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Author | Topic: On the evolution of English as a written or spoken language. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Panda Member (Idle past 3733 days) Posts: 2688 From: UK Joined: |
jar writes:
Natural selection is a process. many words and terms simply disappear, do not survive, or get new uses."simply disappear, do not survive, or get new uses" are not processes.
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jar Member (Idle past 414 days) Posts: 34026 From: Texas!! Joined: |
Natural selection is why they disappear, get new uses.
The Natural Selection in language is the population that uses the language, that selects what survives and does not survive. Edited by jar, : fix subtitle Anyone so limited that they can only spell a word one way is severely handicapped!
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Jon Inactive Member |
Natural selection is a process. "simply disappear, do not survive, or get new uses" are not processes. See my post on language academies. Also, words disappearing or getting new uses is a linguistic process; one of the many processes through which language vocabularies change. Jon Check out No webpage found at provided URL: Apollo's Temple! Ignorance is temporary; you should be able to overcome it. - nwr
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dwise1 Member Posts: 5946 Joined: Member Rating: 5.5 |
Does anyone know how to pronounce "ghoti" in English? It is not an English word. According to No webpage found at provided URL: Wikipedia's Klingon Language article, it is the tlhIngan word for "fish":
quote: And following the ghoti link there, we also find the word "Ghoughpteighbteau", pronounced "potato".
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jar Member (Idle past 414 days) Posts: 34026 From: Texas!! Joined: |
Long long ago in a land far far away, I worked as a computer programmer for some marine biologists. In talking to one about his programs database and reporting needs, he mentioned that one thing that was very important was to track the mode.
"Oh.", said I, "easily done and I will provide the mean and average as well as mode." "No!", said he, "I want the mode used, for example, from the dock, in a boat, in the surf, with net, with rod and reel..." Anyone so limited that they can only spell a word one way is severely handicapped!
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ringo Member (Idle past 432 days) Posts: 20940 From: frozen wasteland Joined: |
Panda writes:
In biological evolution, the least fit individuals are selected out by usage. The fittest words survive because they are selected in by usage. Natural selection is a process."simply disappear, do not survive, or get new uses" are not processes. "I'm Rory Bellows, I tell you! And I got a lot of corroborating evidence... over here... by the throttle!"
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Panda Member (Idle past 3733 days) Posts: 2688 From: UK Joined: |
jar writes:
Which is not what you originally said:
Natural selection is why they disappear, get new uses.quote: jar writes:
Surely the population (as a whole) is the environment. The Natural Selection in language is the population that uses the language, that selects what survives and does not survive.Individual attitudes would be like natural selection? Or would that be more like artificial selection? And you have still not described what natural selection would be in your analogy.I suggested one example earlier - surely there are more. If your original comment was just an asside, then just acknowledge this reply and I'll leave it.
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Panda Member (Idle past 3733 days) Posts: 2688 From: UK Joined: |
ringo writes:
Yes, but what causes words to be selected in? In biological evolution, the least fit individuals are selected out by usage. The fittest words survive because they are selected in by usage.(And I did give an example of words being selected out too.) But I think this might have been just an asside by Jar and not something he wanted to discuss.
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Parasomnium Member Posts: 2224 Joined: |
Panda writes: Northern English 'dance' or southern English 'dance'?(I think it is northern style.) Take the shortness of the north, combine it with the a-sound of the south, and by Jove, you've got it.
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Parasomnium Member Posts: 2224 Joined: |
"Crashfroh" writes: I'm not going to say it like I'm Dutch, so I'm just gonna stick with "Van Goh." That's fine by me.
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Parasomnium Member Posts: 2224 Joined: |
dwise1 writes: The professor was covering a few of the theories of the origin of human language and mentioned the idea that it came from animal sounds. What an odd suggestion. Next they'll be telling us we evolved from animals. Tsk! Edited by Parasomnium, : setting quote attribution right
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ringo Member (Idle past 432 days) Posts: 20940 From: frozen wasteland Joined: |
Panda writes:
As I said, usage. People use the words that get their message across with minimum confusion, the words that are easiest to pronounce, the words that they like the sound of, etc. just as predators eat the animals that are easy to catch, that taste good, etc. The only difference is that one is positive selection and the other is negative selection. Yes, but what causes words to be selected in? "I'm Rory Bellows, I tell you! And I got a lot of corroborating evidence... over here... by the throttle!"
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jar Member (Idle past 414 days) Posts: 34026 From: Texas!! Joined: |
Surely the population (as a whole) is the environment. Surely? It is the filter, what does the selecting of what is in and out. And what is Natural Selection biologically other than the environment as a whole? Anyone so limited that they can only spell a word one way is severely handicapped!
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xongsmith Member Posts: 2587 From: massachusetts US Joined: Member Rating: 6.4 |
Vincent Van Gogh [New Orleans - 3 May 1976]
/ Robert Friemark [The Warehouse, New Orleans - 3 May 1976] [Note: Olof's 1976 summary shows this date as 2 May 1976...and has nothing for 3 May 1976] [Note: this song only makes sense when the American mispronunciation of van Gogh is used (= van Go)] Dylan: Where are ya? It's hard to see ya...oh, there ya are. I'd like to tell you a storyOf a man that you might know His parents all called him Vincent His last name was Van Gogh And he started into drinking and paintingAnd leading a life of sin He fell in with evil companions A man named Paul Gaugin Well, [he/they?] came to the city of AuversPersuing their carnal delights They painted all during the afternoon And they made music all night The people of that small cityThought he was a little bit queer So to prove his love for mankind He chopped off his [outside] ear. They put him in an institutionBut they could not keep him there He picked up his paints and his easels And he went out to take some air Then he picked up his paints and his easelAnd he went out to paint some crows They found him face down in a corn field Shot right between two rows Now, where did Vincent Van Gogh...? - xongsmith, 5.7d
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Dr Adequate Member (Idle past 305 days) Posts: 16113 Joined: |
People use the words that get their message across with minimum confusion ... How long have you been posting on these forums?
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