The Online Etymology Dictionary explains that it is "a map of the wheel-ruts of modern English. Etymologies are not definitions; they're explanations of what our words meant and how they sounded 600 or 2,000 years ago." To learn the story of your favorite word, click here.

Last month we excerpted a blog entry from Away With Words, professional name developer Nancy Friedman's website on naming and copywriting. We had to revisit her when we read a recent entry titled "What Not to Name the Baby." Nancy says "naming a baby is not all that different from naming middleware, perfume or a venture capital firm." Why? Read the entry here.

BuzzWhack defines "buzzwords" as important-sounding words used to impress laypeople, and "buzzwhacker" as a person who gets pleasure out of bursting the bubbles of the pompous. Buzzwhackers out there, this one's for you! BuzzWhack demystifies one buzzword after the other on its site, including this delicious morsel: "Lawn mullet: A lawn that's neatly mowed in the front but uncut in the back." Read more buzzwords debunked here.

In his excellent blog, 2 Cents Worth, noted educator, author and speaker David Warlick argues for "an education system that is challenged to prepare children for their future -- and it's not their father's future." To meet this challenge, he says, a flat classroom is imperative. What does David mean by a "flat classroom?" To find out, read his post here.

What's in a name? According to expert Nancy Friedman, who writes a blog called Away With Words, everything: "A name is the title of your story. You may think you're naming your company or your product. But in fact you're putting a title on the story you're telling investors, shareholders, customers, and employees. If you're smart and lucky, the name you choose will be the title of a great story. A saga. A legend. A tale told around the campfire for generations." Read the entry here.

What role do blogs play in the classroom? How do they change learning? A teacher -- and blogger -- tackles this question on his education-focused website Borderland. He writes: "Education bloggers understand that the deployment of new publishing tools in classrooms unhinges learning from the frame of the traditional classroom. When students change from recipients of information to active participants in knowledge exchange and construction, their roles as learners are redefined. The definition of classroom is opened for debate." Read the entire entry here.

A List Apart, a terrific site that "explores the design, development and meaning of web content" argued the case for web storytelling last August. Author Curtis Cloninger writes, "Much ink has been spilt lately bemoaning the lack of quality content on the web. 'Sure the site flashes and whizzes and startles, but what does it have to say?'" Read the entire entry here.