Malapropos

Definition:
1. Adj. Unsuitable, unseasoned, untimely
2. Adj. same as above

Pronunciation:
mala-pra-POH

Example:

1. A malapropos remark
2. It is best to watch what you say. You never know when a malapropos comment will return to haunt you.

Philippines

Basic Facts:
Population: 91 million
Literacy: 92%
Life expectancy: 70

History: Conquered by the Spanish in late 1500s. Ruled until the U.S. took over the country in 1898. Received independence from U.S. in 1946. Ruled by president Marcos in 1960s to 1970s. There was economic growth for the first ten or so years, until President Marcos wouldn't relenquish power and continued to rule as dictator until 1986.

Interesting Facts:
Philippines has over 7,000 islands
Philippines is named after King Phillip II of Spain (ruled the last half of 1500s)
Over 10% of Filipinos live outside the Philippines
The flag is put upside down in times of war so that the red stripe is on the top.

Congo-Kanshasa

Basic Facts:
Population: 65.7 million
% Literacy: 65%
Life Expectancy: 57
HIV/AIDS 4.2% population
GDP per capita (PPP): $700


History:
Congo was colonized by Belgium in 1870s but was under the private control of King Leopold. By building railroads the King increased rubber harvests. By the 1880s a police army was brought into the country to encourage and intimidate locals into gathering greater amounts of rubber. Often police would cut off limbs to intimidate locals to work harder. During the next 20 years, until 1908, about 10 million local Congolese died of disease, killing or being overworked. It is estimated that the local population was cut in half during this period. Finally, bowing to international pressure, Congo was taken from the power of the king and given to Belgian elected officials. After release of the country after WWII, Mobutu gained power in 1965 and ruled as a tyrant until 1997. At which point an order to expel the tustsi ethnic group from the country on pain of death inspired a revolt and overthrow of government. By 1998 there was a second Congo War, the bloodiest war since WWII. This war ended in 2003.

Names: The country was called Ziare from 1965 to 1997, and is now called the Democratic Republic of Congo, not to be confused with the Republic of Congo.

Venezuela

Venezuela

Basic Facts:
Population: 26 mill.
President: President Chavez
Capital: Caracas
GDP per capita (PPP): 7,200
% below poverty line: 37.9
Literacy: 92%
Life Expectancy: 70 (men) 76 (women)

Random Facts:

Has the tallest waterfall in the world (Angel Falls) over 3,000 feet high.

Flag: has seven stars representing the seven states in the 1800s. The flag represents the richness, water, and blood of patriots respectively.

Called "little Venice" by the spanish (hence 'venezuela') because the locals also built their houses on stilts in coastal areas.

Hector

Hector (HECK-tur)

DFN:
Noun: A bully
Transitive verb: to harass or bully someone
Intransitive verb: to harass or bully

Examples
1. As soon as I stepped into the silk alley, the sales clerks hectored me until I either left or bought something.
2. My parents were especially good at hectoring me every day to do my homework.
3. "What is his name?" I asked. "Hector," Little Tim replied. "No wonder he is such a bully!"

Fallacy of Distraction: False Dilemma

False Dilemma:

Two choices are given, but in fact there are three or more. This is also called black and white thinking.

Some examples:

1."Look, you are going to have to make up your mind. Either you decide that you can afford this stereo, or you decide you are going to do without music for a while."

In reality, there are many ways to listen to music without having a stereo. This statement simplifies an array of music options into just two: stereo or no music.

2. Senator Jill: "We'll have to cut education funding this year."
Senator Bill: "Why?"
Senator Jill: "Well, either we cut the social programs or we live with a huge deficit and we can't live with the deficit."

Obviously, there are many ways to cut the deficit without cutting education spending.

3. Here's a snip from http://skepdic.com/falsedilemma.html

For example, if someone were to demonstrate apparent psychic abilities, one would commit the fallacy of false dilemma if one were to reason: Either she's a fraud or she is truly psychic, and she's not a fraud; so, she must be truly psychic

There is at least one other possible explanation for her apparent psychic abilities: She genuinely thinks she's psychic but she's not. A Sylvia Browne, a John Edward, or a James Van Praagh may appear to some people to have psychic abilities, but they need not be frauds if they are not truly psychic. They may be frauds, but they may genuinely believe they are in contact with another dimension of reality. In other words, they may be deluded. This does not mean that they are mentally ill, but their false beliefs may be so deeply embedded in their personalities that no amount of evidence or argument could convince them of their errors.

4. Another tip from about.com

Either scientists can explain the strange objects seen in the sky over Gulf Breeze, Florida, or these objects are piloted by visitors from outer space. Scientists cannot explain these objects, so they must be visitors from outer space.

A quick Overview of Locial Fallacies:

Stephen Downes Guide to the Logical Fallacies

Copyright © Stephen Downes, 1995-2000

stephen.downes@ualberta.ca

Taken from http://www.intrepidsoftware.com/fallacy/toc.htm

1. Fallacies of Distraction

2. Appeals to Motives in Place of Support

3. Changing the Subject

4. Inductive Fallacies

5. Fallacies Involving Statistical Syllogisms

6. Causal Fallacies

7. Missing the Point

8. Fallacies of Ambiguity

9. Category Errors

10. Non Sequitur

11. Syllogistic Errors

12. Fallacies of Explanation

13. Fallacies of Definition

Fallacies of Distraction

Ø False Dilemma: two choices are given when in fact there are three options

Ø From Ignorance: because something is not known to be true, it is assumed to be false

Ø Slippery Slope: a series of increasingly unacceptable consequences is drawn

Ø Complex Question: two unrelated points are conjoined as a single proposition

Appeals to Motives in Place of Support

Ø Appeal to Force: the reader is persuaded to agree by force

Ø Appeal to Pity: the reader is persuaded to agree by sympathy

Ø Consequences: the reader is warned of unacceptable consequences

Ø Prejudicial Language: value or moral goodness is attached to believing the author

Ø Popularity: a proposition is argued to be true because it is widely held to be true

Changing the Subject

Ø Attacking the Person:

1. The person's character is attacked

2. The person's circumstances are noted

3. The person does not practice what is preached

Ø Appeal to Authority:

1. The authority is not an expert in the field

2. Experts in the field disagree

3. The authority was joking, drunk, or in some other way not being serious

Ø Anonymous Authority: the authority in question is not named

Ø Style Over Substance: the manner in which an argument (or arguer) is presented is felt to affect the truth of the conclusion

Inductive Fallacies

Ø Hasty Generalization: the sample is too small to support an inductive generalization about a population

Ø Unrepresentative Sample: the sample is unrepresentative of the sample as a whole

Ø False Analogy: the two objects or events being compared are relevantly dissimilar

Ø Slothful Induction: the conclusion of a strong inductive argument is denied despite the evidence to the contrary

Ø Fallacy of Exclusion: evidence which would change the outcome of an inductive argument is excluded from consideration

Fallacies Involving Statistical Syllogisms

Ø Accident: a generalization is applied when circumstances suggest that there should be an exception

Ø Converse Accident : an exception is applied in circumstances where a generalization should apply

Causal Fallacies

Ø Post Hoc: because one thing follows another, it is held to cause the other

Ø Joint effect: one thing is held to cause another when in fact they are both the joint effects of an underlying cause

Ø Insignificant: one thing is held to cause another, and it does, but it is insignificant compared to other causes of the effect

Ø Wrong Direction: the direction between cause and effect is reversed

Ø Complex Cause: the cause identified is only a part of the entire cause of the effect

Missing the Point

Ø Begging the Question: the truth of the conclusion is assumed by the premises

Ø Irrelevant Conclusion: an argument in defense of one conclusion instead proves a different conclusion

Ø Straw Man: the author attacks an argument different from (and weaker than) the opposition's best argument

Fallacies of Ambiguity

Ø Equivocation: the same term is used with two different meanings

Ø Amphiboly: the structure of a sentence allows two different interpretations

Ø Accent: the emphasis on a word or phrase suggests a meaning contrary to what the sentence actually says

Category Errors

Ø Composition: because the attributes of the parts of a whole have a certain property, it is argued that the whole has that property

Ø Division: because the whole has a certain property, it is argued that the parts have that property

Non Sequitur

Ø Affirming the Consequent: any argument of the form: If A then B, B, therefore A

Ø Denying the Antecedent: any argument of the form: If A then B, Not A, thus Not B

Ø Inconsistency: asserting that contrary or contradictory statements are both true

Syllogistic Errors

Ø Fallacy of Four Terms: a syllogism has four terms

Ø Undistributed Middle: two separate categories are said to be connected because they share a common property

Ø Illicit Major: the predicate of the conclusion talks about all of something, but the premises only mention some cases of the term in the predicate

Ø Illicit Minor: the subject of the conclusion talks about all of something, but the premises only mention some cases of the term in the subject

Ø Fallacy of Exclusive Premises: a syllogism has two negative premises

Ø Fallacy of Drawing an Affirmative Conclusion From a Negative Premise: as the name implies

Ø Existential Fallacy: a particular conclusion is drawn from universal premises

Fallacies of Explanation

Ø Subverted Support: The phenomenon being explained doesn't exist

Ø Non-support: Evidence for the phenomenon being explained is biased

Ø Untestability The theory which explains cannot be tested

Ø Limited Scope The theory which explains can only explain one thing

Ø Limited Depth The theory which explains does not appeal to underlying causes

Fallacies of Definition

Ø Too Broad The definition includes items which should not be included

Ø Too Narrow The definition does not include all the items which should be included

Ø Failure to Elucidate The definition is more difficult to understand than the word or concept being defined

Ø Circular Definition The definition includes the term being defined as a part of the definition

Ø Conflicting Conditions The definition is self-contradictory

Flaneur

Flaneur (flah-NUR)
DFN: One who aimlessly wanders, a loafer, loner.

Examples
1. The hotel lobby is a popular gathering place for the flaneur.
2. The writer was considered a flaneur--artistic, not social, less talkative and very observant.

Italy

Italy

Basic Facts:
Population: 58 mill
Size: Slightly larger than Arizona
Life Expec.: Men(77) Women (83)
Literacy Rate: 98%
% below poverty line: NA
GDP per capita (PPP): 30,200
Capital: Rome
President of Council of Ministers: Prodi


Flag: Based off the French flag brought by Napoleon in 1797.

Culture:
In South Italy there are many hand gestures.

• to nod head upwards means "no"
• use a finger to pull down an eyelid means "you are clever"

Gesticulate

Gesticulate
DFN: To motion or use hands to communicate while talking or instead of talking.

Examples:
1. While scuba diving, Amy gesticulated wildly, pointing out that a shark was approaching.
2. John would often rise from his chair to pace the room and gesticulate as he talked.

Peru

Basic Facts:
Population: 28.6 mill
GPD per capita (PPP): 6,600
% pop. below poverty line: 54%
Size: slightly smaller than Alaska (1,200 sq km)
Av. life expetancey: men 68, women 72

Flag: Thought up by a general during one of the battles for independence (1800s). The General saw a red and white bird, hence the color scheme for the Peruvian flag.

History:
Pre 1533, home of the Inca civilization
Conquered by Spanish in 1533.
Gained independence in 1821.
1990-2000 President Fujimori
2001-2006 President Toledo (first Native American president)
2006- President Garcia

Umbrage

Umbrage
1. shadow
2. offense or resentment

Examples:
1. John took umbrage and challenged Bill to a duel
2. His manner was so open and kind that he wiped away the slightest umbrage

cited from Dictionary.com

Germany

Basics:
Population: 82 mill
Size: slightly smaller than Montana
GDP per capita (PPP): $31, 900
Literacy: 99%
Life Expectancy: 76 (males) 82 (females)

Government:
Head of State: President Koehler
Head of Gov't: Chancellor Merkel
Bicameral legislature

Interesting Facts:
The population of Germany is slowly decreasing (-.03%)
West Germany contines to fund over $80 billion to East Germany each year.
The flag represents the colors of student volunteer uniforms who opposed Napoleon in 1813.

Culture:
Germans don't like ice cubes in their drinks
There are specialized schools for everything: even waitresses have 3 years of specialized schooling
Squeezing your thumb (not crossing fingers) is a sign of good luck

Deprecate

Pronunciation: DEH-pri-kate

1. To pray against (archaic)
2. To strongly oppose or discourage
3. To belittle or depreciate

Example 1: Stalin sometimes depricated his cult, but overtly encouraged it.
Example 2: Jon is a modest guy; he gets straight A's but always deprecates his abilities by saying he is a slow reader.
Example 3: The third quest of biblical scholars constantly deprecate the authenticity of the Bible as historical fact.

E-fellowing tips

Online Fellowing:

Basics:
Go to Review in the major toolbar. Use the "track changes" button or the "new comment" function. (Word 2007)
Go to "tools" and then "track changes" if Word 2000 or 2003.

Tips:

1. Get a library computer in 'no shhhh' zone to show students how to adopt changes on e-fellowing
2. Use short cuts ALT + CTRL + M

Finland

Finland

History: Part of Sweden from 12th to 19th centuries. Became a part of the Russian empire from 1809 to 1917 when it gained its independence. Successfully defended against the Russians in WWII (though lost some land)

Basic Facts:
Population: 5.2 mill
Life expectancy: 75 (male) 82(female)
GDP per capita: 33,500
Size: slightly smaller than Montana
Literacy Rate: 100%
% below poverty line: NA%
Capitol: Helsinki

Government:
President Halonen (head of state)
Prime Minister Vanhanen
Unicameral legislature
Judicial court chosen by the president

Interesting Facts:
There are more mobile phones than people in Finland.
There are almost 3 cell phones for each land telephone line.
Only 7% of Finland is arable
Only Scandinavian country to join the EU in 1999.

Ecuador, South America

Basic Facts:

Population: 13.5 million
Size: Slightly smaller than Nevada
President: President Correa
Literacy Rate: 91%
Av. Life Expectancy: 72(male) 78 (female)
% below poverty line: 38%
Capital: Quito
GDP per capita: $4,500

Government: Executive (president Correa), Legislative (unicamera based on PR) and Judicial which oversees the constitution.

Culture:
-Not polite to say when the guest should leave
-Can be 10 min to an hour late depending on the activity

Colombia, S. America

Colombia Basic Facts:

Capital: Bogota
Population: 44 million
Size: 1 million sq. km. or twice the size of texas
President: Alvaro Uribe Velez
GDP per capita: 8,600
Percent below poverty line: 49%
Literacy Rate: 92%

Government: President Uribe is head of government and state. legislative with senate and house of representatives, and four on the judicial court (there is a separate supreme court)

Politics: Insurgent groups include the FARC, (revolutionary armed forces of Colombia) and the ELN (national liberation army)

History of Halloween

It is based on a Gaelic holiday (in North Ireland) which marked the end of the harvest festival. It was a time where livestock was slaughtered to prepare for winter; the bones were thrown onto huge bonfires. The day was believed to be an overlap of the dead and living, thus ghosts would come and cause sickness and crop disaster. To placate the dead, masks were worn. This holiday was incorporated with the Roman holiday involving a goddess associated with an apple. This is supposedly why there is apple bobbing on Halloween.

Why do we yawn?

Tired? No. Oxygen to the brain? Not necessarily.

It turns out that reasons for yawning are still not clear. There are sevearal theories, however.
1. To cool down the brain. One professor had subjects watch a movie of other people yawning--an activity that usually causes subjects to yawn as well. When hot pads were pressed against the head the subjects yawned more, while cold packs on the head reduced the number of yawns.
2. To get oxygen to the brain.
3. To release emotion like boredom, anxiety or even nervousness. Parachuters , for instance, are noted for yawning before they jump.

Crazy fact: yawning is very addictive, yet is based on the ability to empathize or care about others' feelings. Normal people like you or me naturally yawn when we see others do so. Autistic children, however, those noted for inability to distinguish others emotions, generally do not yawn in response to others.

What are the Seven Wonders of the World in Asia?

How these Wonders were selected

While the Seven Wonders of the World have been chosen, no one has claimed what the wonders in Asia would be. While most can list off the Great Wall of China and the Taj Mahal as being noteworthy, there are many good locations that are overlooked. That is the purpose of the following list: to choose the lesser known, but by no means insignificant, wonders of this region of the world. Additionally, these locations have been ranked according to Ease of Travel, Preservation of Natural State and Uniqueness to aid travel to these areas.

#1 Bali Island, Indonesia:
Description: Home to the majority of the Hindu population in Indonesia, this island has a vivid, rich history starting from 5,000 years ago. In addition to the rich history, the island is known for skilled wood carving, metalworking, and Balinese gamelan music (music using xylophones, drums, gongs, bamboo flutes and stringed instruments). To top off the man-made arts, the island is known for clear white sand beaches, clear skies and diverse wildlife.

Ease of Travel: High. It is one of the most popular destinations in Southeast Asia.

Preservation of Natural State: High. To be sure, many dancing or wearing more traditional garb for show. Still, the fact that Bali’s main industry is tourism helps explain why the local government takes pain to maintain culture and wildlife for future generations of tourists.

Uniqueness: High. While Hindu or Galean music, to name a few, are aspects not unique to Bali, their combination is unique. Nowhere else can you see the melding together of Hindu and Buddhist influences, combined with the Bali sights and traditions unique to the island.

#2 Ha Long Bay, Veitnam:
Description: Located 165 km from Hanoi, this bay on the northern Coast of Vietnam is dotted with thousand of limestone islands near the coast. The waters are known for being especially calm and the water is very clear during the spring and early summer months. According to the Vietnamese, this bay is considered ‘the eighth wonder of the world.” In addition to boating around these islands, some sandy beaches make swimming a possibility. Further, some of the 1,969 islands on the 120 km coastline have large caves. On other islands are floating villages of fishermen.

Ease of Travel: high. This is a huge tourist destination and so travel is quite easy.

Preserved in Natural State: Medium. The area is not perfectly preserved as tourists are given more freedom to do what they want, which occasionally comes at the expense of the environment.

Uniqueness: Medium. While there are limestone islands on the coast of Thaliand as well, the fact that over 1,000 islands are located in one place makes this area unique.

#3 Banaue Rice Terraces, Philippines:
Description: Breathtaking layered rice fields, or terraces, were built into the side of a mountain over 2,000 years ago. The terrace levels rise several thousand feet, thus leading some to claim the region as one of the eighth wonders of the world. Sadly, drought and low economic incentives are causing some farmers to leave the terraces, allowing some parts to decay.

Ease of Travel: Medium. Transportation to the top of the terraces is not easy, but the area is quite well traveled so one can easily find a tour to the top.

Natural State: Medium-low. Currently a good place to see, however, the future looks bleak as farmers are leaving the fields and many terraces are decaying.

Uniqueness: High. Terraced rice fields are all over Asia, but the sheer size and historical significance of the Banaue rice terraces is what makes it special.

#4 Potala Palace, Tibet.
Description: A huge palace built up from the city of Lhasa. The palace has a history of more than a thousand years. The current palace was built in the 1600s and required over 7,000 workers to complete. The place is currently the largest building in Tibet. Also noteworthy is the fact that unlike thousands of temples and cultural artifacts destroyed by the Red Guards during the Chinese Cultural Revolution, this palace remained intact and preserved. The sheer size of the Palace is impressive: 130,000 square meters, an especially noteworthy accomplishment considering the difficulty of transportation in the mountainous areas of Tibet.

Ease of Travel: low. Altitude sickness and visa problems are common for travelers going to Tibet.

Natural State: High. The palace is quite well preserved.

Uniqueness: high. The fact that the palace was built at such an altitude coupled with the singular Tibetan belief system makes this palace one-of-a-kind.

#5 Borobudur Temple, Indonesia
Description: Located on Central Java, this monument was created around 800 AD and is a Buddhist Mahayana temple used for pilgrimage. The monument is large with three layers, over 2,600 relief panels and five hundred statues of Buddha. The monument, as great as it is, fell into disuse when Islam arrived on the island and was only rediscovered four hundred years later by a British explorer. This period of disuse leaves a bit of a mystery, however, since there is no written record attesting who built this monument or why it was created. The monument has been preserved with the help of several restorations and is currently a UNESCO historical heritage site and the most visited spot in Indonesia.

Ease of Travel: High. With high numbers of tourists, transportation and tours are readily available to take others to see this monument.

Natural State: With the UNESCO and careful renovations, the site is in quite good condition.

Uniqueness: While not the only Buddhist temple in the area, the sheer size and mystery behind its creation give this temple an added advantage to interested tourists.

#6 Bagan Pagodas and Temples:
Description: From the mid 11th to 13th centuries a community of over 300,000 people lived in the middle of modern Burma. There, they built over 10,000 pagodas and temples. Today, more than 2,000 of them still exist. Bagan, an area of 16 square miles, was the capital of the First Burmese Empire from about 1000 to 1200 A.D.

Ease of Travel: Medium. Tours are possible, but the military government doesn’t make the country as safe or easy to travel. An efficient, national road system is lacking.

Natural State: Low. UNESCO tried to designate this area as a world historical site, but was prevented by the military government. Instead, the government has been rebuilding some of the traditional temples, ignoring traditional styles and using modern equipment and materials. Also, a golf course, highway and tower are built amid the ruins.

Uniqueness: Medium. Once again, Buddhist temples are not new to this region. However, the sheer number of temples and pagodas sets Bagan apart from other temple areas in Southeast Asia.

#7 Karst Peaks of YangShuo:
Description: Have you ever seen a Chinese traditional painting where the mountains are practically vertical? The inspiration for those unrealistic-looking peaks is Guilin, an area in Southern China where dissolved rock has allowed the formation of very steep, vegetation covered hills and small mountains. I have traveled to Yang Shuo myself and was amazed at the rich culture and breathtaking green hills. To top it off, the area has a notable cave that takes over four hours to climb through: it was used to house local residents during the Japanese occupation during the WWII era.

Ease of Travel: High. Transportation to and from the area is quite convenient.

Naural State: Medium. Yangshuo is fairly well preserved, although the Chinese tourist agencies often create man-made structures for ease of tourist, thus decreasing natural beauty.

Uniqueness: Medium. The peaks are common in that region of China, although the combination of cave and Chinese culture set YangShuo apart from other places in China.

Why do Indian women wear red dots?

Walking in the Chicago Midway airport, I saw many Indian women wearing red dots on their foreheads. Why do they wear them? Who wears them? Does it have some symbolic meaning or is it merely for fashion? After a little research, this is what I found:

The decorative red dot is called a bindi. Traditionally, it was only worn by married women (sort of like a wedding band--if you see a woman with one you know she is not available). In South India and other places, however, women single or otherwise wear the bindi for decoration. The bindi can be applied with vermilion powder or circular pieces of felt can be used. More recently, people have been wearing oval, linear or other shaped Bindi as well as the traditional circular variety.

The location for the Bindi also has significance. The spot between the eyebrows is the 'seat of concealed wisdom" and a central point for concentration.

For more info, see http://hinduism.about.com/library/weekly/aa072002a.htm