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Unclean! I May Have COVID! Unclean! 21st Century Lepers

Unclean! I May Have COVID! Unclean! 21st Century Lepers

Celia Wolf-Devine mercatornet.com Celia Wolf-Devine is retired from her position teaching philosophy at Stonehill College. She lives in Providence, Rhode Island, USA with her husband Phil Devine, who is also a retired philosophy professor. She has her B.A. from Smith College and her Ph.D. from the University

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two women smoking while leaning on yellow wall

The Modern Definition of Freedom Is Wrong

James Davidson In today’s setting around the West, there is only one conception of freedom: “do what you want, as long as it doesn’t infringe on anyone else’s rights”. This definition sounds compelling, in fact, it sounds liberating. Under it one can do, be or say anything

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The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

exodus (noun) – 1 capitalized : the mainly narrative second book of canonical Jewish and Christian Scripture 2 : a mass departure Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : The Biblical book of Exodus describes the departure of the Israelites from Egypt, so it’s no surprise that the word has come to refer more generally

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The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… sesquipedalian (adjective) – 1 : having many syllables 2 : given to or characterized by the use of long words Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Horace, the Roman poet known for his satire, was merely being gently ironic when he cautioned young poets against using “sesquipedalia verba”-“words

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The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… quash (verb) : to nullify especially by judicial action : to suppress or extinguish summarily and completely Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : There are two quash verbs in the English language, and although their meanings are similar, they have entirely different origins. Both essentially mean to get rid

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The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… equinox (noun) – 1 : either of the two points on the celestial sphere where the celestial equator intersects the ecliptic 2 : either of the two times each year (as about March 21 and September 23) when the sun crosses the equator and day and night are

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The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… abrogate (verb) – 1 to abolish by authoritative action : annul a treaty 2 to treat as nonexistent : to fail to do what is required by something, such as a responsibility 3 to suppress or prevent (a biological function or process and especially an immune response) Source

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The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

prevaricate (verb) – to deviate from the truth Source : Online Etymology Dictionary Etymology : 1580s, “to go aside from the right course or mode of action” (originally figurative, now obsolete), a back formation from prevarication or else from Latin praevaricatus, past participle of praevaricari “to make a sham accusation, deviate” (from the

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Animal Adoptions Make No Evolutionary Sense, So Why Do They Happen?

Animal Adoptions Make No Evolutionary Sense, So Why Do They Happen?

Isabelle Catherine Winder Bangor University Vivien Shaw Bangor University Isabelle Catherine Winder is an evolutionary anthropologist in the broad sense, with interests in primatology, functional morphology (anatomy), evolutionary biology, biogeography, ecology, palaeontology and human origins. Vivien Shaw is an anatomist with a broad range of interests ranging from ancient Chinese

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two people playing Sony PS4 game console

In Praise of Video Games

I suspect that not many BFD readers are avid gamers. After all, The BFD’s readership skews older, and video games are (seen as, anyway) a young person’s thing (though not that young, as we shall see). Video games mostly get a pretty bad rap in the media: when

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man in black framed sunglasses holding fan of white and gray striped cards

How Crowdfunding Campaigners Market Illness to Capture the Attention of Potential Donors

Tom Baker Ann E. Bartos Caitlin Neuwelt-Kearns University of Auckland Octavia Calder-Dawe Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington Susan E Wardell Tom is senior lecturer in human geography. His research focuses on the making, circulation and implementation of public policy, with a particular focus on policies that address aspects

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The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… whet (verb, noun) – verb – 1 : to sharpen by rubbing on or with something (such as a stone)  – whet a knife 2 : to make keen or more acute noun – 1 : a spell of work done with a scythe between the time it is sharpened and the

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The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… invective (noun, adjective) – noun – 1 : insulting or abusive language 2 : an abusive expression or speech adjective – of, relating to, or characterized by insult or abuse Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Invective originated in the 15th century as an adjective meaning “of, relating to, or characterized by

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