Terminology

ampoule

AM·pyool /ˈæm.pjul/ noun

A small glass container that is sealed shut after it is filled, used to keep a single dose of liquid, usually an injection, sterile until someone snaps off the neck. Also spelled ampule or ampul.

Origin: French, from Latin ampulla, a small flask.

In Hum: The narrator of "The Scientists" (Downward Is Heavenward) finds a lab full of them and asks what they are for, which is a fair question in a lab.

Heard in: "The Scientists"

aphid

AY·fid /ˈeɪ.fɪd/ noun

A tiny, soft-bodied insect that feeds on plant sap and tends to gather by the hundreds on stems and new leaves. Gardeners dislike them, ladybugs eat them, and ants herd them for the sugary honeydew they leave behind. Many aphids can reproduce without mating, which is why a small problem on Monday is a large problem on Friday.

Origin: From Aphis, the genus name Linnaeus gave them in the 1700s.

In Hum: "Aphids" is also the title of a Hum song. It pictures small problems at a rose stem, which is where aphids tend to be.

Heard in: "Aphids"

Apollo

uh·POL·oh /əˈpɑ.loʊ/ proper noun

The Greek and Roman god of the sun, music, poetry, and prophecy. It is also the name of the NASA program that put twelve people on the surface of the moon between 1969 and 1972, over six landings.

Origin: Greek Apollon. NASA borrowed the name for its moon program in 1960.

In Hum: The word is the title of a song on Downward Is Heavenward, which is built around a guessing game with a number.

Heard in: "Apollo"

ascension

uh·SEN·shun /əˈsɛn.ʃən/ noun

The act of rising or climbing, or of moving up to a higher position, rank, or state, as when a new monarch takes the throne.

Origin: Latin ascendere, to climb up.

In Hum: In "Puppets" the narrator and a partner treat ascension as something that belongs to the two of them, even while everything else is falling apart.

Heard in: "Puppets"

axolotl

AK·suh·lot·ul /ˈæk.sə.lɑ.təl/ noun

A salamander from the lakes and canals around Mexico City that never quite grows up: it keeps its feathery external gills and stays in the water for life. It can regrow lost limbs, and it is critically endangered in the wild, though it is doing great as a pet and a cartoon.

Origin: Nahuatl, often translated as “water dog” or “water monster.”

In Hum: The word is in the title of "Afternoon with the Axolotls", a song on Downward Is Heavenward. That song also contains the line that became the album’s title.

Heard in: "Afternoon with the Axolotls"

Beelzebub

bee·EL·zuh·bub /biˈɛl.zə.bʌb/ proper noun

A devil or demon lord from old myth and folklore, usually cast as a prince of demons. Like most mythological figures, he has been recycled in books, plays, and songs for centuries.

Origin: An old Hebrew phrase usually read as “lord of the flies.”

In Hum: In the same song as the axolotls, the narrator turns and addresses Beelzebub directly, with a nervous question about whether something can be done without a safety net.

Heard in: "Afternoon with the Axolotls"

benzene

BEN·zeen /ˈbɛn.zin/ noun

A colorless, sweet-smelling, very flammable liquid made of six carbon atoms joined in a ring, each carrying one hydrogen. It is a basic building block for plastics, dyes, and many other chemicals, and it is also a known carcinogen, so it gets admired from a distance. The chemist August Kekulé proposed the ring shape in 1865.

Origin: From benzoin, a fragrant resin it was first made from.

In Hum: In "The Scientists" a woman in a lab tells the narrator to wear a benzene ring on his finger and think of her. It is a ring made of six carbon atoms, if you were wondering.

Heard in: "The Scientists"

derelict

DAIR·uh·likt /ˈdɛr.ə.lɪkt/ adjective, noun

As an adjective: abandoned and falling apart, or failing in a duty (“derelict in his responsibilities”). As a noun: something left behind, most often a ship abandoned at sea.

Origin: Latin derelinquere, to abandon.

In Hum: In "Pinch and Roll" (Electra 2000), the narrator uses the word to describe the people in his life during a darkly funny rant about falling apart.

Heard in: "Pinch and Roll"

espy

eh·SPY /ɛˈspaɪ/ verb

To catch sight of something, especially something far away or hard to see. It is a glimpse with a bit of effort behind it. The past tense is espied.

Origin: Old French espier, the same root as spy.

In Hum: In "Firehead" (Electra 2000) the narrator says he sees everything someone does, which is both loving and a bit creepy. In "The Inuit Promise" he uses it to spot the warming sea.

Heard in: "The Inuit Promise", "Firehead"

ester

ES·ter /ˈɛs.tər/ noun

A compound formed when an acid reacts with an alcohol. Many of them smell wonderful, which is why esters are behind the scents of bananas, pineapples, and a good share of perfume.

Origin: A nineteenth-century German coinage.

In Hum: In "The Scientists" a woman’s hand glows from soaking in esters shelved for miles. Hum picks up chemistry words the way other bands pick up guitar pedals.

Heard in: "The Scientists"

flashpoint

FLASH·point /ˈflæʃ.pɔɪnt/ noun

In chemistry, the lowest temperature at which a liquid gives off enough vapor to catch fire briefly when a spark shows up. More loosely, the moment when a tense situation tips into open conflict.

Origin: Exactly what it sounds like.

In Hum: In "Little Dipper" (You'd Prefer an Astronaut) a character builds flashpoints to hide the sun while the narrator sleeps under glass, waiting to be woken.

Heard in: "Little Dipper"

forceps

FOR·seps /ˈfɔr.səps/ noun (singular and plural)

A pincer-like tool for gripping and pulling small things. Surgeons, dentists, jewelers, and anyone with a splinter use them, and the word is the same whether there is one pair or several: “a pair of forceps.”

Origin: Latin, meaning tongs or pincers.

In Hum: In "If You Are to Bloom," the narrator pictures forceps sitting in ice, an image of reaching in to reconnect delicate threads.

Heard in: "If You Are to Bloom"

formaldehyde

for·MAL·duh·hide /fɔrˈmæl.də.haɪd/ noun

A sharp-smelling, colorless gas made of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. Dissolved in water, it becomes formalin, which preserves biological specimens, and it is also used to make resins and building materials. Living cells produce tiny amounts of it on their own.

Origin: From formic acid, which was first collected from ants (Latin formica), plus aldehyde.

In Hum: The word is also the title of a song on Fillet Show, an album title that fans have long suspected of being a pun on a word Mission Control is not going to say out loud. Mission Control has neither confirmed nor denied it.

Heard in: "Formaldehyde"

hybrid

HY·brid /ˈhaɪ.brɪd/ noun, adjective

Something made by combining two different kinds. In biology, the offspring of parents from different species or varieties, such as a mule, which comes from a horse and a donkey. In everyday use, anything that mixes two approaches, such as a car with both a gas engine and an electric motor.

Origin: Latin hybrida, the offspring of a tame sow and a wild boar.

In Hum: In "The Scientists" the narrator is wrecked by undercover custom hybrids, which sounds like a better band name than a science term.

Heard in: "The Scientists"

inkling

INK·ling /ˈɪŋk.lɪŋ/ noun

A faint hint or a vague suspicion about something, usually before there is any proof. If you had an inkling, you suspected it without being sure.

Origin: From Middle English, to hint or mention in a whisper.

In Hum: The word is the title of the unreleased song "INKlings". The capital INK is a pun on the word.

Heard in: "INKlings"

Inuit

IN·yoo·it /ˈɪn.ju.ɪt/ noun (plural), adjective

The Indigenous people of the Arctic regions of Canada, Greenland, and Alaska. One person is an Inuk. In Canada, Inuit is the preferred name over the older outside term “Eskimo.” Some speakers say IN-oo-it, which is also fine.

Origin: From the Inuktitut word for “the people.”

In Hum: The word is in the title of "The Inuit Promise", a song on Downward Is Heavenward. The song’s imagery runs cold: frozen solvents, a warming sea, and a brain that stops working from the chill.

Heard in: "The Inuit Promise"

invertebrate

in·VUR·tuh·brit /ɪnˈvɜr.tə.brət/ noun, adjective

An animal without a backbone. That covers insects, spiders, worms, snails, squid, and jellyfish, and the vast majority of all animal species. Figuratively, it also describes someone with no spine, which is rude to invertebrates.

Origin: Latin in-, not, plus vertebra, joint.

In Hum: In "The Scientists" the narrator sees invertebrates that only she can see, gathered in pools of living light.

Heard in: "The Scientists"

ladle

LAY·dul /ˈleɪ.dəl/ noun, verb

A deep-bowled spoon with a long handle, used to serve soup, stew, or punch. As a verb, to serve or scoop something with one.

Origin: Old English hlædel, from a word meaning to load or draw up.

In Hum: The first line of "I'd Like Your Hair Long" (You'd Prefer an Astronaut) asks for long hair to be ladled to the ground, as though it were soup. The song also contains the line that became the album’s title.

Heard in: "I'd Like Your Hair Long"

Lazarus

LAZ·uh·rus /ˈlæz.ə.rəs/ proper noun

A figure in the Gospel of John whom Jesus raises from the dead. His name has since been used for anyone or anything that makes a comeback after seeming finished.

Origin: A name that traces back to the Hebrew Elazar, meaning “God has helped.”

In Hum: The word is in the title of "Ms. Lazarus", a song on Downward Is Heavenward about arriving with a time machine that will not power down.

Heard in: "Ms. Lazarus"

locust

LOH·kust /ˈloʊ.kəst/ noun

A kind of grasshopper that, when conditions are right, switches from a solitary life to swarming, and a swarm can hold billions of insects and strip crops across entire regions. It is also the name of a North American tree, the black locust.

Origin: Latin locusta, locust or lobster.

Mission Control note: The “seventeen-year locust” is actually a cicada. Mission Control has filed the complaint on the cicada’s behalf.

In Hum: In "Comin' Home" the narrator and a companion peel locust skins from a locust tree. Those husks on tree bark are usually cicada shells, which loops back to the note above.

Heard in: "Comin' Home"

lubricious

loo·BRISH·us /luˈbrɪʃ.əs/ adjective

Slippery or smooth, as if oiled. It also means lewd or given to lust, and both meanings are in good standing, which is why the word gets used on purpose.

Origin: Latin lubricus, slippery.

Mission Control note: Both definitions are in the dictionary. Mission Control is not here to settle it.

In Hum: In "Hortense" (Fillet Show) it is thrown at the person the song is aimed at, as a sing-song taunt.

Heard in: "Hortense"

lusters

LUS·turz /ˈlʌ.stərz/ noun (plural)

The plural of luster (lustre in British spelling): the soft shine of a surface that catches light, such as polished metal, pearl, or silk. It can also mean glow or glory in a more general sense.

Origin: Latin lustrare, to light up or make bright.

In Hum: In "The Scientists" the narrator sees living lusters forming in pools around a woman’s feet.

Heard in: "The Scientists"

parallax

PAIR·uh·laks /ˈpɛr.ə.læks/ noun

The apparent shift in an object’s position when you look at it from two different spots. Hold a finger at arm’s length and close one eye, then the other, and your finger appears to jump. Astronomers use the same trick to measure the distance to nearby stars.

Origin: Greek parallaxis, change or alternation.

Mission Control note: Parallax is the origin of the parsec, a unit of distance Mission Control uses professionally.

In Hum: In "Dreamboat" the narrator flips a starship’s view by letting the parallax change, a trick he says he was shown in a lighthouse.

Heard in: "Dreamboat"

propellent

pruh·PEL·unt /prəˈpɛl.ənt/ noun, adjective

A variant spelling of propellant: anything that drives something forward, especially the fuel and oxidizer that make a rocket go. It is also the gas that pushes the contents out of an aerosol can.

Origin: Latin propellere, to drive forward.

In Hum: In "Little Dipper," the narrator spins propellants, spelled the usual way, while his companion explodes into snow.

Heard in: "Little Dipper"

score

SKOR /skɔr/ noun, verb

A busy word. As a noun, it is the points in a game, a written piece of music showing every part, or the number twenty (“four score and seven years ago”). As a verb, it means to cut shallow lines into a surface, to write music for a film, or, in slang, to get something you were after.

Origin: From an old word for a notch cut into a tally stick.

In Hum: In "Hello Kitty" (Hello Kitty EP) the narrator describes “scoring the night” outside someone’s “bedroom eyes.” He might be writing a soundtrack, or he might be doing something less polite. The song does not say.

Heard in: "Hello Kitty"

stratosphere

STRAT·uh·sfeer /ˈstræt.ə.sfɪr/ noun

The second layer of Earth’s atmosphere, sitting above the weather layer and reaching up to roughly 30 miles (50 kilometers). It gets warmer with height because the ozone layer soaks up ultraviolet light, and it is quiet enough that weather balloons and high-flying jets like it there.

Origin: Coined by the French meteorologist Léon Teisserenc de Bort in the early 1900s, from Latin stratum, layer, plus sphere.

In Hum: In "Spacefuck" (Fillet Show) the narrator cruises down through the stratosphere and meets a friend who understands him.

Heard in: "Spacefuck"

supine

soo·PINE /suˈpaɪn/ adjective

Lying on your back, face up. Its opposite is prone, face down. Figuratively, supine can also mean passive or unwilling to resist.

Origin: Latin supinus, lying on the back.

Mission Control note: Prone is the other one. Mission Control keeps a laminated card.

In Hum: In "Puppets" the narrator reports that he is lying on his back and fading out, in a song that is mostly about falling together.

Heard in: "Puppets"

symbiont

SIM·bee·ont /ˈsɪm.bi.ɑnt/ noun

An organism that lives in a close, long-term association with a different species. When both benefit, the relationship is called mutualism, but symbiosis can also include relationships in which one partner benefits at the other’s expense. Coral and the algae in their tissue are one example of mutualism; the fungus and alga in a lichen are another.

Origin: Greek sym-, together, plus bios, life.

In Hum: In "Afternoon with the Axolotls" symbionts in a hurry demand that the narrator come close.

Heard in: "Afternoon with the Axolotls"

trilobite

TRY·luh·bite /ˈtraɪ.lə.baɪt/ noun

An extinct sea animal with a hard, segmented shell divided into three lengthwise lobes. Trilobites appeared more than 500 million years ago, lasted about 270 million years, and left so many fossils that they are a favorite of rock collectors.

Origin: Greek tri-, three, plus lobos, lobe.

In Hum: In "The Inuit Promise" trilobite hives share a line with riding whales and drag racing time, which makes the song prehistoric and futuristic at once.

Heard in: "The Inuit Promise"

underbelly

UN·der·bel·ee /ˈʌn.dər.bɛl.i/ noun

The soft underside of an animal, which is often the most vulnerable part of its body. Figuratively, the weak or shady part of a place or system, as in “the city’s underbelly.” The plural is underbellies.

Origin: A plain compound of under and belly.

In Hum: In "If You Are to Bloom" the narrator dreams of a jet seeding clouds, glowing until its underbelly shines.

Heard in: "If You Are to Bloom"