anthropause

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Jump to navigation Jump to search

English

[edit]
English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Etymology

[edit]

From anthro- +‎ -pause. Coined by a team of researchers and scientists in June 2020 in an article discussing the possible impact of COVID-19 lockdown on wildlife.[1]

Noun

[edit]

anthropause (plural anthropauses)

  1. (neologism) A global reduction in modern human activity resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
    Synonym: great pause
    • 2020, Alan Parkinson, Why Study Geography?, page 40:
      The enforced global 'anthropause' during part of 2020 was also a reminder of the importance of timing: we have become used to having the things we need.
    • 2021 November, Amanda E. Bates, Richard B. Primack, Brandy S. Biggar, Tomas J. Bird, Mary E. Clinton, “Global COVID-19 lockdown highlights humans as both threats and custodians of the environment”, in Biological Conservation[2], volume 263, →DOI, →ISSN:
      Thus, the COVID-19 lockdown has led to a significant global reduction in human mobility, notably travel, causing an “anthropause” (Rutz et al., 2020).
    • [2022 July 16, Emily Anthes, “Did Nature Heal During the Pandemic ‘Anthropause’?”, in The New York Times[3], →ISSN:
      A growing body of literature paints a complex portrait of the slowdown of human activity that has become known as the “anthropause.”]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Christian Rutz, Matthias-Claudio Loretto, Amanda E. Bates, Sarah C. Davidson, Carlos M. Duarte (2020 June 22) “COVID-19 lockdown allows researchers to quantify the effects of human activity on wildlife”, in Nature Ecology & Evolution[1], volume 4, number 9, →DOI, →ISSN, pages 1156–1159:
    We propose ‘anthropause’ to refer specifically to a considerable global slowing of modern human activities, notably travel. We are aware that the correct prefix is ‘anthropo-’ (for ‘human’) but opted for the shortened form, which is easier to remember and use, and where the missing ‘po’ is still echoed in the pronunciation of ‘pause’ (pɔːz).