journal Nature on 25 April 1953.  Wiktionary  

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 2662  April 26, 2023 

A handful of words form half rhymes with orange (using the latter half of the word), including hinge, cringe, and impinge.  However, sporange, the botanical structure that creates spores, is an existing word that forms a near-perfect rhyme with orange.  https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/what-rhymes-with-orange  A proper noun that rhymes with orange is Blorenge--the name of a mountain in Southeast Wales. 

Tips and Tricks for Cooking Barley  Soak overnight as you would legumes.  This is optional but can help speed up the cooking time.  Rinse before cooking to wash away any debris and excess starch.  Try cooking it with vegetable broth instead of water for extra flavor.  Add 1½ cup liquid to ½ cup barley.  Drain any excess water after cooking and allow it to rest for 15 minutes in the pot, covered.  This allows it to steam and absorb any remaining liquid.  Fluff as you would rice for the perfect texture.  One cup of raw barley yields three cups of cooked barley.  Jhanelle Golding  https://www.fromthecomfortofmybowl.com/how-to-cook-barley/  

duke  noun  (in Continental Europe) the male ruler of a duchy; the sovereign of a small state.  a British nobleman holding the highest hereditary title outside the royal family, ranking immediately below a prince and above a marquis; a member of the highest rank of the British peerage.  a nobleman of corresponding rank in certain other countries.  a cultivated hybrid of the sweet and sour cherry.  Slang. fists; hands:  Put up your dukes.

duke  verb (used with object), duked, duk·ing.  Slang. to hit or thrash with the fists (sometimes followed by out)  https://www.dictionary.com/browse/duke--it--out  

On April 1st, 1819, London journal The New Monthly Magazine published a story called “The Vampyre,” which they attributed to the “mad, bad, and dangerous to know” Lord Byron.  Only it wasn’t written by Bryon—though it had been partly inspired by him, and it had been written at his villa, on the same famous Swiss holiday where Mary Shelley began work on Frankenstein.  “The Vampyre,” which is now generally considered to be the first major work of vampire literature written in English, and which has had a major impact on the nigh-unkillable (ha ha) genre, was in fact written by the physician John Polidori, both inspired by Byron’s own quasi-vampiric tale “A Fragment,” and by Polidori’s newfound hatred of Byron himself, who had just fired him.  Literary Hub March 27, 2023 

Dark Waters is a 2019 American legal thriller film directed by Todd Haynes and written by Mario Correa and Matthew Michael Carnahan.  The story dramatizes Robert Bilott's case against the chemical manufacturing corporation DuPont after they contaminated a town with unregulated chemicals.  It stars Mark Ruffalo as Bilott, along with Anne Hathaway, Tim Robbins, Bill Camp, Victor Garber, Mare Winningham, William Jackson Harper, and Bill Pullman.  The film is based on the 2016 New York Times Magazine article "The Lawyer Who Became DuPont's Worst Nightmare" by Nathaniel Rich.  The story was first told in the 2007 book Stain-Resistant, Nonstick, Waterproof and Lethal: The Hidden Dangers of C8 by Callie Lyons, a Mid-Ohio Valley journalist who covered the controversy as it was unfolding.  Parts of the story were also reported by Mariah Blake, whose 2015 article "Welcome to Beautiful Parkersburg, West Virginia" was a National Magazine Award finalist, and Sharon Lerner, whose series "Bad Chemistry" ran in The Intercept.  Bilott also wrote a memoir, Exposure, detailing his 20-year legal battle against DuPont.  Dark Waters had a limited theatrical release on November 22, 2019, by Focus Features, and went wide on December 6, 2019.  The film received positive reviews from critics and has grossed over $23 million.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Waters_(2019_film)  Thank you, Muse Reader!  

World Book Day, also known as World Book and Copyright Day or International Day of the Book, is an annual event organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to promote reading, publishing, and copyright.  The first World Book Day was celebrated on 23 April in 1995, and continues to be recognized on that day.  A related event in the United Kingdom and Ireland is observed in March.  On the occasion of World Book and Copyright Day, UNESCO along with the advisory committee from the major sectors of the book industry, select the World Book Capital for one year.  Each designated World Book Capital City carries out a program of activities to celebrate and promote books and reading.  In 2023 Accra, the capital of Ghana was designated as the World Book Capital.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Book_Day  

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com   Issue 2661 April 24, 2023  

A detection dog or sniffer dog is a dog that is trained to use its senses to detect substances such as explosives, illegal drugs, wildlife scat, currency, blood, and contraband electronics such as illicit mobile phones.  The sense most used by detection dogs is smell.  Hunting dogs that search for game, and search dogs that work to find missing humans are generally not considered detection dogs.  There is some overlap, as in the case of cadaver dogs, trained to search for human remains.  A police dog is essentially a detection dog that is used as a resource for police in specific scenarios such as conducting drug raids, finding missing criminals, and locating stashed currency.  Frequently, detection dogs are thought to be used for law enforcement purposes.  Experts say that dog-sniff evidence should not be used in the criminal justice system, pointing to wrongful convictions, human biases that skew animal behavior, and the lack of systematic research into what dogs detect or how they do it.  Although detection dogs are often used for law enforcement purposes, they are also used as a valuable research tool for wildlife biologists. In California, detection dogs are trained to discover quagga mussels on boats at public boat ramps because they are a harmful invasive species for the environment. Detection dogs also tend to be employed for the purposes of finding and collecting the feces of a diverse array of species, including caribou, black-footed ferret, killer whale, and Oregon spotted frog.  This process is known as wildlife scat detection.  Detection dogs are also seeing use in the medical industry, as studies have revealed that canines are able to detect specific odours associated with numerous medical conditions, such as cancer.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Detection_dog  Thank you, Muse reader!   

A pantry is a room or cupboard where beverages, food, and sometimes dishes, household cleaning products, linens or provisions are stored within a home or office.  Food and beverage pantries serve in an ancillary capacity to the kitchen.  The word "pantry" derives from the same source as the Old French term paneterie; that is from pain, the French form of the Latin panis, "bread".  In a late medieval hall, there were separate rooms for the various service functions and food storage.  The pantry was where bread was kept and food preparation was done.  The head of the office who is responsible for this room is referred to as a pantler.  There were similar rooms for storage of bacon and other meats (larder), alcoholic beverages (buttery, known for the "butts", or barrels, stored there), and cooking (kitchen).  In the United States, pantries evolved from early Colonial American "butteries", built in a cold north corner of a colonial home (more commonly referred to and spelled as "butt'ry"), into a variety of pantries in self-sufficient farmsteads.  Butler's pantries, or China pantries, were built between the dining room and kitchen of a middle-class English or American home, especially in the latter part of the 19th into the early 20th centuries.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantry  The Muser grew up in a small home built in 1925 with a butler’s pantry between the dining room and kitchen. 

Small bouquets, either hand-held or worn on clothing, date back to medieval times. This became a widespread practice in the 15th century as plague spread throughout England and Europe.  These fragrant flower bundles were called nosegays.  Translated, the Middle English word for nose still means nose, and the word “gay” meant ornament.  Nosegays were held close to the nose, or worn as a brooch, a hair ornament, or tied around the waist.  Both men and women wore or carried certain flowers and herbs to ward off disease.  During the Victorian era tussie-mussies were carried close to the nose to ward off the stench in the streets and the plague and were composed primarily of scented herbs such as rosemary, thyme, and rue.  The small tapered metal vase that holds small bouquets is now sometimes called a tussie-mussie, as are the fragrant flowers in the vase.  Sudre Havenga https://nationalmuseumpublications.co.za/the-victorian-tussie-mussie-from-warding-off-the-plague-to-declaring-your-undying-love/ 

Tussie Mussie is an 18-card game that was inspired by the Victorian language of flowers:  a fad that saw people publishing entire dictionaries about what it means to give different flowers to your friends and loved ones.  https://www.elizhargrave.com/games/tussie-mussie 

Achillea millefolium, commonly known as yarrow or common yarrow, is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae.  Other common names include old man's pepper, devil's nettle, sanguinary, milfoil, soldier's woundwort, and thousand seal.  The plant is native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere in Asia, Europe, and North America.  It has been introduced as a feed for livestock in New Zealand and Australia.  The genus name Achillea is derived from mythical Greek character Achilles, who reportedly carried it with his army to treat battle wounds.  The specific epithet millefolium as well as the common names milfoil and thousand leaf come from the featherlike leaves which are minutely divided.  The English name yarrow comes from its Saxon (Old English) name gearwe, which is related to both the Dutch word gerw (alternately yerw) and the Old High German word garawa.  In the eastern counties it may be called yarroway.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achillea_millefolium  

easy street noun (originally US, idiomatic, informal) Chiefly preceded by on: a carefree lifestyle or situation, especially as resulting from being wealthy  The musical Annie, which features the song “Easy Street” opened on Broadway, April 21, in 1977.  Wiktionary 

http://librariansmuse/blogspot.com  Issue 2660  April 21, 2023