Glossary

Chemistry & neuroscience

Amyloid plaques

protein aggregates in Alzheimer's brains, associated with neuron death. — in lions mane

Blood-brain barrier

the selective membrane shielding the brain from most large molecules in the blood. — in lions mane

H. pylori (Helicobacter pylori)

a stomach bacterium implicated in ulcers and gastric cancer. — in lions mane

Metabolite

a compound an organism makes for defence or competition, not basic survival. — in lions mane

Neurite outgrowth

the growth of new axons and dendrites — the connections between neurons. — in lions mane

NGF biosynthesis

production of Nerve Growth Factor — a protein neurons need to survive and regenerate. — in lions mane

Oxidative stress

cellular damage from reactive oxygen molecules, implicated in ageing. — in lions mane

Design

achromatic

without colour — black, white and greys — in grey world color decline

blanding

bland + branding — the convergence of brand identities on the same minimalist look — in grey world color decline

chromophobia

fear or devaluation of colour — in grey world color decline

computer vision

software that extracts measurable features — colours, shapes, objects — from images — in grey world color decline

debranding

stripping a logo of ornament, colour, and often its symbol, down to a plain wordmark — in grey world color decline

dopamine decor

deliberately bright, joy-first interiors, named for the neurotransmitter associated with reward — in grey world color decline

grayscale

white, black, grey and silver together — colours with no hue — in grey world color decline

greige

grey-beige, the compromise neutral of the 2010s — in grey world color decline

grisaille

a painting technique executed entirely in grey monochrome — in grey world color decline

luminance

the brightness of an image, independent of its hue — in grey world color decline

orange-and-teal

a film-grading scheme pushing skin tones warm and shadows blue-green — complementary colours that make faces pop — in grey world color decline

saturation

the purity or intensity of a colour, from vivid down to grey — in grey world color decline

серость (seryost')

Russian "greyness," which also means mediocrity or drabness of spirit — in grey world color decline

Ecology & habitat

Buna-rin (ブナ林)

Japanese beech forest — the cool, humid montane forest of Honshu. — in lions mane

Endophytic

living inside plant tissue without immediate visible harm. — in lions mane

Functional sapwood

the living outer wood beneath the bark that conducts water. — in lions mane

Large-diameter dead wood

thick dead trees that hold moisture for years; the substrate it requires. — in lions mane

Taiga

the northern conifer-forest biome — not the broadleaf trees this fungus needs. — in lions mane

Economics & currency

Bilateral currency swap arrangement (BCSA)

a standing agreement between two central banks to exchange set amounts of each — in idr yuan conversion history

Cross rate

an exchange rate between two currencies derived mathematically from each one's rate — in idr yuan conversion history

Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS)

China's RMB-denominated payment-settlement network, launched in 2015, built so — in idr yuan conversion history

Liquidity / spread premium

the extra margin market-makers charge for a currency pair that trades in thinner — in idr yuan conversion history

Local Currency Settlement / Local Currency Transaction (LCS/LCT)

a Bank Indonesia framework letting trade and investment transactions between two — in idr yuan conversion history

Money illusion

the tendency to reason about money in nominal (face-value) rather than — in idr yuan conversion history

Redenominasi (redenomination)

striking zeros from a currency's face value without changing its real purchasing power. — in idr yuan conversion history

Sanering

an Indonesian-coined term (from Dutch, "sanitation/reorganization") for a forced — in idr yuan conversion history

Special Drawing Rights (SDR)

the IMF's composite reserve-asset unit, a weighted basket of major currencies used — in idr yuan conversion history

Fungal biology

Basidiomycota

the fungal division that makes spores on club-shaped cells. — in lions mane

Fruiting body

the reproductive structure — the visible mushroom. — in lions mane

Mycelium

the fungus's true body — a network of hair-thin threads (hyphae). — in lions mane

Parasite

lives at the expense of a living host without immediately killing it. — in lions mane

Primordia

the pin-stage fruiting bodies — the earliest visible bumps. — in lions mane

Saprotroph

an organism that feeds on dead organic matter, breaking it down externally. — in lions mane

Spawn

the "seed" culture — mycelium pre-grown to start new substrate. — in lions mane

Spores

single-celled reproductive units — like seeds in function, not structure. — in lions mane

Subclade

a branch within a species' family tree showing how populations diverged. — in lions mane

White-rot fungus

a wood-decomposer that breaks down both lignin and cellulose. — in lions mane

Linguistics

Can f 1

a major dog allergen protein, found in dander, saliva, and skin oils. — in doodle wackadoodle poodle

Caniche

the French name for the poodle, literally "duck dog." — in doodle wackadoodle poodle

Dander

microscopic flakes of shed skin, a primary vector for pet allergens. — in doodle wackadoodle poodle

Designer dog

a deliberately bred first-generation crossbreed, marketed under a portmanteau name. — in doodle wackadoodle poodle

Doodle (fool sense)

an old English word for a fool or simpleton, from the 1600s. — in doodle wackadoodle poodle

Doodle (scribble sense)

to draw or scribble idly while thinking of something else. — in doodle wackadoodle poodle

F1 / F1b / F2 / multigen

breeding-generation terms: first cross, backcross, second cross, later stabilized generations. — in doodle wackadoodle poodle

Hypoallergenic

less likely to trigger an allergic reaction — never allergen-free. — in doodle wackadoodle poodle

Pudel / Pudelhund

the German name for the poodle, literally "puddle-hound." — in doodle wackadoodle poodle

Wacky → wackadoodle

eccentric, comically unhinged; the suffix chain wacky → wackadoo → wackadoodle. — in doodle wackadoodle poodle

Music theory

6/8

a compound duple time signature — six eighth notes per bar, grouped into two dotted-quarter beats. — in creature half alive

BPM (beats per minute)

the standard measure of a song's speed; typical pop sits 100–130 BPM, 70 BPM is slow and deliberate. — in creature half alive

Chord progression

the sequence of chords that forms a song's harmonic backbone. — in creature half alive

Common time

the time signature 4/4 — four quarter-note beats per bar; the most prevalent in Western pop. — in creature half alive

Compound duple meter

a meter with two main beats per bar, each dividing naturally into three — a lilting, rolling feel. — in creature half alive

Compression

a technique reducing a signal's dynamic range — quiet parts louder, loud parts tamed — for evenness and closeness. — in creature half alive

Diction

a singer's style and precision of consonant articulation — how sharply or softly they hit word boundaries. — in creature half alive

Enharmonic

two differently-written notes (or keys) that sound identical — G♯ and A♭ are enharmonic equivalents. — in creature half alive

Falsetto

a vocal register where only the edges of the vocal cords vibrate — lighter, higher, often breathier than full chest voice. — in creature half alive

Head voice

the upper resonant register of the singing voice — adjacent to, but slightly fuller than, pure falsetto. — in creature half alive

Key signature

the set of sharps or flats at the start of a piece indicating its home key. — in creature half alive

Minor key

a tonal system on a scale with a flattened third — conventionally tied to tension, weight, or melancholy in Western music. — in creature half alive

Outro

the closing section of a song — typically a repeated or intensifying passage that winds it toward its end. — in creature half alive

Placement

a singer's imagined location of vocal resonance — "forward" resonates in the face, "back" in the chest/throat. — in creature half alive

Producer's fingerprint

the recognisable set of sonic choices — effects, mixing, arrangement philosophy — a producer applies across their work. — in creature half alive

Relative major

the major key that shares the same notes as a given minor key — G♯ minor's relative major is B major. — in creature half alive

Reverb

an effect simulating acoustic space — the tail of a sound echoing as if in a physical room. — in creature half alive

Self-backing vocalist

an artist who records their own harmonies and layered vocal parts. — in creature half alive

Tenor

the highest standard adult male voice type, roughly C3–C5, with extension above via falsetto. — in creature half alive

Timbre

the tonal "colour" of a sound — what makes a violin and a flute differ on the same note. (Said TAM-ber.) — in creature half alive

Time signature

the numerical notation at the start of a piece telling the performer how beats are organised per bar. — in creature half alive

Society & history

Kapitan

a Dutch colonial-era appointed leadership/intermediary role given to a prominent — in idr yuan conversion history

Peranakan

long-settled, intermarried, culturally localized descendants of earlier Chinese — in idr yuan conversion history

Totok

more recently arrived Chinese-Indonesian immigrants and their descendants, culturally — in idr yuan conversion history