Root of the Week: MAL (Thursday)

Malfunction (Noun), Malfeasance (Noun),  Malware (Noun), Malediction (Noun)

Any kind of system can malfunction: our bodies, our political systems, and our various machines. When a computer system goes on the fritz, the problem may arise from some programmer’s unintended keystroke, but it could also be the result of malfeasance, wrong-doing. Unfortunately, some inventive malefactors create malware, software maliciously intended to cause problems, sometimes trivial and sometimes disastrous. If that happens to your computer, you might be tempted to pronounce a malediction, or curse, on the hacker responsible.