Author: Digital Citizen

Definition: Ilinx (French)

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Ilinx

[ pronounced IL-links ]
French word to describe a feeling of strange excitement from destruction, especially minor acts of chaos caused by you out of mischief rather than anything destructive, big or small, caused by others.

  • From the TEDTalk below (about 2:00 in), by Tiffany Watt Smith, which includes a bunch of emotions where there are no words in English, but which you may well have experienced, but never had one single word to describe them! Or which you may go out and try to see if you can conjure up the feeling from hints in its definition for where and/or under what conditions one might experience it.

 

This feeling is a fun one to create any time you need a little spark in life! 🙂

Definition: Hwyl (Welsh)

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Hwyl

[ pronounced hWIL ]
Welsh word to describe a feeling of exuberance and high spirits one might get at a party of anticipated gathering.

  • From the TEDTalk below (at about 1:05), by Tiffany Watt Smith, which includes a bunch of emotions where there are no words in English, but which you may well have experienced, but never had one single word to describe them! Or which you may go out and try to see if you can conjure up the feeling from hints in its definition for where and/or under what conditions one might experience it.

 

This feeling is probably common enough you could remember this word through using it before some, if not many, parties, to describe how you might be feeling.

Definition: Guerrilla Gardening

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Guerrilla Gardening

Guerrilla gardening is the act of gardening on land that the gardeners do not have the legal rights to cultivate, such as abandoned sites, areas that are not being cared for, or private property.

 

Sounds like a fun concept! More info and examples can be heard in the 99 Percent Invisible podcast episode below that is one of my favourites of all time!

https://twitter.com/digitalcitizen/status/1160717689544986631

 

Definition: Peace Lines

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Peace Lines

Barricades that divide areas of Northern Ireland to help keep the peace. Also called Peace Walls as many are really walls.

 

These could apply to other places where similar barriers exist, but the term originated and is mostly associated with the complex situation in Northern Ireland. From the 99 Percent Invisible podcast episode below.

https://twitter.com/digitalcitizen/status/1164922447608590339

Definition: Retrovirus

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Retrovirus

A type of virus that uses RNA as its genetic material. After infecting a cell, a retrovirus uses an enzyme called reverse transcriptase to convert its RNA into DNA. The retrovirus then integrates its viral DNA into the DNA of the host cell, which allows the retrovirus to replicate.

 

Hear the fascinating story of how retroviruses were found and proven against the vast majority of scientific opinions that deemed the idea to have been nonsense for many years! This is like science-fiction of the nasty kind, found in this Revisionist History podcast episode below!

https://twitter.com/digitalcitizen/status/1164969249410101248