Volcanology

Almost everything a volcano does follows from two numbers: how much silica is in the magma and how much gas is dissolved in it. The eighth entry is la chimenea volcánica, the pipe the magma rises through — and la chimenea is a word that covers a whole house before it ever reaches a mountain. It is the chimney on the roof; it is the fireplace in the wall, so nos sentamos junto a la chimenea puts people by the fire and not under the flue; it is the mantelpiece above it, encima de la chimenea; it is the chimney a climber wedges himself into; and it is the volcanic vent. English has four words for those and keeps the fire in one of them and the smoke in another. The Spanish word names the shaft, and lets whoever is listening work out which shaft is meant.