From medicine to sports, this is what 2020 means in English
As the world entered a new decade yesterday, people are trying to associate some meaning to '2020'. From linguistics to medicine, this is what 2020 means
- World News
- 2 min read
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World ushered in New Year 2020 yesterday. While Samoa islands in the Pacific were the first to celebrate it, two islands Baker and Howland, celebrated it the last. But '2020' or 'Twenty-Twenty' which marks the start of a new decade has several meanings.
20/20 vision
The word '20-20' was first used in 1875 to represent the standard vision of the human eye. Going by the literal meanings of the term, Merriam Webster describes it as an adjective meaning “marked by facilely accurate discernment, judgment, or assessment". The proverb, '20/20 Hindsight' means “it is easy to understand something after it has already happened.
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The term is also used to express the normal visual acuity measured at a distance of 20 feet. People who have '20/20' vision, can see clearly at 20 feet what should normally be seen at that distance, whereas a person having 20/100 vision, needs that person to be as close as 20 feet to see what a person with normal vision can see at 100 feet. Owing to the meaning, this year has also been called the year for seeing clearly. In sports, '20-20' or 'Twenty20' game is a cricket tournament wherein the two teams have a single innings each, which is restricted to a maximum of 20 overs.
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Meanwhile, the New Year's celebrations are yet not over. On Wednesday, fireworks burst and confetti fell as throngs of revellers cheered the start of 2020 in New York City’s Times Square. In one of the globe’s most-watched New Year’s Eve spectacles, the crowd counted down the last seconds of 2019 as a luminescent crystal ball descended down a pole. About 3,000 pounds (1,360 kilograms) of confetti showered the sea of attendees, many of whom were also briefly rained on earlier in the evening as they waited in security pens for performances by stars including rap-pop star Post Malone, K-pop group BTS, country singer Sam Hunt and singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette.