Comments on: FT 12,931/Falcon – Non-Darwinian Evolution

By: Geoff Moss

Geoff Moss — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:32:43 +0000

Thank you Rufus and Eileen. I was aware of the ‘make a mistake’ meaning of ‘nod’ from previous crosswords but I had never heard of it in relation to Homer so I am glad that you took the time to explain the origin.

By: Eileen

Eileen — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:17:19 +0000

‘Sometimes even the noble Homer nods’ is a quotation from the Roman poet Horace’s Ars Poetica [The Art of Poetry], meaning that even the best of us have our off-days, so we can all take heart.

By: C.G. Rishikesh

C.G. Rishikesh — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:41:13 +0000

That definition is even in the 1993 edition. I guess it must be even in the earlier issues as well. I am unable to check as I have discarded the earlier ones.

Rufus must have alluded to the fact that under Homer/Homeric there is no mention of the famous or the infamous ‘nod’.

By: Uncle Yap

Uncle Yap — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:41:11 +0000

Rishi, on certain days like today, I can be very dense and not see what smiffy wrote
but thanks to Geoff and Rufus, I am now slightly smarter (homeric nod)

By: Geoff Moss

Geoff Moss — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:35:19 +0000

Rufus
The definition I gave is in both the 11th Ed. and the one published in 1998. There is no reference to Homer though.

By: Rufus

Rufus — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:31:15 +0000

Sorry Geoff, you pipped me to the post-ing. You must have a different edition of Chambers!

By: C.G. Rishikesh

C.G. Rishikesh — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:29:12 +0000

But that is already indicated in the blog. And smiffy even glances at the proverbial expression “Even Homer nods”.

So I don’t understand Uncle Yap’s intention in making the query.

By: Rufus

Rufus — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:28:29 +0000

At last I can enlighten Uncle Yap on something, rather than the other way around!
Homer occasionally made small errors in his works forgetting parts of his early story in its sequence or character progression. This was referred to as “Homer nodding” and any such lapse of continuity is known as a “Homeric nod”. Surprised not to find it in Chambers under “Homeric” though.

By: Geoff Moss

Geoff Moss — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:23:39 +0000

20d nod – to make a careless mistake through inattention (Chambers)

By: Uncle Yap

Uncle Yap — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:01:12 +0000

Thank you Smiffy, I also miss Darwin, where I spent a few weeks years ago

24A deserves to be called the clue of the day (Cyclops of Private Eye will surely agree with me

20D Novi Sad is a Serbian port. Can someone please explain the word play ; insertion of VISA (travel document) in ….