NEW
v.
To do something that is both stimulating and relaxing. [thrill + relax]
—thrillaxing pp.
—thrillaxation n.
—thrillaxing pp.
—thrillaxation n.
Tim Locke, head of marketing at Mark Warner, said there was a "growing trend for people wanting to combine fitness and well-being on holiday", which he put down to the Olympics...PR wags have even had coined the term "thrillax" to describe the trend.
—Josie Gurney-Read, "Olympic Games inspires interest in active holidays," The Daily Telegraph, Aug 8, 2012
—Josie Gurney-Read, "Olympic Games inspires interest in active holidays," The Daily Telegraph, Aug 8, 2012
NEW
n.
An erroneous or inadvertent trade, particularly one that has significant market consequences, caused by a typo. Also: fat finger, fat-finger trade, fat fingers trade.
A trader at RBS has admitted to making a fat finger trade in the EUR/CHF pair Monday, a spokesperson for the bank told Reuters...Initial reports had claimed that it was RBS's algorithms that caused the spike. However, those reports were later proven wrong. It turns out that it was a simple fat finger trade that caused the spike and algos reacted to send the pair even higher.
—Matthew Kanterman, "Another Day, Another Trading Glitch: RBS Admits Responsibility in EUR/CHF Spike," Benzinga, August 9, 2012
—Matthew Kanterman, "Another Day, Another Trading Glitch: RBS Admits Responsibility in EUR/CHF Spike," Benzinga, August 9, 2012
NEW
n.
A period of excessive indulgence spent watching previously broadcast episodes of a TV show.
—binge viewer n.
—binge viewer n.
Binge viewing is transforming the way people watch television and changing the economics of the industry....Now, technologies such as on-demand video and digital video recorders are giving rise to the binge viewer, who devours shows in quick succession—episode after episode, season after season, perhaps for $7.99 a month, the cost of a basic Netflix membership.
—John Jurgensen, "Binge Viewing: TV's Lost Weekends," The Wall Street Journal, July 12, 2012
—John Jurgensen, "Binge Viewing: TV's Lost Weekends," The Wall Street Journal, July 12, 2012
NEW
n.
An organization or movement where power and respect go to people who get things done. Also: doocracy.
In fact, the success of Anonymous without leaders is pretty easy to understand—if you forget everything you think you know about how organizations work. Anonymous is a classic "do-ocracy," to use a phrase that's popular in the open source movement. As the term implies, that means rule by sheer doing: Individuals propose actions, others join in (or not), and then the Anonymous flag is flown over the result.
—Quinn Norton, "How Anonymous Picks Targets, Launches Attacks, and Takes Powerful Organizations Down," Wired, July 3, 2012
—Quinn Norton, "How Anonymous Picks Targets, Launches Attacks, and Takes Powerful Organizations Down," Wired, July 3, 2012
NEW
v.
To ride a bicycle against the flow of traffic. Also: bike salmon, salmon bike.
—salmoning pp.
—salmon n.
—salmoning pp.
—salmon n.
I am not anarchic; I heed most traffic laws. I do not ride on the sidewalk (O.K., except for the final 25 feet between the curb cut and my front door, and then with caution). I do not salmon, i.e. ride against traffic.
—Randy Cohen, "If Kant Were a New York Cyclist," The New York Times, August 4, 2012
—Randy Cohen, "If Kant Were a New York Cyclist," The New York Times, August 4, 2012
NEW
n.
A very small condominium unit; a condominium building with a small number of floors.
So, what's the answer? As far as urban homes go, it might be a radical downsizing of condos and apartments. "Pocket condos" — or very small condos, under 550 square feet — have been around forever in New York City and are now showing up in many other major cities.
—Marnie Bennett, "Predicting the housing needs of Gen Y can be tricky," Ottawa Citizen, November 5, 2011
—Marnie Bennett, "Predicting the housing needs of Gen Y can be tricky," Ottawa Citizen, November 5, 2011
NEW
n.
Excessive environmental regulations and guidelines that must be followed before an official action can be taken. Also: greentape.
The Prime Minister will use a high-powered business forum in Canberra today to support industry concerns about the burden of "green tape" that leads to delays and cost blowouts on projects.
—David Crowe and Annabel Hepworth, "PM tells premiers to cut green tape to free capital," The Australian, April 12, 2012
—David Crowe and Annabel Hepworth, "PM tells premiers to cut green tape to free capital," The Australian, April 12, 2012
NEW
pp.
Snatching a person's iPhone, iPad, or iPod.
Nabbing electronic devices isn't new. But lately it is growing "exponentially" according to a 2011 report from the New York Police Department. The lucrative secondhand market for today's niftiest handsets has produced an explosion in "Apple picking" by thieves. A used iPad or iPhone can fetch more than $400.
—Rolfe Winkler, "Fighting the iCrime Wave," The Wall Street Journal, July 27, 2012
—Rolfe Winkler, "Fighting the iCrime Wave," The Wall Street Journal, July 27, 2012
NEW
v.
To create a Skype connection with a faraway partner and then fall asleep together.
—Skype sleeping pp.
—Skype sleeping pp.
Kaj Hasselriis brings us the sweet story of a couple who "Skype Sleep", that is keeping their laptops on all night and falling asleep together on Skype.
—Nora Young, "Spark 161 - November 6 & 9, 2011," CBC Radio, November 6, 2011
—Nora Young, "Spark 161 - November 6 & 9, 2011," CBC Radio, November 6, 2011
NEW
n.
An event where people support a local retailer by gathering en masse to purchase the store's products.
—cash mobber n.
—cash mobbing pp.
—cash mobber n.
—cash mobbing pp.
Cash mobs appear to be catching on in the suburbs south of Boston, targeting local businesses for one-day boosts in revenue to help keep them afloat in this slow economy.
Unlike the phenomenon of a flash mob, in which hundreds of people show up in one public place at the same time to sing, dance, or otherwise create a stir, organized cash mobs vote on which local businesses to support and visit on a designated day so as not to overwhelm the staff.
—Michele Morgan Bolton, "A new flavor in buying locally: cash mobs," The Boston Globe, June 7, 2012
NEW
pp.
Transferring company functions from paid employees to unpaid volunteers, particularly customers on social networks.
"Unsourcing", as the new trend has been dubbed, involves companies setting up online communities to enable peer-to-peer support among users. Instead of speaking with a faceless person thousands of miles away, customers' problems are answered by individuals in the same country who have bought and used the same products. This happens either on the company's own website or on social networks like Facebook and Twitter, and the helpers are generally not paid anything for their efforts.
—"Outsourcing is so last year," Babbage (The Economist), May 11th 2012
—"Outsourcing is so last year," Babbage (The Economist), May 11th 2012
NEW
n.
A writing genre in which the author undertakes an odd or stuntlike project with the intention of writing about the experience. Also: schtick lit, shtik lit.
Now, in his third book, he spends two years eating, exercising and researching his way to becoming "the healthiest man in the world."...
A.J. Jacobs remains the current heavyweight champion of shtick lit.
—Douglas Bell, "The king of shtick lit strikes again," The Globe and Mail, April 24, 2012
