IJ15

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15 · Hal in the Ambulance

Page 15

cirri

plural of cirrus, a type of cloud

martinet

a strict disciplinarian

Page 16

ultra-mach

Named for Ernst Mach (1838-1916), a Bohemian-Austrian physicist, the mach unit is a unit for the speed of sound. "Ultra-mach" would apply to a plane flying at several times the speed of sound.

barnwood

This word refers to "aged and weathered boards, esp. those salvaged from dismantled barns" (Random House Unabridged Dictionary).

starboard list

Employing the nautical term for "right" (starboard), the woman referred to tends to move right as she tries to move forward.

incisionish

a neologism meaning "of or like an incision"

infantophile

This would seem to imply a person who has an affinity for infants.

hypophalangial

missing fingers

Himself's

I.e., James Incandenza, this is the first reference to Hal's father.

Page 17

"...Donald Gately and I dig up my father's head..."

See Hamlet, Act Five, Scene One.

Venus Williams

At the time this novel was published, Venus Williams would have been sixteen years old.

Dymphna

Dymphna was a 7th century Irish saint. Her feast day is May 15. She is the patron saint of mental illness professionals, epilectics, and the mentally ill, among others.

Petropolis Kahn

Petropolis is Greek for "city of stone" or "city of Peter." Petrópolis is a city in Brazil near Rio de Janeiro. A treaty was signed there on November 11, 1903, ending hostilities between Bolivia and Brazil.

"Kahn" is a variant on the Jewish name for a priest, i.e., kohen.

etiology

the cause of a disease

O.E.D. VI's count

This is a reference to the Oxford English Dictionary, sixth edition.

Latinate

deriving from Latin

Saxonic

deriving from Old English


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