epidemiology (noun)
Epidemiology (ep-ih-dee-mee-AHL-uh-jee) is the branch of medicine that deals with the incidence, distribution, and possible control of diseases and other factors relating to health.
anomaly (noun)
An anomaly (un-NOM-uh-lee) is a deviation from the common rule, type, arrangement, or form. As I used it today: “[If, as Tom Dyson hypothesizes,] ‘it’s the supply and demand in the notional gold market that sets the gold price… not supply and demand in the physical gold market…’ this could explain the anomaly.”
Black Swan event (noun)
A Black Swan is an unpredictable event that is beyond what is normally expected of a situation and has potentially severe consequences. Black Swan events are characterized by their extreme rarity, their severe impact, and the widespread insistence they were obvious in hindsight. (Source: Investopedia)
As I used it today: “The point is that Black Swan events do happen. And when they create recessions, thousands of businesses go belly-up and millions of workers lose their jobs.”
“Government is like a baby. An alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other.” – Ronald Reagan
promulgate (verb)
To promulgate (PRAH-mul-gate) is to formally proclaim or put into action. As used by Karen Armstrong: “The first person to promulgate the Golden Rule… was Confucius 500 years before Christ.”
lugubrious (adjective)
Lugubrious (loo-GOO-bree-us) means sad, dismal, gloomy. As used by Victor Hugo in The Man Who Laughs: “After the disappearance of day into the vast of silent obscurity, he became in lugubrious accord with all around him.”
instigate (verb)
To instigate (IN-stih-gate) is to bring about or initiate an action or event. As I used it today: “Like every crash I’ve mentioned, [the “Great Recession” crash of 2008/2009] followed a long-term bull market (from 2002 to 2007). Also like the others, it was instigated by speculation. Not so much by speculation in conventional stocks, but by the widespread use of mortgage-backed securities in the housing sector.”
equanimity (noun)
Equanimity (ee-kwuh-NIM-ih-tee) is calmness; mental or emotional stability or composure, especially under tension or strain. As I used it today: “For insight into why I was getting so upset and a clue about how I could deal with these inevitable letdowns with more equanimity, I looked into two schools of philosophy.”
demur (verb)
To demur (dih-MUR) is to raise doubts or objections or show reluctance. As I used it today: “Still, I couldn’t say no to Dr. Al again. He is a good friend and an important client. And I’d been demurring on all sorts of hiking and climbing invitations from him for about two years.”
perpetuity (noun)
Perpetuity (pur-pih-TOO-ih-tee) – often preceded by “in” – is the state or character of being perpetual. It is used for something that is of endless or indefinitely long duration or existence. As I used it today: “If… instead of raising money to cover the budget every year, you were able to build an endowment large enough to support yearly expenses from dividend distributions… you wouldn’t have to worry about yearly fundraising. You would know that your program would continue in perpetuity, even after you are gone.”