KURU

kuru

(noun) a progressive disease of the central nervous system marked by increasing lack of coordination and advancing to paralysis and death within a year of the appearance of symptoms; thought to have been transmitted by cannibalistic consumption of diseased brain tissue since the disease virtually disappeared when cannibalism was abandoned

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

kuru (uncountable)

A chronic, progressive, fatal central nervous system disease found mainly among the Fore and neighboring peoples of New Guinea, caused by a prion that probably resembles the scrapie agent of sheep, transmissible to nonhuman primates, and believed to be transmitted by ritual cannibalism.

Synonyms

• laughing death

• laughing sickness

Anagrams

• Uruk, ruku'

Source: Wiktionary



RESET




Word of the Day

26 April 2024

CITYSCAPE

(noun) a viewpoint toward a city or other heavily populated area; “the dominant character of the cityscape is it poverty”


coffee icon

Coffee Trivia

Espresso is both a coffee beverage and a brewing method that originated in Italy. When making an espresso, a small amount of nearly boiling water under pressure forces through finely-ground coffee beans. It has more caffeine per unit volume than most coffee beverages. Its smaller serving size will take three shots to equal a mug of standard brewed coffee.

coffee icon