So, apparently the ubiquitous F-word of the SciFi/Fantasyscape, "frack", as in "What do you mean there's no frackin' chips?" is . . . a real thing??
Championed by such speculative-fiction titans as Battlestar Galactica and Warehouse 13, the idea of fracking, or "to frack," is not actually as fun -- and is in truth far more naughty -- than Hollywood would lead you to believe. Not just the fictive step up from "hinky" (which is also a real word, not just an NCIS Abbyism) anymore, fracking is a method of injecting a toxic chemical cocktail into the ground to extract natural gas, much like our nigh-unconscious method of inciting a burp by swallowing a little bit of air; the gaseous link to the surface enables egress to hitherto isolated pockets, or bubbles...see Figure 1. It's not well-thought-of by the progressive liberals, which have an opinion-piece/FAQ here. Regardless of the politics, it blows my mind that fracking's a THING. Our language is actually way more comprehensive than the public seems to realize, and we do have words for the things we know about, we just have to frackin' learn them.
And I love 'em.
Even though communication occurs only when meaning is successfully conveyed, not when one person knows a bunch of obscure words, I can't help myself. It's like corn chips for my brain -- you think you just want, like, 3, and then you take down half the bag by yourself. And even though frack became frak on the good ol' BSG to make it an official "four-letter-word," it is still a bridge from Cylons to true eco-concerns that I invite you all to take; worry about "what will happen next time" on Days Of Our Lives, No Seriously, This Really Is Real Life.
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| Kana's Tummy-Bubble Figure 1 |
And I love 'em.
Even though communication occurs only when meaning is successfully conveyed, not when one person knows a bunch of obscure words, I can't help myself. It's like corn chips for my brain -- you think you just want, like, 3, and then you take down half the bag by yourself. And even though frack became frak on the good ol' BSG to make it an official "four-letter-word," it is still a bridge from Cylons to true eco-concerns that I invite you all to take; worry about "what will happen next time" on Days Of Our Lives, No Seriously, This Really Is Real Life.
Speaking of which...my vacuum might really be a Cylon.
Yay! That is so cool and so nerdy. I appreciate the denotative meaning of Frack, though as an expletive it makes me a little.. embarrassed for the television characters. Perhaps I need to read some of the books you're reading! It is always so cool to find new words people don't really use, like finding a treasure you didn't even know was in the attic.
ReplyDeleteBetter keep an eye on your vacyluum. Derp.