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Old Wives' Tale
An "old wives' tale" is a colloquial expression referring to spurious or superstitious claims. They can be said sometimes to be a type of urban legend, said to be passed down by older women to a younger generation. Such tales are considered superstition, folklore or unverified claims with exaggerated and/or inaccurate details. Old wives' tales often centre on women's traditional concerns, such as pregnancy, puberty, social relations, health, herbalism and nutrition. Origins In this context, the word ''wife'' means "woman" rather than "married woman". This usage stems from Old English ' ("woman") and is akin to the German ' (also meaning "woman"). This sense of the word is still used in Modern English in constructions such as ''midwife'' and '' fishwife''. Old wives' tales are often invoked to discourage certain behaviours, usually of children, or to share knowledge of folk cures for ailments ranging from toothaches to dysentery. The concept of old wives' tales has existed f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Urban Legend
Urban legend (sometimes modern legend, urban myth, or simply legend) is a genre of folklore concerning stories about an unusual (usually scary) or humorous event that many people believe to be true but largely are not. These legends can be entertaining but often concern mysterious peril or troubling events, such as disappearances and strange objects or entities. Urban legends may confirm moral standards, reflect prejudices, or be a way to make sense of societal anxieties. In the past, urban legends were most often circulated orally, at gatherings and around the Campfire story, campfire for instance. Now, they can be spread by any media, including newspapers, mobile news apps, e-mail, and most often, social media. Some urban legends have passed through the years/decades with only minor changes, in where the time period takes place. Generic urban legends are often altered to suit regional variations, but the lesson or moral generally remains the same. Origin and structure Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toothaches
Toothaches, also known as dental pain or tooth pain,Segen JC. (2002). ''McGraw-Hill Concise Dictionary of Modern Medicine''. The McGraw-Hill Companies. is pain in the teeth or their supporting structures, caused by dental diseases or pain referred to the teeth by non-dental diseases. When severe it may impact sleep, eating, and other daily activities. Common causes include inflammation of the pulp, (usually in response to tooth decay, dental trauma, or other factors), dentin hypersensitivity, apical periodontitis (inflammation of the periodontal ligament and alveolar bone around the root apex), dental abscesses (localized collections of pus), alveolar osteitis ("dry socket", a possible complication of tooth extraction), acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis (a gum infection), and temporomandibular disorder. Pulpitis is reversible when the pain is mild to moderate and lasts for a short time after a stimulus (for instance cold); or irreversible when the pain is severe, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Public Opinion
Public opinion, or popular opinion, is the collective opinion on a specific topic or voting intention relevant to society. It is the people's views on matters affecting them. In the 21st century, public opinion is widely thought to be heavily influenced by the media; many studies have been undertaken which look at the different factors which influence public opinion. Politicians and other people concerned with public opinion often attempt to influence it using advertising or rhetoric. Opinion plays a vital role in uncovering some critical decisions. Sentiment analysis or opinion mining is a method used to mine the thoughts or feelings of the general population. One of the struggles of public opinion is how it can be influenced by misinformation. Etymology The term "public opinion" was derived from the French ', which was first used in 1588 by Michel de Montaigne, one of the most significant philosophers of the French Renaissance, in the second edition of his famous '' Essays ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Urban Legends
British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture * British English, the English language as spoken and written in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and, more broadly, throughout the British Isles * Celtic Britons, an ancient ethno-linguistic group * Brittonic languages, a branch of the Insular Celtic language family (formerly called British) ** Common Brittonic, an ancient language Other uses *People or things associated with: ** Great Britain, an island ** British Isles, an island group ** United Kingdom, a sovereign state ** British Empire, a historical global colonial empire ** Kingdom of Great Britain (1707–1800) ** United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1801–1922) * British Raj, colonial India under the British Empire * British Hong Kong, colonial Ho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maxim (philosophy)
A maxim is a moral rule or principle which can be considered dependent on one's philosophy. A maxim is often pedagogical and motivates specific actions. Simon Blackburn, in the '' Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy'' defines it generally as: providing as examples: *"neither a borrower nor a lender be"; * Tennyson's "little hoard of maxims preaching down a daughter's heart", from his 1835 poem, Locksley Hall. Blackburn also notes that in Immanuel Kant's usage, Biblical usage The apochyphal Book of Sirach refers to the "maxims of the wise" as sayings to be treasured, because "from them you will learn discipline and how to serve princes". Deontological ethics In deontological ethics, mainly in Kantian ethics, maxims are understood as subjective principles of action. A maxim is thought to be part of an agent's thought process for every rational action, indicating in its standard form: (1) the action, or type of action; (2) the conditions under which it is to be done; and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lies-to-children
A lie-to-children is a simplified, and often technically incorrect, explanation of technical or complex subjects employed as a teaching method. Educators who employ lies-to-children do not intend to deceive, but instead seek to 'meet the child/pupil/student where they are', in order to facilitate initial comprehension, which they build upon over time as the learner's intellectual capacity expands. The technique has been incorporated by academics within the fields of biology, evolution, bioinformatics and the social sciences. Origin and development The "lie-to-children" concept was first discussed by scientist Jack Cohen (scientist), Jack Cohen and mathematician Ian Stewart (mathematician), Ian Stewart in the 1994 book ''The Collapse of Chaos: Discovering Simplicity in a Complex World'' as myths—a means of ensuring that accumulated cultural lore is passed on to future generations in a way that was sufficient but not completely true. They further elaborated upon their views in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fakelore
Invented traditions are cultural practices that are presented or perceived as traditional, arising from people starting in the distant past, but which are relatively recent and often consciously invented by historical actors. The concept was highlighted in the 1983 book ''The Invention of Tradition'', edited by Eric Hobsbawm and Terence Ranger. Hobsbawm's introduction argues that many "traditions" which "appear or claim to be old are often quite recent in origin and sometimes invented." This "invention" is distinguished from "starting" or "initiating" a tradition that does not then claim to be old. The phenomenon is particularly clear in the modern development of the nation and of nationalism, creating a national identity promoting national unity, and legitimising certain institutions or cultural practices. Background A set of practices, typically ritualistic or symbolic, aims to instill values and behavioral norms through repetition, such as saluting a flag before class. These p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aphorism
An aphorism (from Greek ἀφορισμός: ''aphorismos'', denoting 'delimitation', 'distinction', and 'definition') is a concise, terse, laconic, or memorable expression of a general truth or principle. Aphorisms are often handed down by tradition from generation to generation. The concept is generally distinct from those of an adage, brocard, chiasmus, epigram, maxim (legal maxim, legal or maxim (philosophy), philosophical), principle, proverb, and saying; although some of these concepts could be construed as types of aphorism. Often aphorisms are distinguished from other short sayings by the need for interpretation to make sense of them. In ''A Theory of the Aphorism'', Andrew Hui defined an aphorism as "a short saying that requires interpretation". A famous example is: History The word was first used in the ''Aphorisms'' of Hippocrates, a long series of propositions concerning the symptoms and diagnosis of disease and the art of healing and medicine. The often-c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Common Misconceptions
Each entry on this list of common misconceptions is worded as a correction; the misconceptions themselves are implied rather than stated. These entries are concise summaries; the main subject articles can be consulted for more detail. Common misconceptions are viewpoints or factoids that are often accepted as true, but which are actually false. They generally arise from conventional wisdom (such as old wives' tales), stereotypes, superstitions, fallacies, a misunderstanding of science, or the popularization of pseudoscience. Some common misconceptions are also considered to be urban legends, and they are sometimes involved in moral panics. Arts and culture '' View full version with citations'' History '' View full version with citations'' Science, technology and mathematics '' View full version with citations'' See also * Legends and myths regarding the ''Titanic'' * List of cognitive biases * List of conspiracy theories * List of fallacies * List of topics characte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coming Of Age
Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can be part of a ritual or spiritual event. In the past, and in some societies today, such a change is often associated with the age of sexual maturity ( puberty), especially menarche and spermarche. In others, it is associated with an age of religious responsibility. Particularly in Western societies, modern legal conventions stipulate points around the end of adolescence and the beginning of early adulthood (most commonly 16 and 18 though ranging from 14 to 21) when adolescents are generally no longer considered minors and are granted the full rights and responsibilities of an adult. Some cultures and countries have multiple coming of age ceremonies for multiple ages. Many cultures retain ceremonies to confirm the coming of age, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
First Epistle To Timothy
The First Epistle to Timothy is one of three letters in the New Testament of the Bible often grouped together as the pastoral epistles, along with Second Timothy and Titus. The letter, traditionally attributed to the Apostle Paul, consists mainly of counsels to his younger colleague and delegate Timothy regarding his ministry in Ephesus (1:3). These counsels include instructions on the organization of the Church and the responsibilities resting on certain groups of leaders therein as well as exhortations to faithfulness in maintaining the truth amid surrounding errors. Most modern scholars consider the pastoral epistles to have been written after Paul's death, although "a small and declining number of scholars still argue for Pauline authorship". Authorship The authorship of First Timothy was traditionally attributed to the Apostle Paul, although in pre-Nicene Christianity this attribution was open to dispute. He is named as the author of the letter in the text ( 1:1). N ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
