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=SDC= Q33: Rarely fatal

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Jerry Friedman

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Sep 3, 2012, 11:26:15 PM9/3/12
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An arthropod has or had a colloquial name that appears to be a variant
of a well-known word derived from a person's name, though there's no
apparent connection to the person or the word. What is the colloquial
name, and what is a scientific name or widely used and unequivocal
common name for the arthropod?

Toughie: What is the origin of this name? (The panel has no idea.)

--
Jerry Friedman, T. O. Panelist

the Omrud

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Sep 5, 2012, 4:32:05 AM9/5/12
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Unlikely, but: Assassin Bug, Reduviidae?

--
David

James Hogg

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Sep 5, 2012, 5:10:21 AM9/5/12
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Even more unlikely: the cranefly (Tipula spp) is known as
Harry-long-legs, after Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

--
James

Vinny Burgoo

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Sep 5, 2012, 9:00:06 AM9/5/12
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Beetles used to be called 'bobs', if that helps. Which it doesn't.

Then there's 'danibutcha', which bears a spooky resemblance to the name
of a minor character in Eastenders but is an Aboriginal word meaning
'crayfish'.

I'll get me coat.

--
VB
Don't come the raw prawn with me, you hellgrammite barnacle dobson gurnipper

msh210

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Sep 6, 2012, 5:43:21 PM9/6/12
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On Sept. 3rd, Jerry Friedman Totally Officially asked:
A related colloquial name for it appears to combine the names of two
characters from series by a certain writer, except that a long vowel
in the second name has been changed to a short vowel (in the British
sense, which is appropriate, because the writer is English). One
character is a swinging hero whose skin may be white or black; the
other is the sidekick of an antihero whose skin is definitely white.

Michael Hamm
TO Hinter

Frank S

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Sep 6, 2012, 6:08:57 PM9/6/12
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"msh210" <msh...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:4b70f17e-00e4-4dc2...@z4g2000vby.googlegroups.com...
"The brown recluse spider or violin spider, Loxosceles reclusa, Sicariidae
is a spider with a venomous bite. Brown recluse spiders are usually between
6-20 mm, but may grow larger."
--Wikipedia

Jerry Friedman

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Sep 7, 2012, 3:17:31 PM9/7/12
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<smile>

Yet another common name refers to an animal that it's falsely supposed
to attack. You still need to come with either of the common names we
asked for first.

--
Jerry Friedman, T. O. hinter

Katy Jennison

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Sep 7, 2012, 4:38:22 PM9/7/12
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Goliath bird-eater, Theraphosa blondi?

--
Katy Jennison

James Hogg

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Sep 8, 2012, 4:22:00 AM9/8/12
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I was pursuing a similar trail, looking for creatures called
"maneaters". I found one known for some unknown reason as the
"dobson(fly)", Corydalus cornutus, with a larval stage known as
"hellgrammites", "go-devils" or "crawlerbottoms".

I'm sure that's not right either, but it's the best I can do.

--
James

Katy Jennison

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Sep 8, 2012, 5:47:03 PM9/8/12
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Alternatively, given that it's an arthropod. I started to wonder about
crabs. I've got no further as I've been away out all day.

--
Katy Jennison

James Hogg

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Sep 8, 2012, 5:54:26 PM9/8/12
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What about the additional clue? How are you on series? From the wording,
it could be television, not necessarily books. Nothing springs to mind.

"A related colloquial name for it appears to combine the names of two
characters from series by a certain writer, except that a long vowel
in the second name has been changed to a short vowel (in the British
sense, which is appropriate, because the writer is English). One
character is a swinging hero whose skin may be white or black; the
other is the sidekick of an antihero whose skin is definitely white."



--
James

Katy Jennison

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Sep 9, 2012, 1:45:21 PM9/9/12
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I'd forgotten about that. My mind is currently a blank, but I'll
ruminate. I'm hopeless on TV series, but if it's books or possibly
cartoons there's a possibility.

--
Katy Jennison

Jerry Friedman

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Sep 9, 2012, 2:00:34 PM9/9/12
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SF books, if that helps.

James Hogg

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Sep 9, 2012, 2:06:05 PM9/9/12
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That would explain why the clues say nothing to me.

--
James

Snidely

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Sep 9, 2012, 2:23:47 PM9/9/12
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Jerry Friedman was thinking very hard :
Not Dangermouse, then.

/dps

--
Who, me? And what lacuna?


Jerry Friedman

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Sep 10, 2012, 11:52:53 AM9/10/12
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On Sep 7, 1:17 pm, Jerry Friedman <je...@totally-official.com> wrote:
> On Sep 5, 3:10 am, James Hogg <Jas.H...@gOUTmail.com> wrote:
> > the Omrud wrote:
> > > On 04/09/2012 04:26, Jerry Friedman wrote:
> > >> An arthropod has or had a colloquial name that appears to be a variant
> > >> of a well-known word derived from a person's name, though there's no
> > >> apparent connection to the person or the word.  What is the colloquial
> > >> name, and what is a scientific name or widely used and unequivocal
> > >> common name for the arthropod?
>
> > >> Toughie: What is the origin of this name?  (The panel has no idea.)
>
> > > Unlikely, but: Assassin Bug, Reduviidae?
>
> > Even more unlikely: the cranefly (Tipula spp) is known as
> > Harry-long-legs, after Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
>
> <smile>
>
> Yet another common name refers to an animal that it's falsely supposed
> to attack.
...

I meant "mammal". By the way, the well-known word derived from a
person's name is an American word that I have a particular reason to
be interested in--especially the variant of it used for the arthropod.

Katy Jennison

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Sep 10, 2012, 12:54:05 PM9/10/12
to
I'm definitely stuck, but I thought you'd like the giant centipede
called "Jerry Arthropod", who lives only in the fantasy-rpg land of Fae
in the Legend of Elysia. He seems to be loosely related to our own
Scolopendra gigantea, who's been known to eat mice. I fear, though,
that this is not the TO Answer.

--
Katy Jennison

Jerry Friedman

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Sep 10, 2012, 1:39:28 PM9/10/12
to
On Sep 10, 10:54 am, Katy Jennison <k...@spamtrap.kjennison.com>
wrote:
> On 10/09/2012 16:52, Jerry Friedman wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > On Sep 7, 1:17 pm, Jerry Friedman<je...@totally-official.com>  wrote:
> >> On Sep 5, 3:10 am, James Hogg<Jas.H...@gOUTmail.com>  wrote:
> >>> the Omrud wrote:
> >>>> On 04/09/2012 04:26, Jerry Friedman wrote:
> >>>>> An arthropod has or had a colloquial name that appears to be a variant
> >>>>> of a well-known word derived from a person's name, though there's no
> >>>>> apparent connection to the person or the word.  What is the colloquial
> >>>>> name, and what is a scientific name or widely used and unequivocal
> >>>>> common name for the arthropod?
>
> >>>>> Toughie: What is the origin of this name?  (The panel has no idea.)
>
> >>>> Unlikely, but: Assassin Bug, Reduviidae?
>
> >>> Even more unlikely: the cranefly (Tipula spp) is known as
> >>> Harry-long-legs, after Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
>
> >> <smile>
>
> >> Yet another common name refers to an animal that it's falsely supposed
> >> to attack.
> > ...
>
> > I meant "mammal".  By the way, the well-known word derived from a
> > person's name is an American word that I have a particular reason to
> > be interested in--especially the variant of it used for the arthropod.
>
> I'm definitely stuck, but I thought you'd like the giant centipede
> called "Jerry Arthropod", who lives only in the fantasy-rpg land of Fae
> in the Legend of Elysia.

Definitely!

"Jerry
Full Name: Jerry Arthropod
Gender: Male
Race: Giant centipede
Occupation: Horrible Poisonous Bastard"

What's not to like?

> He seems to be loosely related to our own
> Scolopendra gigantea, who's been known to eat mice.  I fear, though,
> that this is not the TO Answer.

No, but you're on the right track.

--
Jerry Friedman, T. O. H. P. B.

Katy Jennison

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Sep 10, 2012, 1:45:06 PM9/10/12
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Hmm. I like this, from the Wikip entry for centipedes. "A 19th century
Tibetan poet warned his fellow Buddhists that "if you enjoy frightening
others, you will be reborn as a centipede."

--
Katy Jennison

Mike L

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Sep 10, 2012, 3:31:25 PM9/10/12
to
On Mon, 10 Sep 2012 10:39:28 -0700 (PDT), Jerry Friedman
<je...@totally-official.com> wrote:

>On Sep 10, 10:54 am, Katy Jennison <k...@spamtrap.kjennison.com>
>wrote:
>[...]
>> I'm definitely stuck, but I thought you'd like the giant centipede
>> called "Jerry Arthropod", who lives only in the fantasy-rpg land of Fae
>> in the Legend of Elysia.
>
>Definitely!
>
>"Jerry
>Full Name: Jerry Arthropod
>Gender: Male
>Race: Giant centipede
>Occupation: Horrible Poisonous Bastard"
>
>What's not to like?
[...]

Sig restored:
>Jerry Friedman, T. O. H. P. B.

Don't flatter yourself. I've just spent a happy few minutes trying to
assess which RRs, present company excepted, compete with you for the
title of T.O. Least-H. Non-P. Un-B. Among others, you seem to be
tieing for gold with Linz.

--
Mike.

Vinny Burgoo

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Sep 10, 2012, 5:16:42 PM9/10/12
to
In alt.usage.english, Katy Jennison wrote:
>On 10/09/2012 18:39, Jerry Friedman wrote:
>> On Sep 10, 10:54 am, Katy Jennison<k...@spamtrap.kjennison.com>
>>> On 10/09/2012 16:52, Jerry Friedman wrote:
>>>> On Sep 7, 1:17 pm, Jerry Friedman<je...@totally-official.com> wrote:

[...]

>>>>> Yet another common name refers to an animal that it's falsely supposed
>>>>> to attack.

This question is bugging me. I'm sure I chanced upon the answer last
week but I'm unable to retrace my steps. (I don't think I'm thinking of
the lizards known as scorpions.)

>>>> I meant "mammal". By the way, the well-known word derived from a
>>>> person's name is an American word that I have a particular reason to
>>>> be interested in--especially the variant of it used for the arthropod.
>>>
>>> I'm definitely stuck, but I thought you'd like the giant centipede
>>> called "Jerry Arthropod", who lives only in the fantasy-rpg land of Fae
>>> in the Legend of Elysia.
>>
>> Definitely!
>>
>> "Jerry
>> Full Name: Jerry Arthropod
>> Gender: Male
>> Race: Giant centipede
>> Occupation: Horrible Poisonous Bastard"
>>
>> What's not to like?
>>
>>> He seems to be loosely related to our own Scolopendra gigantea,
>>>who's been known to eat mice. I fear, though, that this is not the
>>>TO Answer.

I had hoped that the similarly sized Bajan godhorse, Bostra maxwelli
(Wikipedia says it's now Paraphanocles keratosqueleton: squeleton?),
might be a candidate but nobody seems to be afraid of it in any way.

>> No, but you're on the right track.
>
>Hmm. I like this, from the Wikip entry for centipedes. "A 19th century
>Tibetan poet warned his fellow Buddhists that "if you enjoy frightening
>others, you will be reborn as a centipede."

I'm somewhat surprised by this in the Wikip entry for a European
woodlouse:

Because of their unusual yet non-threatening appearance, some
Armadillidium vulgare are kept as pets in areas throughout the
U.S., typically among children.

--
VB

Katy Jennison

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Sep 10, 2012, 5:28:50 PM9/10/12
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Oh, the walking-stick insect, or Hag's Horse. It says people are afraid
it will crawl into their ear, but no-one's actually caught them at it.
What exciting critters there are in other countries.

-
Katy Jennison

Jerry Friedman

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Sep 12, 2012, 1:15:18 PM9/12/12
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You're too kind!

The T. O. answer was Solifugae (sun spiders, camel spiders, etc.) The
common names we had in mind were "jerrymander" and "jerrymunglum", at
least formerly used by British soldiers in North Africa and those
places. ("Jerrymunglum" suggests Jerry Cornelius and Moonglum, two of
Michael Moorcock's characters.)

--
Jerry Friedman

James Hogg

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Sep 12, 2012, 1:36:54 PM9/12/12
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It's always a relief to find that the answer is something I've never
heard of. Less need to kick myself.

--
James

Katy Jennison

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Sep 12, 2012, 2:15:39 PM9/12/12
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My thoughts exactly.

--
Katy Jennison

Frank S

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Sep 12, 2012, 8:05:35 PM9/12/12
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"Katy Jennison" <ka...@spamtrap.kjennison.com> wrote in message
news:k2qjga$ob6$1...@news.albasani.net...
I knew there was an explanation for the pleasure in "Aha!" and "Aahhhhhh"
reactions upon being shown up as a Loser.

--
Frank ess


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