Grinning Cat's definitions

noise-to-signal ratio

The proportion of irrelevant, off-topic, inflammatory, nonsensical, spammy, screaming, content-free, trolling, or otherwise useless statements to actual useful, worthwhile communication.

From the informal sense of signal to noise ratio, but inverted to emphasize the "noise".

"That discussion board used to be a great place to talk about politics, but now the noise-to-signal ratio is through the roof!"

"Typically, a demagogue actually benefits from nonsensical, contradictory and inflammatory statements and agendas. Ironically, the higher the noise-to-signal ratio, the more effective they become since any useful information would actually rein them in."
(adapted from Raul and JonG)

by Grinning Cat October 10, 2012

ain't

am not, are not, is not; have not, has not; do not, does not, did not.

"Ain't" ain't a word 'cause "ain't" ain't in the dictionary.

by Grinning Cat January 8, 2013

endorphin walrus

Someone who's intensely, happily sated, such as after great food or sex, to the point that they can't do anything more than flop around.

(As used by Elsa Moriarty in cracked.com's "The 6 Most Counterproductive PSAs of All Time")

"You're spent after most anything fun, from sex to exercise to an intense round of Mega Man 2. That satisfied, post-coital and -foodal period is one of the best parts of the experience -- when every desire has been sated, and you're so happy you can do nothing but flop around like an endorphin walrus."

by Grinning Cat March 7, 2012

Thinkering

Getting down on one knee, curling one's wrist to one's chin, and looking up, mimicking the pose of Auguste Rodin's classic sculpture "The Thinker".

(Created by Dave Silverman, reported by Staks Rosch, "Thinkering: The atheist answer to Tebowing", Dec. 30, 2011, examiner.com)

In response to the fundamentalist craze of Tebowing, American Atheists President Dave Silverman has come up with an atheist version called "Thinkering."
Someone commented that the pose looked too similar to Tebowing, to which Silverman responded: "That's the point. The difference is we don't bow our heads in blind submission, rather we consider and conclude for ourselves."

by Grinning Cat March 10, 2012

picardize

To change the ending of a minor-key piece of music to a major key, adding a Picardy third (tierce de Picardie).

One can loosely refer to music that already has a Picardy third ending as "self-picardizing". Some examples include the "Little" Fugue in G Minor by J.S. Bach, "And I Love Her" by The Beatles, "Roundabout" by Yes, and N.I.B. by Black Sabbath.

"The last chord here is D minor. Do you really want to picardize it, using D major instead?"
"Yes, Number One, make it so."

by Grinning Cat March 10, 2012