Neil deGrasse Tyson's First Word Added to the Oxford English Dictionary
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If you've ever lived or visited New York City, and Manhattan specifically, you may have had the chance to view the sunset or sunrise in perfect alignment between the streets that run from east to west. Now, there's a name for that phenomenon, and it was first coined by Neil deGrasse Tyson in 2003.
It only took 16 years, but now the term has officially been added to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), and it's called "Manhattanhenge."
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What is Manhattanhenge?
As per the OED, Manhattanhenge stands for: "a phenomenon in which the sun rises or sets in alignment with the streets that run east to west on the street grid of Manhattan, New York City."
See for yourself the entry in the OED here:
The OED is the go-to, definitive dictionary for all English language words. It boasts more than 6,000 official words and has been in use for over a thousand years.
What's fun about this word being included into the OED is the fact that American astrophysicist, author, and communicator, Neil deGrasse Tyson, was the first person to use this term.
A Manhattan-born and raised New Yorker, deGrasse Tyson is well known for his role in the scientific world, and he couldn't be more excited for his newly-adopted word to be added to the thousands of official English words.
It’s official: My first-ever word adopted into the Oxford English Dictionary (@OED).
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) September 26, 2019
***Manhattanhenge***
Took them long enough! First coined the term back in 2003.https://t.co/EIt0amk4BF pic.twitter.com/1ka0TQKbL2
There are a few sticklers out there who aren't fully convinced of his expertise, though:
Well actually... For those in the know he's known for being sloppy and inaccurate.
— Hop David (@HopDavid41) September 26, 2019
Here's a discussion of Neil Tyson in a physics forum:https://t.co/yJhxGKwwfC
I agree with cangetno197. It's a stretch to call this guy an astrophysicist.
However, most of deGrasse Tyson's fans from around the world are as excited as he is. Some have left comments on his Facebook page:
SHOW COMMENT (1)
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