China's government has summoned diplomats from the G7 countries after the group made a veiled criticism of China's growing assertiveness in the East China Sea and the South China Sea. Specks of land in these seas are becoming counters in a high-stakes game for Asia’s future. Our cover from 2012:
Lunch is over. He banters with the waitress, who has neglected the order for coffee. Then it is back to the ants and the writing and the endless quest to understand how the hand of evolution has shaped every aspect of life.
The NYT analyzes the political implications of the pick, noting the governor's bipartisan credentials and devoting much space to her pro-choice background, which, for some reason, the paper seems to think may end up derailing her confirmation.
The article cites the spectre of looming Catholic opposition to Sebelius' nomination, but neglects to mention that the Senate's Catholic bloc is by no means ideologically consistent on abortion issues.
pro-choice
adj.
Favoring or supporting the legal right of women and girls to choose whether or not to continue a pregnancy to term.
prochoicer pro-choic'er n.
professional help noun [U]
POLITE EXPRESSION FOR help from a psychiatrist (= a doctor trained in treating mental illnesses):
Personally, I think he should get some professional help.
speck 1
NOUN
VERB
Derivatives
Origin
Old English specca; compare with the noun speckle.
Words that rhyme with speck
banter Show phonetics
noun [U]
conversation which is amusing and not serious:
He considered himself a master of witty banter.
banter Show phonetics
verb [I]
to talk to someone in a friendly and amusing way:
He stood around bantering with his colleagues.
bantering Show phonetics
adjective
I grew weary of his bantering style of conversation.
grinch
IN BRIEF: Killjoy; Spoilsport.
December 11, 2007, 6:42 am
Spotlight
Off I went, once, to Oxford for my PhD
And to think that I thought that was the life for me
But I started to write, and oh golly! Oh gee!
It was fun! What a joy! Yes, sirree! Yip yippee!
I'm famous for cat's hats and green eggs and ham
For yertles and sneetches and grinches, I am —
I teach kids to love reading; I'm glad as a clam!
Anapestic tetrameter — that hits the spot
But iambs and trochees I use, too, a lot.
I've no kids of my own but I'm sure young at heart!
Dr. Seuss, aka Theodor Geisel, would have been 105 years old today.
Quote
Obama 我為他這種特殊能力深深著迷，第一次覺得父親真的在我身邊，甚至也許會永遠這樣也說不定。即便如此，幾個星期後，我感覺周圍氣氛逐漸劍拔弩張。老爺子抱怨 我父親坐了他的椅子，圖邊洗碗邊低咕說她可不是誰的傭人，母親則是一句話也不說，吃晚餐時眼神避免交集。一天傍晚，我打開電視要看卡通特別節目「鬼靈 精」（How the Grinch Stole Christmas），這些隱忍下來的話終於變成了咆哮。 「巴利，你今晚電視看得夠多了，」我父親發難了，「給我回房間讀書，大人們有話要說。」
Luckily I lack the learning to address the first two questions. As for the third, well, it's long, and so is the movie. "The Da Vinci Code," which opened the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday, is one of the few screen versions of a book that may take longer to watch than to read. (Curiously enough Mr. Howard accomplished a similar feat with "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" a few years back.)
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! is well-known picture book by Dr. Seuss and first published in 1957. It is written in rhymed verse, with illustrations by the author, and features the famous character, The Grinch. It was adapted into as a short animated film in 1966, and again into a feature film in 2000.
The Grinch reappeared in Seuss's Halloween is Grinch Night and The Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat.
A group of children reading How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
Chuck Jones adapted the story of the Grinch as an animated film in 1966, featuring narration by Boris Karloff. The animated film still runs on American television every Christmas, contributing to the story's impact on American popular culture. The book was adapted again as a 2000 live-action film starring Jim Carrey in the title role.
In 1975, Zero Mostel narrated an LP of the story, with different music from the television special.
A musical stage version was produced by the Old Globe Theatre,San Diego , running there every Christmas season since 1998. It also was produced on Broadway and is scheduled for a limited-engagement US tour during November through December 2008.
Spotlight
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| Dr. Seuss's 'Cat in the Hat' | |
| View Poster |
And to think that I thought that was the life for me
But I started to write, and oh golly! Oh gee!
It was fun! What a joy! Yes, sirree! Yip yippee!
I'm famous for cat's hats and green eggs and ham
For yertles and sneetches and grinches, I am —
I teach kids to love reading; I'm glad as a clam!
Anapestic tetrameter — that hits the spot
But iambs and trochees I use, too, a lot.
I've no kids of my own but I'm sure young at heart!
Dr. Seuss, aka Theodor Geisel, would have been 105 years old today.
"I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!" — Dr. Seuss
Question of the Day
Did Dr Seuss coin the word nerd?
A leading theory on the derivation of the word "nerd" is that Dr. Seuss created the word for his story, If I Ran the Zoo, in 1950. In it is a creature known as a Nerd from the land of Ka-Troo. It is the first time the word is found in print. Others claim the word began as "knurd" (before arriving at its current spelling) by researchers at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the late 1940s. Students who partied, and rarely studied were called "drunks," while the opposite - students who never partied and always studied - were "knurds" ("drunk" spelled backwards).
In 1957, the Glasgow, Scotland, Sunday Mail defined "nerd" as a square.
A leading theory on the derivation of the word "nerd" is that Dr. Seuss created the word for his story, If I Ran the Zoo, in 1950. In it is a creature known as a Nerd from the land of Ka-Troo. It is the first time the word is found in print. Others claim the word began as "knurd" (before arriving at its current spelling) by researchers at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the late 1940s. Students who partied, and rarely studied were called "drunks," while the opposite - students who never partied and always studied - were "knurds" ("drunk" spelled backwards).
In 1957, the Glasgow, Scotland, Sunday Mail defined "nerd" as a square.
Obama 我為他這種特殊能力深深著迷，第一次覺得父親真的在我身邊，甚至也許會永遠這樣也說不定。即便如此，幾個星期後，我感覺周圍氣氛逐漸劍拔弩張。老爺子抱怨 我父親坐了他的椅子，圖邊洗碗邊低咕說她可不是誰的傭人，母親則是一句話也不說，吃晚餐時眼神避免交集。一天傍晚，我打開電視要看卡通特別節目「鬼靈 精」（How the Grinch Stole Christmas），這些隱忍下來的話終於變成了咆哮。 「巴利，你今晚電視看得夠多了，」我父親發難了，「給我回房間讀書，大人們有話要說。」
Luckily I lack the learning to address the first two questions. As for the third, well, it's long, and so is the movie. "The Da Vinci Code," which opened the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday, is one of the few screen versions of a book that may take longer to watch than to read. (Curiously enough Mr. Howard accomplished a similar feat with "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" a few years back.)
This article is about the Dr. Seuss book. For the 1966 animated special, see How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (TV special). For the feature film, see How the Grinch Stole Christmas (film)
| How the Grinch Stole Christmas! | |
 | |
| Author | Dr. Seuss |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Children's literature |
| Publisher | Random House |
| Publication date | November 24, 1957 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover) |
| Pages | Unknown |
| 178325 | |
| Preceded by | If I Ran the Circus |
| Followed by | The Cat in the Hat |
The Grinch reappeared in Seuss's Halloween is Grinch Night and The Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat.
Contents[hide] |
Plot
The Grinch, a bitter, cave-dwelling creature with a heart "two sizes too small," lives on snowy Mount Crumpit, a steep, 3,000-foot (910 m) high mountain just north of Whoville, home of the merry and warm-hearted Whos. His only companion is Max, his faithful dog. From his perch high atop Mount Crumpit, the Grinch can hear the noisy Christmas festivities that take place in Whoville. (The Whos of this book may or may not be the minuscule Whos of Horton Hears a Who; In the Broadway musical Seussical, the Grinch's Whos and Horton's are one and the same, the Grinch being microscopic and living on the dust speck as well. In the live-action movie, Whoville is located in a snowflake.) Envious of the Whos' happiness, he makes plans to descend on the town and, by means of burglary, deprive them of their Christmas presents and decorations and thus "prevent Christmas from coming". However, he learns in the end that despite his success in stealing all the Christmas presents and decorations from the Whos, Christmas comes just the same. He then realizes that Christmas is more than just gifts and presents. His heart grows three sizes larger, he returns all the presents and trimmings, and is warmly welcomed into the community of the Whos.Adaptations
In 1975, Zero Mostel narrated an LP of the story, with different music from the television special.
A musical stage version was produced by the Old Globe Theatre,
Publication data
- Dr. Seuss (Theodor Seuss Geisel). How the Grinch Stole Christmas! New York: Random House, 1957, ISBN 0-394-80079-6
- Dr. Seuss. Quomodo Invidiosulus Nomine Grinchus Christi Natalem Abrogaverit: How the Grinch Stole Christmas in Latin. Translated by Jennifer Morrish Tunberg with the assistance of
Terence O. Tunberg . Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers, 1997, ISBN 0-86516-419-3
What is the real value of a gift? (Reuters/Alessandro Bianchi)After my recent blog post about holiday shopping, I was surprised how many readers wrote of their disdain for gift giving.
“I’ve been boycotting X/Cess (my nickname for Christmas) for several years now. I do not give gifts, I politely tell people not to give me Any More Stuff, and I do not decorate.” — Posted by Lorie.
“My husband and I do not exchange gifts, and it has been hard trying to convince our families not to give us gifts either….We are thinking of trying for children soon, and do not want our children to receive all the latest gadgets from their grandparents and six aunts and uncles twice a year. We don’t like the spirit of materialism it represents.” — Posted by Ellen.Their comments inspired me to learn more about the psychology of gift giving. In my Well column in Science Times this week, I wrote about what social psychologists and other scientists say about the intangible value of gifts. While it’s reasonable to cut back on spending during the holidays, psychologists say that banning the gift exchange entirely is not the best solution. People who stop giving gifts may be missing out on an important connection with family and friends.
My former Wall Street Journal colleague Jeff Opdyke and his wife Amy recently argued about the value of giving presents to adult friends and family. In a video segment called Love & Money, Jeff says he believes many of the gifts they give and receive during the holidays are a waste of money. Amy thinks giving represents far more than the material value of a gift. Their banter is amusing, but it underscores a serious point that affects so many families. What is the real value of a gift? To watch their argument, click here.
My friends Grace, Jen and Heidi have come up with an alternative — a fierce holiday competition to create the perfect homemade gift. Past entries have included Heidi’s homemade sweet potato pie kits, complete with frozen filling and directions. Jen created a “box of love'’ that contained personal declarations about their friendship. Grace has created a music video celebrating a problem-plagued bathroom renovation and this year is planning a homemade pop-up book featuring Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre for Jen, a die-hard Packers fan.
What do you think? How do you handle the stress of the holiday gift exchange? Have you banned gift giving altogether or have you come up with another solution to cope with the commercialism of the holidays?
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