i sense further treachery or shenanigans...the word of the day on my google homepage for WEEKS has been "palinode".
A palinode or palinody is an ode in which the writer retracts a view or sentiment expressed in an earlier poem. The first recorded use of a palinode is in a poem by Stesichorus in the 7th century BC. Here he retracts his earlier statement that the Trojan War was all the fault of Helen.
The word comes from the Greek παλιν ("palin", meaning 'again') and ωδη ("song"); the Latin equivalent "recantation" is an exact calque ("re-" meaning 'again' and "cant-" meaning 'sing').
It can also be a recantation of a defamatory statement in Scots Law.
However, today, when I clicked on "palinode" it led me to a merriam-webster word of the day. Okay kids. WTF. I hope you freaking COMPUTER SCIENCE nerds are getting a good chuckle at your brilliance. For your benefit and amusement I will continue along as if I have not CAUGHT ON.
The Word of the Day for February 06, 2007 is:
metadata • \met-uh-DAY-tuh\ • noun - : data that provides information about other data
Example Sentence:
The word processing program also tracks and saves metadata such as the author of the document and how many copies have been printed. Did you know?
It's easy to find data on the source of "metadata": the word was formed by combining "data" with "meta-," which means "transcending" and is often used to describe a new but related discipline designed to deal critically with the original one. "Meta-" was first used in that way in "metaphysics" and has been extended to a number of other disciplines, giving us such words as "metapsychology" and "metamathematics." "Metadata" takes the "transcending" aspect a step further, applying it to the concept of pure information instead of a discipline. "Metadata" is a fairly new word (it first appeared in print in 1983), whereas "data" can be traced back to the middle of the 17th century.
