Ripped from the Headlines: September 2023: This Week in Words: Current Events Vocabulary for September 9–September 15, 2023

An antitrust trial against Google began on September 12, with the U.S. Department of Justice claiming the company abused its power to eliminate competition. The government's case argues that Google holds a monopoly in the search engine business and used illegal tactics to reinforce its dominance over all online searches. If Google loses the case, it may be forced to break its company into smaller businesses.

A day after the Food and Drug Administration approved updated Covid boosters, the CDC recommended that everyone over the age of six months should get the shot. The subsequent vaccine doses were formulated to target the most common current variants of the virus, and to protect against serious illness. Booster gets its medical meaning from the idea that the new shots boost, or improve, the immunity provided by the first one.

The California Senate will vote on a bill that would make it the first state to ban caste bias. Under the proposed law, it would be illegal to discriminate against people because of the social class they were born into. The legislation targets bias against South Asians in the lowest tier of a traditional social hierarchy, who face discrimination in work, housing, and social settings. Caste is from the Portuguese casta and its Latin root, castus, "cut off."

This week is the last chance to spot a newly-discovered comet before it disappears for centuries. Comet Nishimura will be most visible on September 17, when its proximity to the sun will make its dust and gasses glow so that its signature tail can be seen trailing behind it. The Greek derivation of comet is aster komētēs, literally "long-haired star," from komē, "hair of the head."

The company that makes Twinkies and Ding Dongs will be purchased by a leading snack food conglomerate, J.M. Smucker. The giant corporation bought Hostess for $5.6 billion, adding it to its many brands, which include Jif peanut butter, Folgers Coffee, and the donut and coffee company Dunkin'. Conglomerate has a Latin root, glomerare, which means "to gather into a ball."

The Internal Revenue Service announced it will use artificial intelligence to detect tax evasion by hedge funds, private equity groups, real estate investors, and law firms. The move is part of the agency's new push to target the wealthiest Americans and businesses that avoid paying the taxes they owe. The Latin root of evasion is evadere, "to escape or get away."

The Australian government announced this week that it has "declared war" on feral cats. The wild felines, descendants of domesticated cats that are considered to be an invasive species, are a serious threat to wildlife on the continent. The untamed cats kill around two billion birds, reptiles, and frogs annually. Feral derives from the Latin phrase fera bestia, "wild animal."

After eluding police for two weeks, a fugitive was captured near Philadelphia on September 13. Danelo Cavalcante, who was serving a life sentence for murder, had escaped Chester County Prison by "crab-walking" up between two walls and scaling razor wire. Cavalcante fled authorities repeatedly during the 13 days he spent on the run, stealing a rifle and clothing from residents' garages. The root of fugitive means "to flee."

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, facing pressure from hard-right Republicans, launched an impeachment inquiry against President Biden on September 12. The investigation will proceed without a vote in Congress, which McCarthy previously promised. The inquiry will seek to gather information to prove GOP accusations that Biden was aware of his son Hunter's shady business dealings and possibly profited from them.

A 6.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Morocco was the strongest in the area in more than 120 years. The quake's intensity was so extreme that it destroyed the entire mountain village of Tinzert and killed more than 3,000 people. Scientists say a fault that had been inactive for thousands of years may have ruptured, causing the massive earthquake, the region's first to measure over 6 on the Richter scale since 1900.

New research shows that mummies didn't smell too bad, thanks to a scented balm used when ancient Egyptians embalmed dead bodies. Scientists have recreated the scent that was used in mummification, with resins from a pine plant and a tree, as well as beeswax and animal fat. A perfumer helped researchers to approximate the piney odor found in urns that once contained the organs of an Egyptian noblewoman. Mummification comes from an Arabic root which means "embalmed body."

After New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers was injured during a game on September 11 against the Buffalo Bills, the NFL confirmed he tore his Achilles tendon and will be out the rest of the football season. It was the opening game of Rodgers' first season with the Jets after being traded from the Green Bay Packers. The offensive football position quarterback gets its name from where the player is on the field at the start of play — between the halfback and the center.