Terrific did not begin life as a compliment. It comes from the Latin terrificus, meaning “that which causes terror,” built from terrere (to frighten) and facere (to make). When the word entered English in the seventeenth century, a terrific event was something that rattled the nerves, a violent storm, a massive explosion, a spectacle that … Continue reading Tom’s Fun with Words – Terrific
The Quantum Entanglement Cosmology (QEC) Theory posits that the universe functions as a closed-loop gravitational system in which black holes act not as destructive endpoints, but as “intake nodes” in a vast, quantum-entangled network woven through spacetime foam. Matter and energy drawn into a black hole do not cease to exist; instead, they are channeled … Continue reading Quantum Entanglement Cosmology
The prefix di- comes from Greek and means “two” or “double,” appearing in words like divide and dioxide. That's obvious (duh), but what the heck is a lemma? Sounds like a bean or wooly-haired critter or something. Well, from Greek again, lemma means “a proposition or choice.” Thus, "di-lemma" literally means “two propositions” or “two … Continue reading Tom’s Fun with Words – Dilemma
Today we’re going to talk about con. That small Latin prefix means “with” or “together,” and it shows up everywhere. For instance: connect, converse, context. The uses are straightforward enough. Connect comes from con + nectere, meaning “to bind together.” Converse comes from con + vertere, “to turn with,” the back-and-forth turning of words between … Continue reading Tom’s Fun with Words – CON
The pronouns Who and whom are about grammatical roles, not importance, and their distinction mostly matters in formal writing. Who is used when the person is doing the action in the sentence. Whom is used when the person is receiving the action. A simple way to remember this is that the shooter is who, and … Continue reading Tom’s Fun with Words – Who’s Shooting Whom?
A man who voluntarily assumes responsibility for the welfare and protection of others occupies a quietly heroic role. He stands between order and chaos not for recognition, but because someone must. His actions are not transactional. He does what needs doing because it is right, and in doing so he leaves a visible path for … Continue reading Masculinity and the Complementary Order
This anecdote became the basis for my book, Howlers: Lupus Rex. It happened in January 1983 while I was in Orlando, attending the Navy's Nuclear Power School. This is what really happened, not what I put in the book for cinematic purposes. Having grown up in the piney woods and high swamps of northern Louisiana, … Continue reading All Fact, No Proof: Dirt Road
When I was in school, I tried to pay attention to my English teachers. Sadly, I had other things on my mind. I remember having a lesson on split infinitives, though I never really understood what they were or why they were supposedly bad until I started writing for pay twenty-five odd years ago. Now … Continue reading Tom’s Fun with Words – Split Infinitives
One day, my friend Maksim Smelchak posed a thought-provoking question: "What is a technological singularity to you? How do you define the term? Skynet?" As I pondered over my response, my initial snarky remark about Skynet and true AI evolved into a deeper reflection on the nature of authentic intelligence and its potential impact on … Continue reading Technological Singularities and ChatGPT 4.0
If you have your hands on a rare Texas Tom Cutting or Brisket Board, it will last for years with some basic maintenance. But remember—it is a cutting board and is meant to be used. It will get cuts and dings, but that’s just patina. Enjoy using it! When you first get your board, you … Continue reading Caring for your Texas Tom Board
Tom Bont's Silver Key 