Date: Tue, 27 Jan 1998 20:58:51 -0500

From: Gerald Cohen gcohen[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]UMR.EDU

Subject: "zephyr" (= nothing)



I've come across "zephyr" with the meanng "nothing":



_ St. Louis Post-Dispatch_, May l7, l997, p.34/1-3; title: "The Sky

Is Not Falling":

"A 150-pound hunk of aluminum...comes hurtling out of space and

crashes on downtown's major

artery. And what happens?

Nothing. Nada. Zip. Zephyr. No human pancakes. No busted

windshields. [etc.]...."



I have no idea how the semantic development "zephyr" to "nothing"

occurred. Can anyone help?



--Gerald Cohen



gcohen[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]umr.edu