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ATROPINE
- A racemic mixture of hyoscyamine obtained from any of various solanaceous plants (as belladonna) and used especially in the form of its sulfate for its anticholinergic effects (as pupil dilation or inhibition of smooth muscle spasms).
- Usage: Report on possible usage of military-style self-administered nerve gas antidote delivery systems using atropine to assist the general public in the event of a domestic chemical-weapons attack by terrorists.
Source: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition.
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DJIBOUTI
- A country of eastern Africa on the Gulf of Aden; originally a French colony, from 1896 until 1946, and a territory from 1946 until its independence in 1977; formerly called French Somaliland from 1896 to 1967, and the French Territory of Afars and Issas from 1967 to 1977; population 566,000.
- Usage: Report on alleged U.S. military special-ops forces amassing in the Horn of Africa in preparation for possible incursions into Yemen in search of Al Qaeda terrorist suspects.
Source: The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition.
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SLAM DUNK
- Dunk shot; a forceful dramatic move.
- Usage: Coverage of White House press briefing with Ari Fleischer, press secretary of U.S. President George W. Bush; used to describe the administration's collection of evidence gathered as reasoning for attacking Iraq.
Source: The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition.
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