Arg! Latin Plurals!

…and I’m not referring to Spain or Mexico, either. I also can’t say “Roman plurals” because Rome is the country, not the language. So it’s Latin plurals. English has long been a language that borrows freely from other languages, but by now we should be used to the Latin borrowings; it’s been long enough.

Let’s start with yesterday, which was the summer solstice. (Usually it’s the 21st, but this year is a leap year.) We have a winter solstice, too, so that makes two solstices per year. It’s pronounced like an ordinary plural, not “solstiseez.”

Then there’s poor old tired out “data.” The singular is “datum,” but a collection of data is often thought of as a single thing, so “data” is often treated like a singular. The curmudgeon in me says alas. If you read Scientific American, though, you’ll find that they always get it right. For them, “data” always gets a plural verb.

Here’s another one people get wrong. The singular is simulacrum, plural is simulacra. But not here.

But as our diligent Weekend Editor, Emanuel Maiberg, highlighted in his comprehensive ranking of the new icons, the latest roll out threatens to shake up everything we know about suggestive cartoon simulacrums: [read the article for the rest.]

On to the word that stimulated this post in the first place: millennia. “Millennia” is a plural, folks! The singular is “millennium.” I ran into this word being misused by some folks who ought to know better. Here’s the quote:

Comets, meteors, and meteorites have been shooting across works of art for more than a millennia.

Harrumpf. The article itself is worth a look, though. Lots of good pictures of early representations of comets.

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By guest blogger Elisabeth Puga (my middle daughter, who wrote for a non-profit for some time before the demands of raising five kids took all her time.)

When my book-loving friend said that he was rereading Notes from the Tilt-a-Whirl, I knew this youngish American author, N.D. Wilson, was worth a try. According to ndwilson.com, Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl is “a visual, poetic exploration of the narrative nature of the world and the personality of the Poet behind it all.” I find Wilson’s poetic style and his ability to paint the common as uncommon are what I enjoy most about his writing. Here’s a quote from the book:

“Do not resent your place in the story. Do not imagine yourself elsewhere. Do not close your eyes and picture a world without thorns, without shadows, without hawks. Change this world. Use your body like a tool meant to be used up, discarded, and replaced. Better every life you touch. We will reach the final chapter. When we have eyes that can stare into the sun, eyes that only squint for the Shenikah, then we will see laughing children pulling cobras by their tails, and hawks and rabbits playing tag.”

― N.D. Wilson, Notes From The Tilt-A- Whirl: Wide-Eyed Wonder in God’s Spoken World

In addition to apologetics, Wilson also writes young-adult fiction, children’s literature (he is a father of five), screenplays, short fiction, and prose. Wilson’s fiction is “characterized by its creative allusions to classic literature” according to Wikipedia, including the King Arthur stories, fairy tales from Robert Kirk and Sir Walter Scott, Treasure Island, The Odyssey, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, King Solomon’s Mines, and Beowulf.

Since I typically read multiple books at once, I was absorbing his non-fiction and fiction, the Ashtown Burials series, and 100 Cupboards trilogy simultaneously. It was intriguing to see the same themes, such as the purpose of life and idea of beauty, appear in both works but using vastly different approaches.

I’m curious if you have ever read works by an author in different genres. Who was that author, and was your reading experience richer because of it?

Suppose you’re writing some instructions, or even a single instruction. One word you don’t want to use is “please”!

“Please” implies your reader has a choice. When you’re giving instructions you’re telling your reader to do something, you’re not making a request. It’s not a favor you’re asking, in effect, you’re giving a command. For example:

To operate a car,

1. Turn on the ignition.
2. Step on the gas.
3. Aim the car down the road.
4. Please don’t hit anybody.

Simplistic, yes, but only that last one is a request. When you should leave out a word, the word is fluff if you leave it in, so get rid of it.

For practice, look at these. Which ones are correct, and which aren’t?

In case of fire, please break glass.
Click “Submit” to be removed from our mailing list.
Stick ’em up!
Move aside!
Please move aside!
Donate!
Measure the length to the nearest half inch.
To join the list, type your email address and press Enter.

Let’s look at that last one. Yes, it’s a request, but is there any other way to get on the list? No. So the “please” is inappropriate. Rule of thumb: if you can leave off the “Please,” do so.

“All marcom people are insane.”

That’s a motto of technical writers everywhere. Marcom is short for “marketing communications.” You know, advertising and stuff like that. This post is about one of the reasons tech writers say that marcom people are insane. First, a comic.

I suppose technical writers aren’t the only ones who cringe at this. The mistake, in case you didn’t get it, is stating only half of a comparison. I see this all the time in advertising. Every bag of chips, it seems, has 40% less fat. 40% less fat than what? Less than  before? Less than the competition? Less than apples?

Here’s the rule: When you use the comparative, say what you’re comparing it to. (The comparative usually ends in -er.) Is it faster? Say what it’s faster than. Is something better? Tell them better than what. (Beware of saying better than ever. I heard some guy made a product called “ever” so he could sue folks for demeaning his product.)

In marketing they rely on context to imply (sometimes mislead) what’s being compared, but when you explain something, don’t leave the comparison to chance, spell it out. That’s better.

Now an exercise for the reader: spelling it out is better than what?

PS. I just ran into another comparison word that frequently appears without its “compared to” term. See below. It’s Tina’s Groove for June 12.

Word has gotten out that The New York Times is changing its spelling of “Internet” to “internet.” They’re following Associated Press’ lead, which I mentioned recently. Here’s the main passage:

The Internet is going the way of the Weblog, the Electronic Message and the World Wide Web.

The New York Times announced on Tuesday that it would join The Associated Press in lowercasing the name of the global network that lives in our pockets and in front of our faces, keeping us pinned to various feeds like caged mice pressing the button that summons another hit of sugar water.

The changes will take effect at both news outlets on June 1 (which explains the incongruity of “Internet” being capitalized throughout this article).

It’s about time, I say.

Aside: An interesting linguistic feature of the second paragraph is that they made the noun “lowercase” into a verb. They do it again farther down in the article. A lot of purists deplore this, but it’s been part of English for centuries.

Since the change takes affect today, June 1, 2016, I thought I’d mention it. Here’s the whole article if you want to read it.