My logophile friend alerted me to the word "kairos." The OED says it means the "propitious moment for doing something." From that word he then found the word "kairology" which means the science in timing in advertising, politics and business. It's in Google, but I can't find it either in the OED or Onelook. Have any of you heard of it? It seems that it would be a valuable word.

I like the word, but I've not heard it before. Between this and Shu's post, I'm feeling sheltered!

Funny, I would have spelled it caerology in keeping with how other Graeco-Latinate scientific vocabulary has been anglicized. I see only one web page with this spelling via Google.

There are some interesting words there, jheem! I haven't heard of many of them.

I hate to tell you what word it reminds me of, with the change in spelling and all, but it starts with "e."

I found this site with the other spelling, and though the word isn't in a dictionary, apparently it is the primary research area of Professor Laurids Hedaa in Denmark. I have sent him an e-mail, and if he speaks English, I am hoping he can tell us about "kairology."

I hate to tell you what word it reminds me of, with the change in spelling and all, but it starts with "e."

Two different words. The -c- in epicaricacy stands for a khi (χ) in the original word in Greek: επιχαιρεκακια (epikhairekakia in transliteration, or I would prefer in English epichaerecacy). In this new word, the -c- stands in for a kappa (κ), καιρολογια (kairologia, or caerology). We've been over this, but the e-word is just plain ugly.