Ripped from the Headlines: October 2023: This Week in Words: Current Event Vocabulary for October 21–October 27, 2023

A referendum meant to give Indigenous Australians a voice in the country's government was rejected by voters last week. In the wake of that decision, many Aboriginal citizens are angry and frustrated. The measure would have established an advisory body to Parliament composed of elected representatives whose roots go back to Australia's earliest-known inhabitants. The Latin root of aboriginal means "the first inhabitants."

A study published this week explains one way plants communicate, sending messages to warn each other of danger. Scientists say the information exchange happens when injured plants emit chemicals which healthy plants are able to sense. The damaged plants use the substances to repair themselves, and when nearby plants receive the chemical message, they use it to protect themselves from insects and disease. Trees over 40 yards apart are able to communicate with each other this way.

The National Retail Federation says that people are spending a billion dollars more on Halloween costumes in 2023 than they did last year. An estimated 1.8 billion people plan to dress up as Barbie this year, making it the third most popular outfit choice for trick-or-treating and Halloween parties, after witch and vampire costumes. Overall, Americans who celebrate spooky season will spend more than $4 billion on dressing up themselves, their children, and their pets.

A new look at a very old rock has revealed evidence that the moon is 40 million years older than previously thought. A specimen collected by Apollo 17 astronauts in 1972 contains an embedded crystal. Recently, scientists meticulously examined the zircon crystal atom by atom concluding it's at least 4.6 billion years old. The findings are forcing astronomers to reevaluate their understanding of when and how the moon formed. Crystal has a Latin root that means "ice."

New data shows that students’ SAT scores rise with their parents' incomes, and that educational disparities start years earlier. Researchers found that children of the richest one percent of Americans were 13 times more likely to score over 1300 on the SAT than poorer students. The fact that fewer poor students even take the test further illustrates the vast inequality in education. The Latin root of parity means "equality," and the prefix dis- means "not."

Hamas released four hostages who were kidnapped along with about 200 others during the militant group's October 7 attack on Israel. Two of the released captives were American citizens, and two more were elderly Israeli women. A Hamas spokesperson said the hostages were freed for "humanitarian reasons and on poor health grounds." Hostage comes from the French hoste, "guest;" the word's original meaning was "lodger held by a landlord as security."

New analysis shows that the changing climate is likely to put more than five billion people at risk of contracting malaria by 2040. Warmer winters are allowing mosquitoes that carry the deadly, infectious disease to migrate to regions that were once too cold for them to thrive. Some parts of Africa already see malaria cases all year long. Malaria is from the Italian mala aria, "bad air," once thought to be the cause of the illness.

California increased its minimum wage for health care and fast food workers. By 2028, every worker in the state's health care industry will make at least $25 per hour. Those who work in fast-food restaurants will be paid a minimum of $20 per hour starting in April of 2024. California already has the second-highest state minimum wage in the U.S. at $15.50 — more than twice the federal minimum wage of $7.25.

This week, several news organizations filed requests with the judge presiding over Trump's trial related to overturning the results of the 2020 election. The media outlets are asking the judge to allow the trial to be livestreamed. If the requests are denied, they are calling for a video recording of the trial to be recorded for posterity, arguing that the trial has historical significance that will benefit future generations. Posterity's root means "coming after."

For the first time in 48 years, Icelandic women staged a full-day strike. Around the country on October 24, women and nonbinary people refused to work in protest against a continuing pay gap between genders. Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdóttir and female cabinet members were among those participating in the strike, along with teachers, nurses and doctors, hotel cleaners, and news anchors.

A 35-pound tortoise that was found in a spinach patch in British Columbia has become a local celebrity. A Richmond animal shelter is keeping the enormous reptile until a permanent home can be found. The tortoise was described by one observer as "bigger than the platter you’d use to serve 24 people a Thanksgiving turkey." The farmer who discovered him named him "Frank the Tank" and said, "He was just so beautiful. When each of us spoke to him, he’d turn his head and look at you."

After three weeks during which at least 10 Republicans vied for the Congressional leadership position, Louisiana Representative Mike Johnson was elected Speaker of the House on October 25. The job had remained unfilled as lawmakers contended to be their party's nominee. Johnson was the fourth Republican to be nominated since Kevin McCarthy was ousted from the position on October 3. The word vie originally meant "make a bet in a card game," from a root meaning "to invite."