LONDON (AP) — Many of us have felt it, and now it’s official: “brain rot” is the Oxford dictionaries’ word of the year.
Oxford University Press said Monday that the evocative phrase “gained new prominence in 2024,” with its frequency of use increasing 230% from the year before.
Oxford defines brain rot as “the supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as the result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging.”
The word of the year is intended to be “a word or expression that reflects a defining theme from the past 12 months.”
“Brain rot” was chosen by a combination of public vote and language analysis by Oxford lexicographers. It beat five other finalists: demure, slop, dynamic pricing, romantasy and lore.
While it may seem a modern phenomenon, the first recorded use of “brain rot” was by Henry David Thoreau in his 1854 ode to the natural world, “Walden.”
Oxford Languages President Casper Grathwohl said that in its modern sense, “’brain rot’ speaks to one of the perceived dangers of virtual life, and how we are using our free time.”
“It feels like a rightful next chapter in the cultural conversation about humanity and technology. It’s not surprising that so many voters embraced the term, endorsing it as our choice this year,” he said.
Last year’s Oxford word of the year was “rizz,” a riff on charisma, used to describe someone’s ability to attract or seduce another person.
Collins Dictionary’s 2024 word of the year is “brat” – the album title that became a summer-living ideal.
FILE- In this Aug. 29, 2010 file photo, an Oxford English Dictionary is shown at the headquarters of the Associated Press in New York. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones, File)
FILE -People watch a breaking competition hosted by Supreme Beingz at the Mercury Lounge, June 7, 2019, in New York.(AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File)
CONAKRY, Guinea (AP) — Fifty-six people were killed and several injured in a stampede at a soccer stadium in southern Guinea, following clashes between fans, Guinea’s government said Monday.
Authorities are conducting an investigation to establish those responsible for the stampede on Sunday, Communications Minister Fana Soumah said in a statement read on national television.
Among the victims are several children according to local media and a coalition of political parties.
The stampede broke out on Sunday afternoon at the stadium in the city of Nzerekore during the final of a local tournament between the Labe and Nzerekore teams in honor of Guinea’s military leader, Mamadi Doumbouya, Guinea’s Prime Minister Amadou Oury Bah said on the X platform.
“During the stampede, victims were recorded,” Bah said, without giving details. The regional authorities are working to restore calm in the area, he added.
Local media reported that security forces tried to use tear gas to restore calm after the chaos that followed a disputed penalty.
“This (the disputed penalty) angered supporters who threw stones. This is how the security services used tear gas,” Media Guinea, a local news website, reported. It said several of those killed were children while some of the injured being treated at a regional hospital are in critical condition.
Videos that appeared to be from the scene showed fans in a section of the stadium shouting and protesting the refereeing before clashes broke out as people poured onto the field.
People were running as they tried to escape from the stadium, many of them jumping the high fence.
Videos also showed many people lying on the floor in what looked like a hospital as a crowd gathered nearby, some assisting the wounded.
The National Alliance for Alternation and Democracy opposition coalition called for an investigation. It said the tournament was organized to drum up support for the “illegal and inappropriate” political ambitions of the military leader.
Guinea has been led by the military since soldiers ousted President Alpha Conde in 2021. It is one of a growing number of West African countries, including Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, where the military has taken power and delayed a return to civilian rule.
Doumbouya, who ousted the president three years ago, said he was preventing the country from slipping into chaos and chastised the previous government for broken promises. He has, however, been criticized for not meeting the expectations that he raised.
In this grab taken from video provided by Nimba Sports Zaly, a man holds a chair on top of his head in a stampede, during a soccer match at the Stade de Nzérékoré, in Nzérékoré, Guinea on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (Nimba Sports Zaly via AP)
