What is "hyperpilosity"

"Hyperpilosity" is a classic science fiction story by L. Sprague de Camp. It was first published in the magazine Astounding Stories for April, 1938, and first appeared in book form in the de Camp collection The Wheels of If and Other Science Fiction ( Shasta, 1949; It later appeared in the anthologies Omnibus of Science Fiction (Crown, 1952), Science Fiction of the Thirties ( Bobbs-Merrill, 1975), The Edward De Bono Science Fiction Collection, (Elmfield Press, 1976) and The Road to Science Fiction #2: From Wells to Heinlein (Mentor, 1979), as well as the magazine Fantastic Story Magazine (September, 1953) and the de Camp collection The Best of L. Sprague de Camp ( Doubleday, 1978).