Three New Roots!

THE ROOT WORDS:
~Cognoac, gnosi – know
~Tom – cut
~Morbus – disease

THE WORDS:

Cognoac and Gnosi
• Recognize- V: to identify a person or object previously seen
o Although it had been a decade or so, the woman recognized her old friend at their high school reunion.
• Prognosis- N: a forecasting of the probable course and outcome of a disease, esp. of the chances of recovery
o The prognosis was not terrible, Susan did have strep but she would not die from it!
• Incognito- Adj: having one’s identity concealed, as under an assumed name, esp. to avoid notice or formal attentions
o James Bond often uses other names when he does his spy work in order to remain incognito.
• Cognoscente- N: person or persons who have superior knowledge and understanding of a particular field, esp. in the fine arts, literature, and world of fashion
o William Shakespeare was a cognoscente of literature, his old fashioned plays make some of nowadays more modern plays look like children wrote them!

Tom
• Atom- N: the smallest component of an element having the chemical properties of the element, consisting of a nucleus containing combinations of neutrons and protons and one or more electrons bound to the nucleus by electrical attraction
o An atom is so small it cannot be cut!
• Dichotomy- N: division into two usually contradictory parts or opinions.
o Many politicians have a dichotomy with their beliefs or ideas, one wants to run our country one way and the other a completely different way!
• Appendectomy- N: a surgery involving the excision of the appendix
o The appendix is a mystery to all doctors, no one knows what it is used for! However, if it becomes problematic then you must get an appendectomy.
Morbus
• Morbid- Adj: psychologically unhealthy or unwholesome (not always used literally)
o Some people are morbidly obese, meaning their weight could kill them.

What ties all these words together? A vocabulary-filled paragraph, that’s what!

Doctors are trained to recognize signs of disease to save their patients. Their prognoses are critical to both the client and themselves. If he diagnoses someone with a morbid form of cancer and they turn out not to have it, he will have to go incognito to hide from the angry family chasing him around for scaring them so badly! Some diagnosis, like appendicitis, require nearly immediate surgery. An appendectomy will quickly fix that problem! On the other hand, other patients are not lucky enough to get their problem fixed so fast. Morbid obesity takes years to be turned around, if it can be at all. In a nutshell, we should all appreciate every last atom we have!

Lisa