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#85497 11/03/02 04:06 PM
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wwh Offline OP
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News to me that it comes from Greek verb meaning to strangle. The circular muscle so
socially indispensible at external lower termination of intestinal tract is called a
sphincter. So the Sphinx was said to kill victims by strangulation.
"sphinx - c.1421, from L. Sphinx, from Gk. Sphinx, lit." the
strangler," a back-formation from sphingein "to squeeze,
bind." Monster, having a lion's (winged) body and a
woman's head, that waylaid travellers around Thebes and
devoured those who could not answer its questions; slain by
Oedipus. The proper plural would be sphinges. "


#85498 11/03/02 11:24 PM
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I'm glad this didn't come up when I taught Oedipus Rex.


#85499 01/31/04 08:47 PM
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SOED (Shorter Oxford English Dictionary) says the plural is either sphinges or sphinxes. There's a family of butterflies with the name sphinx - "so called from the attitude frequently assumed by the caterpillar". Attitude? A caterpillar with attitude? Must have been reading Alice.


#85500 01/31/04 09:35 PM
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I used to see sphinx moths near my beehives. At times my first thought was that they were hummingbirds. Here's a URL
with a lot of pictures. My vision isn't good enough to see
if there are moths in the pictures.Scroll down 1 inch.
http://uite101.com/article.cfm/butterfly_gardening/77004


#85501 02/02/04 01:41 PM
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A caterpillar with attitude?

A company I used to work for had a division that made equipment that sensed and controlled the posititioning of orbital satellites. Their motto was 'Attitude is Everything!'


#85502 02/02/04 01:45 PM
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Dear Faldage: I hope you had the Right Attitude.


#85503 02/04/04 07:54 AM
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Bingley
#85504 02/04/04 03:08 PM
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Thanks, Bingley. I don't understand how the link got
mangled. Thanks for correcting it.



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