Words to Look Up

Below are some words that have come up in recent reading, words I'll probably never use in my everyday vocabulary, especially since I never talk to anyone. 

 

 antinomy 

Examples of antinomy in a Sentence-

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More

Unlike Hilbert’s hotel and the birthday paradox, Russell’s antinomy is not a result that merely eludes our intuition. —Manon Bischoff, Scientific American, 15 Aug. 2024 The antinomies of male and female, and the product of their union, seem very much on his mind during this period. —Philip Kennicott, Washington Post, 10 Nov. 2023 The great Russian sociologist Yuri Levada theorized that antinomies—pairs of mutually exclusive beliefs—were key to understanding the Soviet totalitarian mentality. —Masha Gessen, The New Yorker, 15 June 2023 By obliterating Twitter’s attempts at resolving the irreconcilable antinomy between good and bad virality, Musk has only ensured that the Chinese government can engage in viral spam to defeat viral attempts at amplifying domestic protests of CCP’s zero-Covid biosecurity regime. —WIRED, 1 Dec. 2022 

 

abductive 

[Wikipedia]  Abductive reasoning (also called abduction,^[1] abductive inference,^[1] or retroduction^[2]) is a form of logical inference that seeks the simplest and most likely conclusion from a set of observations. It was formulated and advanced by American philosopher and logician Charles Sanders Peirce beginning in the latter half of the 19th century.

Abductive reasoning, unlike deductive reasoning, yields a plausible conclusion but does not definitively verify it. Abductive conclusions do not eliminate uncertainty or doubt, which is expressed in terms such as "best available" or "most likely". While inductive reasoning draws general conclusions that apply to many situations, abductive conclusions are confined to the particular observations in question.

In the 1990s, as computing power grew, the fields of law,^[3] computer science, and artificial intelligence research^[4] spurred renewed interest in the subject of abduction.^[5] Diagnostic expert systems frequently employ abduction.^[6]

 

colloquia  [ Mirriam Webster]  plural colloquiums or colloquia kə-ˈlō-kwē-ə 

Synonyms of colloquium

: a usually academic meeting at which specialists deliver addresses on a topic or on related topics and then answer questions relating to them

… a nine-session scholar-led colloquium to introduce teachers to literary texts by and about minorities …

constructivism

noun 

• 1. a style or movement in which assorted mechanical objects are combined into abstract mobile structural forms. The movement originated in Russia in the 1920s and has influenced many aspects of modern architecture and design.
• 2. a view which admits as valid only constructive proofs and entities demonstrable by them, implying that the latter have no independent existence.

 

emergence 

In philosophy, systems theory, science, and art, emergence occurs when a complex entity has properties or behaviors that its parts do not have on their own, and emerge only when they interact in a wider whole. Wikipedia

epigone

[Mirriam Webster]  English borrowed "epigone" from German in the 19th century. The Germans themselves had taken the word from the Latin epigonus, which means "successor." The Latin term followed the Greek epigonos, which was often used in plural to designate the sons of seven legendary Greek leaders who were defeated at Thebes. "Epigonos" in turn came from the Greek verb epigignesthai, meaning "to be born after." "Epi-" can mean "after," and gignesthai means "to be born."

 

etymology 

English borrowed "epigone" from German in the 19th century. The Germans themselves had taken the word from the Latin epigonus, which means "successor." The Latin term followed the Greek epigonos, which was often used in plural to designate the sons of seven legendary Greek leaders who were defeated at Thebes. "Epigonos" in turn came from the Greek verb epigignesthai, meaning "to be born after." "Epi-" can mean "after," and gignesthai means "to be born."

 

fascicolation

A fasciculation, or muscle twitch, is a spontaneous, involuntary muscle contraction and relaxation, involving fine muscle fibers. They are common, with as many as 70% of people experiencing them. They can be benign, or associated with more serious conditions. When no cause or pathology is identified, they are diagnosed as benign fasciculation syndrome. Wikipedia 

 

imbrication 

AI Summary

To understand the meaning of "imbrication," consider the following points:

• Imbrication refers to the overlapping arrangement of objects or elements.
• It is commonly used in geology to describe the layering of sedimentary rocks.
• In biology, it can describe the overlapping of scales or feathers in animals.
• The term is also applied in architecture to describe overlapping roof tiles.
• Imbrication can signify a pattern of interlocking or interweaving in various contexts.
• It emphasizes the concept of layering and structural support in design and nature.      

 

integument 

/inˈteɡyəmənt/

noun

• 1. a tough outer protective layer, especially that of an animal or plant: "this chemical compound is found in the integument of the seed"

 

isomorphic 

a

: being of identical or similar form, shape, or structure

isomorphic crystals

b

: having sporophytic and gametophytic generations alike in size and shape

metonyme 

Metonymy is a figure of speech in which one object or idea takes the place of another with which it has a close association. In fact, metonymy means “change of name.” As a literary device, it is a way of replacing an object or idea with something related to it instead of stating what is actually meant. Metonymy enables writers to express a word or thought in a different way by using a closely related word or thought. Therefore, this is a method for writers to vary their expression and produce an effect for the reader.Metonymy is a figure of speech in which one object or idea takes the place of another with which it has a close association. In fact, metonymy means “change of name.” As a literary device, it is a way of replacing an object or idea with something related to it instead of stating what is actually meant. Metonymy enables writers to express a word or thought in a different way by using a closely related word or thought. Therefore, this is a method for writers to vary their expression and produce an effect for the reader.    

 

nugatory 

1: of little or no consequence : trifling, inconsequential

comments too nugatory to merit attention

2: having no force : inoperative

The law was unenforced and thus rendered nugatory. 

oneiric

onei·​ric  

ō-ˈnī-rik :  of, relating to, or suggestive of dreams : dreamy

The frieze is the most arresting feature of the exterior, not only for its colors and the oneiric forms of the irises but for the way it encompasses the structure of the house

William Craft Brumfield

 

 paranomasia 

Paronomasia is a rhetorical device that can be defined as a phrase intentionally used to exploit the confusion between words having similar sounds but different meanings. It is like a word play, and is also  

quotidion 

adjective:

1. occurring as part of the normal or expected order of things; usual or customary; everyday. Her biographer delved into the most routine and quotidian parts of her life to paint a fuller picture of his subject.

2. of no special quality or interest; ordinary; commonplace.

   His paintings are pleasant to look at, but show nothing more than quotidian talent.

3. done, happening, or given daily.

   We recommend quotidian dialysis for the patient.

4. (of a fever or disease) characterized by the recurring daily intensification of symptoms.

   Malarial fevers tend to be quotidian, with daily attacks lasting up to 12 hours before abating.

reflexivity 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia;

In epistemology, and more specifically, the sociology of knowledge, reflexivity refers to circular relationships between cause and effect, especially as embedded in human belief structures. A reflexive relationship is multi-directional when the causes and the effects affect the reflexive agent in a layered or complex sociological relationship. The complexity of this relationship can be furthered when epistemology includes religion.

Within sociology more broadly—the field of origin—reflexivity means an act of self-reference where existence engenders examination, by which the thinking action "bends back on", refers to, and affects the entity instigating the action or examination. It commonly refers to the capacity of an agent to recognise forces of socialisation and alter their place in the social structure. A low level of reflexivity would result in individuals shaped largely by their environment (or "society"). A high level of social reflexivity would be defined by individuals shaping their own norms, tastes, politics, desires, and so on. This is similar to the notion of autonomy. (See also structure and agency and social mobility.) 

 

Teleodynamic   

How does life emerge in a world that moves lawfully toward disorder? Some have answered this question by suggesting that life is a “self-organizing” process. Self-organizing phenomena, like a whirlpool in a bathtub, produce order by turning the law of increasing entropy against itself. They are systems in which ordered forms may emerge locally in order to increase the rate of entropy production globally. The problem is that these self-organizing processes are also self-undermining: they always exhaust the boundary conditions that make them possible. A whirlpool helps the water drain faster, making the vortex disappear.