anti-gerasone
a drug invented by Vonnegut in "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow;" intended to prevent aging, it is made of mud and dandelions and has the faint smell of Worcestershire sauce
argle-bargle
a noisy dispute
Barcalounger
a type of reclining chair made in America
billet-doux
a love letter, from the French for "sweet note"
birdshot
small, lead pellets designed for the shooting of birds
codicil
a document that adds or alters something in a will
crystallography
the science that deals with the arrangements of atoms in solid matter
drupelet
one of the small sections of the outer skin of certain types of fruit, like blackberries
dynamopsychism
an idea invented by Vonnegut (for "Report on the Barnhouse Effect"), in which a person can concentrate hard enough to control physical objects across the world
menage
a domestic establishment; a household
military attaché
a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission (called an attaché)
mnemonics
a technique used to improve the memory
nothinghead
a term invented by Vonnegut (for "Welcome to the Monkey House") to describe people who do not take ethical birth control pills and thus experience sexual desire and pleasure
portentous
attempting to seem important or impressive
seraglio
the sequestered living quarters of wives and concubines in an Ottoman household
sheaf
a bundle or collection
spectrogoniometer
a device that measures the angles of a spectrum, used in crystallography
T-4
an abbreviation for "Technician Fourth Grade," a non-commissioned officer in the United States military
thanasphere
the term Dr. Groszinger invents in "Thanasphere" to describe the "dead space" beyond the stratosphere, inhabited by spirits
Zoroastrianism
a religion founded in the 6th century B.C. by the Persian prophet Zoroaster