Your Seasonal Word of the Day!
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Your Seasonal Word of the Day!
(noun) A state of physical or mental inactivity or sluggishness; lethargy; in animals, a condition of decreased physiological activity typically involving lowered body temperature and metabolic rate. | | | | | The deep winter torpor that had settled over the town in January finally began to lift as February's lengthening days promised spring's eventual return. | | | The deep winter torpor that had settled over the town in January finally began to lift as February's lengthening days promised spring's eventual return. | | | π Word Origin: From Latin "torpor," meaning "numbness, sluggishness," from "torpere" (to be numb or stiff). The word entered English in the 1600s through medical texts describing states of reduced physical activity, and it's related to "torpedo"βelectric rays were called torpedoes because their shock caused numbness. | | | | π‘ Fun Fact: Many animals enter torpor to survive winterβa state that looks like sleep but involves dramatic physiological changes. Body temperature drops, heart rate slows to just a few beats per minute, and metabolism decreases by up to 95%. Unlike hibernation, which lasts months, torpor can be short-term, allowing animals like hummingbirds to survive cold nights by essentially shutting down overnight. Humans experience a milder psychological torpor on dark winter mornings when getting out of bed feels nearly impossible. | | | | |
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