Not much good has come out of the recession from which we seem to be slowly emerging. But at least it's left us with some new lingo, like "staycation." The Christian Science Monitor has compiled a list of its favorites, and guest host Audie Cornish explains a few of them.
This week, Will Shortz's game involves anagrams, and every word contains the letters A, B and C. For example: To get a type of metal, use A-B-C along with the letters L, O and T. The answer is "cobalt."
Tribune Company CEO Randy Michaels has banned 119 "newsspeak" words and phrases from crossing the lips of anchors and reporters at WGN-AM. Wait Wait's Ian Chillag tries to use all the newly banned words in one sentence.
In 1266 A.D., English bakers were ordered to mark each loaf of bread so that if a faulty one turned up, "it will be knowne in whom the faulte lies." The bakers' marks were among the first trademarks.
Leslie Gore's hit single, "It's My Party," rose to the Number 1 spot on Billboard's record charts on June 1, 1963. It stayed there for two weeks. Gore was just 17 when she recorded the song, and she became one of the youngest solo female artists in music history to top the charts.
In 1990, American tennis pro John McEnroe, often called "The Brat" because of his infantile, volatile on-court behavior, became the first player in 27 years to be disqualified from a Grand Slam tournament for misconduct. His repeated bad manners led to his being booted from the Australian Open.
Plants in the mint family have been used for centuries by people as anti-spasmodics. Current studies suggest that ingesting peppermint oil (available in capsule form) helps relieve internal gas and bloating.
