Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 (Tek) 9/28/84 based on 9/17/84; site iddic.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!tektronix!orca!iddic!galenr From: galenr@iddic.UUCP (Galen Redfield) Newsgroups: net.followup Subject: Re: literacy Message-ID: <2260@iddic.UUCP> Date: Thu, 24-Oct-85 19:40:27 EDT Article-I.D.: iddic.2260 Posted: Thu Oct 24 19:40:27 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 26-Oct-85 05:35:18 EDT References: <747@cyb-eng.UUCP> <1900005@datacube.UUCP> Reply-To: galenr@iddic.UUCP (Galen Redfield) Organization: Tektronix, Beaverton OR Lines: 54 Summary: In article <1900005@datacube.UUCP> stephen@datacube.UUCP writes: > >>Postings to the net routinely contain typographical errors. Most of my >>... (etc.) > >I agree. My particular choice is "mnemonic" misspelled as "pneumonic". Even >worse, I hear it pronounced "noo-monic" instead of "nee-monic". ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^ >Stephen Watkins UUCP: ihnp4!datacube!stephen >Datacube Inc.; 4 Dearborn Rd.; Peabody, Ma. 01960; 617-535-6644 I agree!! Boy, I sure hate it when I hear words pronounced incorrectly on the net, too! ;-) You may not be likely to hear it pronounced "nee-monic", since the correct (most dictionaries) pronunciation is more like "nimmonic" (short "i" sound, not long "e", but it should probably be a short "e" sound). In the long run, a word is pronounced however most people say it, and scholars try to determine just what that is, and finally whether to adopt that pronunciation. (So, tell me something I don't know, right?) Say, how can you tell whether "they" pronounced the wrong word correctly, or the correct word incorrectly?? Perhaps if they tried some mnemonics (not the computer opcode kind), they could remember how to pronounce the correct word correctly! On the other hand, speaking is somewhat pneumonic, since it involves the use of lungs (and other things, sometimes including the brain). Here are a few more boo-boo's I've noticed, which have bothered me when I was in a botherable mood.... * "rather" instead of "whether" as in, "Ask her rather or not she went to the review meeting." * "doing" instead of "during" as in, "We would like to stop by for a short tour of your plant some time doing the week." * "dampened" instead of "damped" as in, "It looks to me like that system is overdampened." (Does this mean it's all wet?) * "orthagonal" instead of "orthogonal" (the former is not a real word, as far as I know, but sounds like it comes from "agony") I wish I could remember more of them. They sometimes seem humorous, especially when one can sense an innocent ignorance in the person making these errors. Or, it can become aggravating when repeated excessively. To forgive is devine, but nearly impossible at times. Some people just ain't as literate as we is, is they? Warm regards, Galen.