A rock climber in Omaha, Nebraska, wonders about the term beta, which her fellow climbers use to refer to information about a particular route. It comes from the old practice of using Betamax video to record information about a climb. A good...
It’s a brand-new season of A Way with Words! Grant has big news, too: He’s used up his last Metrocard, packed up his belongings, and moved to the Left Coast. He reports on some features of California language there that are already...
Rock climbers use the term beta to refer to any information they receive about a route before climbing it. Is it related to beta as in “beta-testing software”? This is part of a complete episode.
time bomb n.— «Although it’s common for software developers to code a time limit into beta releases to force users to install the final version of a product, such automated deadlines—often called “time bombs”—are supposed to...
embaby n.— «I went for another beta today and I’m waiting for the results. I also had an u/s and I could see one little embryo!! It was amazing to see. My RE said there could be another one or two that pops up since we’re still so early...
ecosavant n.— «Then there’s Al Gore. During the 2000 election, the press seized on the conceit that Gore was too eager to please, too deferential, too indecisive. Today Gore is still the proto beta male—the on-again-off-again beard, the...