Secret Lives of Words: A billion cicadas and a side of fries

The cicadas are coming and, yes, by the billions! The Cicadoidea superfamily dates back 250 million years and numbers more than 3,000 species. Those soon to magically emerge from their subterranean abodes in the eastern U.S., as many as 1.5 million/acre, and launch into an amorous sing-along are in the genus Magicicada, “magician cicada.” Often…