“They are pouring over sanskrit on the ivy league moon ...” –from “Four Winds”—Sanskrit is one of 22 official languages of India, where it is still widely used in Hindu religious rituals. It dates as far back as 1700 B.C.

“You woke up purged as a wailing infant / In Krung Thep, Thailand …” –from “Cleanse Song”—Krung Thep is the shortened Thai name for Bangkok, the capital of Thailand. It’s full ceremonial name is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Yuthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Piman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit. Say that three times fast.

“So give me black light ...” –from “Hot Knives”—Black light is electromagnetic radiation emitted in the soft ultraviolet range, which emits very little visible light. It has been known to cause skin cancer and wrinkles. But, it makes those velvet posters look way cool.

“When you are young, the world is a Ferris Wheel ...” –from “Make a Plan to Love Me”—Named after its inventor, George Washington Gale Ferris Jr., the first Ferris Wheel was erected for the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. The world’s largest Ferris Wheel is currently being constructed for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. It will stand 208 meters high.

“To the plastic piranhas in the city of salt …” –from “Soul Singer in a Session Band”—Piranhas are omnivorous fish found only in the Amazon basin in South America. They can grow up to 24 inches long and have two rows of razor-sharp teeth. Attempts to introduce the little biting buggers into other parts of the world have so far been unsuccessful (thankfully).

“Now the sky is a torn up denim and the clouds are just splattered paint …” –from “Classic Cars”—Denim originates from Nimes, France. Its name is a shortened version of the original, serge de Nimes. Invented in the late 18th century, denim is a sturdier version of jean, which comes from Genes, the French word for Genoa, Italy, where denim trousers were first made. Denim is created when two cotton twill fibers are passed under another two, making a tough, diagonal ribbing.

“Never peer out of their periscopes from those deep opium dens …” –from “If the Brakeman Turns My Way”—Periscopes, those spying tubes most frequently seen used in modern warfare, such as on tanks and submarines, were actually invented in the 1430s by Johann Gutenberg, better known as the inventor of the printing press.

“In my Styrofoam coffin, asleep on the interstate …” –from “Coat Check Dream Song”—Styrofoam is the trademark name for a type of thermal insulation, invented by Dow Chemical Company in the 1940s and used mainly in building materials. Its name has been mistakenly applied to everyday items. It is not actually the polystyrene foam we use for coffee cups or packing material. But, it too takes several hundred years to break down and would certainly work well as a coffin.

“Leave the scientist in his Rubik’s cube ...” –from “I Must Belong Somewhere” —The Rubik’s Cube was invented in 1974 by Hungarian sculptor Erno Rubik. Since then, more than 300 million have been sold, making it the world’s best-selling toy. The record for solving one of the puzzle cubes was 11.76 seconds, set in 2007 by Yu Jeong-Min of South Korea.