NeuroDojo

Games scientist play

The techno-savvy among you may have heard of "Googlewhacking": trying to find a query on the massively popular search engine Google that produces exactly one webpage. (I actually produced a Googlewhack a couple of days back -- but, to my chagrin, can't remember what the search was.) Now, biologists have their own version: Pub-Med whacking. Pub-Med is a huge biomedical database much used by folks in my field.

Clearly, "whacking" is due for a new entry in the OED. (Incidentally, their "Word of the day" feature is free, and fun for those who love words. My favourite new word that I learned: "stour," meaning conflict or uproar.)