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Wiki Wednesday: Reuben Sandwich

You haven’t had a Reuben until you’ve had a good Reuben: Grilled rye bread draped in corned beef and melted Swiss cheese with a sprinkle — or a heap — of sauerkraut. Add on a drizzle of Russian or thousand island dressing, and you’re in heaven…





Word of the Week: Waste

Today, the phrase, “I was soooo wasted!” typically precedes a crazy story defined by blackmail-worthy choices, blurry selfies and the obligatory, “Wait, I did what?” According to the Oxford English Dictionary, people have been “getting wasted” since the idiom entered the English language in 1511. Long before “wasted” became synonymous with drunken shenanigans, though, the word meant “injury” — a sharp diversion from that funny story from last Friday night…





That Good Tingly Feeling
People with ASMR use sensory triggers for therapeutic purposes.

Sitting in the local coffee shop while catching up on some reading and enjoying a regular cup o’ joe, the barista’s voice reaches you from across the room, gently asking for the next customer’s order. A pleasant tingle from the back of your head runs down your spine and into your limbs as she speaks. This sensation is Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR)…





Death of the Dictionary
Companies use lexical data in new ways as publishing goes to the wayside.

Think back to third grade. A troublesome term meant lugging a hefty, disproportionately-sized text off the shelf and feverishly flipping through the pages. And if you didn’t know how the word was spelled — you were screwed. But for many, the practice of using a physical dictionary is quickly going to the wayside, and companies are finding new ways to make a profit. In the digital age, user-friendly websites, smartphone apps and built-in dictionary software on devices are replacing the behemoth books…





Wiki Wednesday: Superior (proposed U.S. state)

While we may not be adding a 51st star to the American flag any time soon, it’s not out of the question. And no, I’m not talking about Puerto Rico or Washington D.C., although those are possible 51st states as well. I’m thinking a little closer to home…





Word of the Week: Busy

Today, we equate busyness with sophistication and superiority. The more colors on the calendar, the more, “Can’t talk, gotta run,” moments, the more dinners in the car instead of at the table, the better. When the word “busy” entered the English language, though, it didn’t refer to sophistication — or even people. The old German root of busy, — “bisen,” meant “to run around wildly, especially of cattle,” according to the Oxford English Dictionary…




Looking For a Fresh Face
There is a huge gap between the racial diversity of our world and those represented in the digital world.

Emojis are a big part of Joey Parker’s life. He is constantly on his iPhone, answering emails, texting or surfing the web like most of the millions of other Millennials.





Word of the Week: Property

For American Indians, land is wild, untamed and holy. The government has other thoughts — land is something to conquer, utilize and cultivate. Oddly enough, the word “property” comes from the French word “propre,” meaning “neatness.” Perhaps the idea of organization lent itself to ownership. The French word initially referred to “decent dress and manners” in 1538, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, but by 1719, it was defined as land and ultimately, nature: “a piece of land under one ownership.”





Wiki Wednesday: Adrianne Wadewitz

Adrianne Wadewitz, an influential Wikipedia editor and Omaha native, died April 8 from head injuries sustained a week earlier in a rock climbing accident. The prolific Wikipedian — as regular Wikipedia contributors are called — fell 15-to-20 feet when her anchor failed while rappelling a rock formation in Joshua Tree National Park in southeastern California. Wadewitz, 37, said rock climbing created “a new narrative about herself, beyond that of a bookish, piano-playing Wikipedia contributor.”





Word of the Week: Justice

A call for “justice” typically indicates something grave and unlawful. Well before “We want justice!” became a slogan for the wronged, it was a slogan for the thirsty. The 11th-century Latin word “iustitia” — an ancestor of “justice” — refers not to righting a wrong, but to, well, a tall one, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, justice was defined as a: “vessel containing a lawful amount of ale or wine, flagon.”





Get Your Book On.
National Library Week celebrates information heroism

There are a lot of weird national holidays and celebrations, but this week we’ve been celebrating a group of people and services that help us survive academia—and life, for that matter. National Library Week is dedicated to honoring those information superheroes helping you with everything from getting your first library card to getting that crucial piece of information for your master’s thesis…





Wiki Wednesday: Gary Gygax

Dungeons & Dragons is best known as the pastime of the quintessential nerd — D&D players are portrayed as the “epitome of geekdom,” according to the Wikipedia page … and not in a good way. But 40 years after its creation, D&D — the first and most famous modern role-playing game — is still going strong. Just check out the comedy chops of these famous D&D players: Stephen Colbert, Vin Diesel, James Franco, Dan Harmon, Mike Myers, Patton Oswalt, Robin Williams and Rainn Wilson…





Laying Claim
The system created to help innovation ends in headaches, paperwork nightmares

Ryan Grace wanted to propose to Ellie Colyer in a unique way. So he wrote a step-by-step plan for the marriage proposal in the form of a patent titled “Method and Instrument for Proposing Marriage to an Individual.” The patent application was actually the proposal. Grace asked Colyer. She said “yes.” Together, they mailed the proposal plan to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on March 3, 2003. He got the girl. Not surprisingly, he didn’t get the patent…





Word of the Week: Hero

If you put it on the Internet, it’s there forever. A modern band of digital superheroes — a.k.a. user interface designers — make it simple for us to navigate the vast realm of the Internet. Though the World Wide Web didn’t emerge until the late-20th century, those Internet superheroes date back, oddly enough, to the 16th century…




Meth: The Rich History of the Poor Man’s Drug

Methamphetamines are everywhere: on TV, in the news and a constant part of anti-drug campaigns. But the meth outbreak began long ago, thousands of miles away. “There’s not that much that’s new about it, even though people think of it as new,” Nick Reding, author of Methland, said. His book discusses the influence of the drug in small-town America. “It’s a drug that’s perfectly suited for the American cultural norms of success.” From military to medicinal purposes, learn how the use of meth evolved from an asthma treatment to a Midwest epidemic…





Wiki Wednesday: Credit Island

As they say at RAYGUN: the Midwest is “landlocked and loaded.” But let’s get something straight — we have more than just amber waves of (badass) grain.

We have islands! Seriously…




Novelty Farm Animals
Miniature animals have both purpose and cuteness on their side

The Midwest is built on farming. Across the region, it’s not uncommon to hit a farm every few miles, most of which boil down to crops and cattle. But the ever-growing suburbs are starting to encroach on what was once farmland. Farmers are hard-pressed to find enough land to handle 500 head of cattle. That’s where miniature cows come in. They’re smaller — of course. They eat less, which means less land is needed. And they can do anything a regular cow can do, just cuter…





Word of the Week: Miniature

Taking pics with my new miniature miniature!” With your, um, what?
While the word “miniature,” meaning “tiny,” followed a pretty typical path from Latin to the English language, it adopted an unexpected definition in the mid-20th century: “camera.” According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the British Journal of Photography announced the debut of newer, smaller cameras in 1952: “Several miniature miniatures have already appeared on the market.”





Write outside your comfort zone

Sometimes you just need to get away.
For writers, the office can take a variety of forms — from a cubicle to a coffee shop, to an airport bathroom. No matter the space, distractions can come from anywhere. Luckily, writers’ retreats and residencies are on the upswing. Ranging from a few days to a couple months, residencies allow writers to focus on their work. Here are a few opportunites we’d gladly leave the real world for…





Wiki Wednesday: General American

We talk pretty. Wikipedia confirms it.

Although Midwesterners pride ourselves on our un-muddled manner of speaking, we do, in fact, have an accent. It just happens to be the widely accepted English “standard.” General American is most closely related the Midwestern accent. Note this excludes the Northern Midwest. Northern Midwesterners, Michiganders in particular, have their own distinct accent — no matter how much they protest…





Word of the Week: Millennial

The word “Millennial” hardly prompts a celebration. We’re that entitled, tech-addicted, lazy generation, after all…





Wiki Wednesday: Frank Wills (Security Guard)

Frank Wills saved the United States; but nobody knows his name.

Wills, a private security guard at the Watergate complex, discovered the group of burglars in the Democratic National Committee offices. In case you haven’t brushed up on your Watergate history, information gathered from the burglars’ trials brought the scandal to light and eventually let to President Nixon’s impeachment…





Word of the Week: Screwed

You can screw around. You can screw up, screw off or put the screws on someone. You can also just screw him or her; or you can get totally screwed…





10 Mistakes that Worked
From Viagra to vaccinations, these happy accidents changed the world.

Today’s inventor landscape requires thinking outside the box — or sometimes, thinking about the box itself. That was the case for award-winning inventors Tony and Sharon Cruze of Willmar, Minn. They created the Lightning Box — a fishing tool that easily illuminates glowing lures…


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