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November 30, 2007
New Word Needed
I need a new word. What do you call it when you accidentally learn something, but then really and truly wish you could somehow unlearn it? I ask because the need came up recently while reading Brink Lindsey's otherwise interesting new book The Age of Abundance: How Prosperity Transformed America's Politics and Culture.
Nominally fairly highbrow stuff about wealth, the culture wars, and the unexpected 20th century rise of U.S. libertarianism, the book has a brief passage around page 195 on sexual mores and the 1960s mainstreaming of adult entertainment. And then you turn the page and the Cato vice president hits you with this:
Oh, ewwwwwwww.
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"accilearn" - accidental learning
one more -
"learndent" - learnt by accident, or dented by learning something
The "Crying Game" Memory Wipe?
memotoxin
"TMI" is the mainstream term that's pretty close to what you want. I'm sure the Germans have a word that's a better fit, but alas, I don't know German.
It's called "growing up." Nobody said it was pretty. Someone said it better than I ever could: "the truth shall set you free but first it'll make you miserable."
ickheimers "hoping that something unpalatable will be forgotten. Hopefully the ickheimers will set in and that can be all behind us.
http://nakedshorts.typepad.com/nakedshorts/2007/12/new-to-the-fina.html
just a selection of new words....
If you want a German word, I'd suggest "die Wissenschmerz" (dee viss-sen-shmerts), or "the pain of knowing". Other than that I can't beat memotoxin.
"Involuntary Awareness"
As in, "The defendant caused serious harm to my client by making him involuntarily aware of the fact in question."
OK, two words.