From spellingbee. Sounds like name of a place in India, but I couldn't confirm this
Aso a name of a toy:
"he yo-yo eventually made its way to the United States. But it took a long
while for it to become popular. The first U.S. patent for yo-yos was
awarded in 1866 to two Ohio inventors who called their toy a "better
bandalore," using the old English name. "
Sure does. Bangalore (or Banglore) is a city in southern India, the state capital of Karnataka; also known as the Indian 'silicon valley.'
Dear anchita: I first heard the term "Bangladore" in the Army,the "Bangladore torpedo", to refer to a long explosive charge that would requ;ire more than one man to carry it, and place in barbed wire, for instance, to clear a path for
attackers.
Thanks for the interesting info wwh. Some googling revealed that "The original Bangalore torpedo was designed in 1912 by Captain McClintock, an engineer who worked for Bengal, Bombay and Madras Sappers and Miners. Developed in Bangalore, India, the original design was not intended for warfare, but to clear pre-existing barbed-wire obstacles leftover from the Boer War and Russo-Japanese War."
The link is: http://www.sproe.com/b-bangalore.htm
In my case, the Bangalore Torpedo seems to have facilitated my entry into the newbie-territory from strangerland!!
Dear anchita: when I was a boy, the lady who lived in the house next to us showed me a knife she had bought when a missionary in India. It had a massive blade, eith back curved much more than the cutting edge. She told me that the
man she bought it from was able to chop a coin in two, without spoiling the blade. I have forgotten the name of it.
I think it is sometimes call a Gurkha knife. What is the
right word for it?
Hi wwh! Dunno about the coin, but it could be the 'Kukri' (see link below for the picture as well as description.)
http://nepaliexporter.com/files/british_gurkha_knife.htm
I had vaguely heard about the 'gurkha knife' (I didn't know it was called 'kukri' either) until you asked me this question, and google enlightened me.
The things you learn...
Thanks!
PS: How come the links I post are not blue and underlined and ready-to-click?!!
read the FAQ read the faq read the FAQ
or just print it out.. its only 4 pages (of paper!) printed..and it give you all the instructions you need..
well that is not true, it give the barest minimum of instructions, and we'll fill you on all the other fun tricks..
but first READ THE FAQ
FAQ being Frequently Asked Questions... almost as important as RTFM!
(smiley faces galore.. this is cheerful encouragement, not nagging!)
There now, and I always thought it was called a Bangalore torpedo because it produced bangs galore!
Dear dxb: and what did you think of James Bond's Pussy Galore?
That was Honor Blackman wasn't it? Well, what more can one say that the film title didn't?
Bangalore is also home to a long-absent poster here, (also called Anu) and to several of my cousins. It is a shame that AWADtalk's Bangalore Anu can't find the time to post here anymore.
Dear sjm: I suspect Wordsmith is in same predicament as the
Sorcerer's Apprentice - remember Disney's Fantasia? I wish I could see it again.
>Dear sjm: I suspect Wordsmith is in same predicament as the
Sorcerer's Apprentice -
You misunderstand me, Dr. Bill. I care not a whit if I never read another post from Wordsmith Anu. I miss my friend from Bangalore, she who has the same name as Wordsmith.
What was the predicament faced by the Sorcerer's apprentice?
(I haven't seen 'Fantasia.')
The Sorcerer's Apprentice (and this is not limited to the Disney Mickey Mouse incarnation), attempting to lighten his assigned chore of fetching water from the well during the Sorcerer's absence, snuck a peek into his master's spell book and cast a spell on a broom so that it would do the fetching for him. The broom proceeded to fetch pail after pail of water, dumping them until the water started to get too deep. The Apprentice found himself unable to reverse the spell and get the broom to stop. He then tried smashing the broom to pieces, but each piece set to work at the original task, compounding the problem. The havoc continued until the Sorcerer returned.
Goethe wrote a poem about it:
http://www.fln.vcu.edu/goethe/zauber_e3.htmland I doubt if he saw the movie, either.
That was an interesting read.
Thanks Faldage!
Dear anchita: forgive my insensitivity in unwittingly being obscure. When Wordsmith had only to post Today's Word, he still began to need assistance. Now the site has so many additional features that requre his attention, it is unreasonable to expect him to pay any attention to AWADtalk.
)