eugenics
Discredited pseudo-science popular at the turn of the 20th century which advocated a policies of selective breeding as a means of genetically weeding out undesirable traits and which formed the basis of Nazi ideology regarding ideas about racial purity and superiority.
harried
Harassed and put-upon.
sterilization
Medical procedures that permanently render a man or woman incapable of producing offspring.
helter-skelter
Haphazardly; scattershot; in a completely random manner.
velveteen
A fabric that resembles velvet but is derived from cotton.
rheumatism
A painful condition caused by inflammation of fibrous connective tissue in the joints.
flustrated
Characterizing that specific feeling of being flustered and frustrated at the same time. Not a contemporary invented word to suit the author's whims, the etymology of flustrated dates back at least to the 1700s.
skeeter
Southern US patois for a member of the omnipresent flying pest "mosquito."
pediatrician
A doctor specializing in the medical care and treatment of children.
futile
Hopeless, pointless, useless or impractical.
orientation
An introductory tour offered to first time visitors to acclimate them to the geographical layout or floor plan of a location.
epilepsy
Neurological condition featuring sympoms ranging from convulsions to sudden loss of consciousness. r
smoldering
Relating to the effects of burning either literally as the result of a fire or metaphorically as the result of a fiery desire.
feebleminded
Derogatory term comprehensively covering a number of mental and neurological conditions affecting or seeming to affect cognitive functioning.
institution
The polite euphemism commonly used to describe any center where those deemed mentally defective were kept away from society under the pretense of offering treatment or humane care.
trifle
An insignificant triviality hardly worthy of serious concern or discourse.
superficial
Lacking depth and concerned only with the most basic elements or outward appearances.
spurious
Seemingly logical and valid, but on closer scrutiny illogical and invalid.
