Branwen66

Mother's Day is a cultural package. An important part of this package is a "Mother's Day language", a subset of vocabulary used more purposefully, it would seem, in the weeks preceding and culminating...

As part of your Mother's Day celebration, you may choose to share a movie with mom. Great idea! That is, so long as you steer clear of these titles...

If your religion and tradition allow for personalized wedding vows, why not look to poetry for inspiration?

A tiny little tale of motherhood, life, and death.

When you think "mom", you probably don't think along the lines of, say, murder, incest, or cannibalism. Right? Well, the ancient Greeks kind of did. In their myths, anyway.

April Fools' Day is a celebration of deception. It's amazing to see how many words there are in English to describe every facet and nuance of deception.

Words have lives of their own. During the lifetime of a word, change appears to be the only constant. Word meaning can change dramatically in a relatively short time.

The Romans were obsessed with the law. They loved pondering the law, studying the law, arguing about the law. No wonder that legal terminology is predominantly of Latin origin. Here is a sampler of co...

Easter is a cultural package. An important part of this package is an "Easter language", i.e. a subset of vocabulary used a lot in the weeks preceding and culminating on Easter Day.

What is love? We can feel it, but can we define it? Gifted screenwriters have tackled this challenge, and here's what they've come up with...

Not everyone has reason to celebrate Valentine's Day...

Nowadays we can easily get away with a group of this and a bunch of that, but things were a tad more complex back in the 15th century, when most collective nouns originated. Are collective nouns a thi...

The heart is a powerful cultural symbol. In Shakespeare's works we find a compendium of the metaphorical usage of the word "heart".

Valentine's Day is a cultural package. An important part of this package is a "Valentine's Day language", i.e. a subset of vocabulary used a lot in the weeks preceding and culminating on February 14th...

In his bestselling classic, "The Joys of Yiddish", Leo Rosten remarks: "Yiddish is the Robin Hood of languages. It steals from the linguistically rich to give to the fledgling poor." English has adop...

Love makes us feel completely alive.

Google "hate Christmas" and you'll get almost 2 million hits. Google "holiday blues" and you get just under 1.5 million hits. So... what is it with all the hype on Christmas?

The "good vs. evil" story theme becomes particularly relevant at Christmas time. We love to hate Christmas-hating villains.

The Christmas holiday is a cultural package. An important part of this package is a "Christmas language", a subset of vocabulary used a lot in the weeks preceding and culminating on December 25th.

Christmas is the time of good cheer and love and peace and good will among men, right? Well, maybe. How about losing yourself in a delicious murder mystery?

Halloween is much more than a holiday: it's a package. There's special Halloween candy, Halloween costumes, Halloween colors and decorations. There is also a "Halloween language", a subset of vocabula...

Books are a lot of things to different people, but they can be fun to all. Here is a sampler of books that share some fun distinction, grouped by fun fact.

The influence of Greek on the English language has been strong and widespread. Together with Latin, Greek helped shape the morphological character of the English vocabulary.

Spanish loanwords in English may not be as numerous as those of Latin and French origin, but they are just as varied, widespread, and influential.

English and Latin share a long and varied history. Latin roots, words, and phrases entered English either directly or through French, and enriched it in a manner that no other language parallels.

The dawn of the Italian Renaissance triggered the direct influx of Italian vocabulary into the English language. Ever since, Italian has been a major source of lexical supply.

English and German belong to the Indo-European family of languages. In addition to words shared through common ancestry, English, being an insatiable word borrower, has incorporated a wealth of German...

According to a famous paraphrase of a quote by James D. Nicoll, "English doesn't borrow from other languages. English follows other languages down dark alleys, knocks them over, and goes through their...

The term "neutropenia" signifies a shortage of neutrophils in the blood. Neutrophils are white cells that help the body fight off bacterial infections. Neutropenic patients are more susceptible to inf...

Eosinophilia is the medical term that describes an abnormally high eosinophil count. Eosinophils are white blood cells that help the body fight off certain infections. Eosinophilia is a case in point ...

In ancient Greek mythology, the cycle of life and death and the hope for a serene afterlife are encapsulated in the myth of the goddess Persephone.

Hereditary Spherocytosis is a congenital disorder of the red cells in the blood. The degree of severity ranges from very mild and asymptomatic to severe and life-threatening.

ITP is a rare bleeding disorder. It affects men and women, children and adults; it can be mild or severe; acute and short-term or subtle and chronic; and most of the time it is caused by an immune mal...

It doesn't make sense, does it? You brought kitty in for his yearly check-up, and now you are being bombarded with words you don't understand: CRF, BUN, creatinine, erythropoietin... But there is one ...

Chlamydia is one of the most widespread STDs worldwide. What is more, chlamydia infection is highly asymptomatic: More than half of infected men and as many as 85% of infected women do not have any sy...

Trichomoniasis is a very common sexually transmitted disease. It infects both sexes, but, for reasons as yet uncertain, it appears to have a higher incidence in women.

Glanzmann's Thrombasthenia is a genetic platelet disorder. It is extremely rare, it affects both men and women, and can be very severe. The condition is named after the Swiss pediatrician Eduard Glanz...

Bernard-Soulier Syndrome is a bleeding disorder. It is rare, hereditary, it affects both men and women, and can be severe.

If your views on matrimony run along the lines of "love and marriage go together like a horse and carriage", rest assured that the carriage in question is not a Greek chariot. In classical Athens, lov...

The convenience of e-mail is a double-edged sword: On the one hand, we can communicate our thoughts faster than ever; on the other hand, the speed of e-mail communication encourages all sorts of error...

Thrombocytopenia is the medical term that describes a low platelet count, i.e. a deficiency of platelets in the bloodstream. More often than not, platelet deficiency has no symptoms or presents with s...

Autologous blood transfusion is regarded as a safer alternative to transfusion with donor blood. In autologous transfusion, the patient is transfused with his own blood (or blood components), but firs...

Antioxidant, free-radical scavenger, anticoagulant, immunity booster: Is vitamin E for real?

Food has power over us. Big time. The bank of our emotions has a branch in the digestive system through chemical messengers called neurotransmitters. Can this power be controlled and how?

There are common phobias (claustrophobia) and uncommon phobias (arachibutyrophobia); old phobias (hydrophobia) and newer ones (Europhobia). But sometimes the hardest part to figure out is: Which is we...

If you are familiar with the FTD or the Goodyear logo, then you already know of Hermes. In works of art, Hermes is often portrayed wearing his trademark winged hat, but in his numerous feats and adven...

Vitamin K may not be as well-known as, say, Vitamin C or the B vitamins, but it is just as important to your good health. Find out what makes vitamin K so special.

Wellerisms are an idiosyncratic genre of wordplay: hard to define, at times impossible to interpret, silly, sardonic, and irreverent. They have been around for almost 50 centuries, but their allure, a...

Imagine a simple language with a 100% phonetic spelling and pronunciation, whose grammar can be summed up in just sixteen rules. Is it for real?

People undergoing chemotherapy or suffering from leukemia, certain types of anemia, and blood coagulation disorders need regular platelet transfusions. Learn about plateletpheresis, a special kind of ...

Trauma and burn victims, patients with immune deficiencies or blood clotting disorders need regular transfusions of plasma and plasma products. Learn about plasmapheresis, a special kind of blood dona...

The Tom Swifty is a form of wordplay that pokes fun at the excessive use of adverbial dialog attribution. Tom Swifties originated in the 1960s, as a humorous reference to the writing style of the Tom ...

Saving money is not a question of extra cash. It is a question of determination, focus, planning, commitment, and control of your financial circumstances. You can save money even if you are not making...

Hepatitis B is a very common viral infection of the liver. Although highly infectious, it can pass unnoticed with minimal or no symptoms.

Looking to combine a hectic schedule with the nutritious indulgence of homemade cooking? With slow cooking you get the best of both worlds!

Mammograms have been around for over 30 years and to this day there are no widely accepted substitutes. According to a new ACP guideline, the risks of screening mammography for healthy women between t...

A colposcopy is the diagnostic procedure of choice after abnormal Pap test results. Here is a summary of what it's all about.

Mystically referred to as "the change", menopause is an unavoidable and irreversible life stage. However, it does not have to be an ordeal.

Hepatitis C is caused by a blood-borne virus that attacks the liver cells. Although highly infectious, it can pass unnoticed with minimal or no symptoms.

How can a single number have such a big effect on your life? That's exactly what your credit score is, a number, and it does affect your life. Big time. Find out how to achieve and maintain a high cr...

Aging causes both physical and behavioral changes in cats. While old age may be inevitable, it mustn't exclude good quality of life. There are things you can do to help your cat make a smooth transi...

Genital HPV is currently the most common STD. However, there is still a lot of confusion about its transmission, diagnosis, and connection with cervical cancer. Here are the answers to 10 basic ques...

Once regarded as the center of the world, Delphi is both a unique archaeological precinct and a popular tourist attraction.

How dead is Latin? This list of common abbreviations will show you that Latin is part of everyday English usage.

Whatever your reason for wanting to learn a foreign language, you can do it yourself. There is an unbelievable wealth of learning resources out there to get you started.

It is hard enough to take the plunge and go on a diet, but it can be even harder to stick to new dietary habits. However, keeping this long-term commitment doesn't have to be agony.

News of a positive Pap test is enough to induce a panic attack. Alternatively, there are ways to use this experience as a step towards a proactive attitude and a healthier lifestyle.

An overactive thyroid gland can cause kitty serious health problems. How to watch for the signs and prevent a treatable condition from becoming life-threatening.

The liberating power of love is a central theme in romantic comedies. The audience experiences the cathartic power of the genre by empathising with the lovers and their predicaments.

What about romantic comedies that do not have a traditional "happy ending"? Do they retain the cathartic power of the genre? Does love redeem even if the boy does not get the girl?

Many claim that the romantic comedy genre has been done to death and that audiences are too jaded to care. Is there a way for romantic comedies to recapture their freshness and originality?

In this second instalment, romantic comedies are examined in the context of rebelliousness vs conformity. What is it that sets romantic comedy protagonists apart from other genres?

This is the first part in a series of articles on the background and functions of romantic comedies. Through numerous examples drawn from both classic and contemporary films, the readers become acquai...