Re: Informants, etc.

Arthaey Angosii wrote:


> Emaelivpar HS Teoh:
> >As my informant explains to me...
>
> T'emaelivpaer Elyse Grasso:
> >My chief informant's name is Nitodthii...
>
(snip others)
>
> What this all boils down to is many of you have informants, and I want one
> too.  :P  Seriously(?) though, does people have other, erm, "methods" of
> learning/discovering their conlangs, besides the informant-route?  I think
> I've seen people mention discovering historical documents and thus
learning
> conlang/conculture that way.  Any other means?
-- A space capsule crashes in your backyard, and you are able to extract
alien computer files, voice samples etc.
-- You receive transmissions through the fillings in your teeth (hmm, might
not be a bad way to learn)
-- Via a near-magical (to our view) device, linguistic data is transferred
directly from a source into your brain (the source can be another person, or
a computerized file)-- that's how the folks at Galactic Unity do it, but it
involves a "learning drug" that their medicos have not yet approved for use
in humans, so I'm learning Kash the old fashioned way. (An old Poul Anderson
story had a similar handy device, IIRC, called a Mentator, though it may
have just been a Universal Translator.)

BTW-- PC strikes again:  in recent literature, I've noticed that informants
are now called "consultants"

My inf....consultant is H.E. Shenji rona Kavatu, First Emissary to Planet
Earth of the Galactic Unity (that's a long story); and by the most amazing
series of coincidences (another long story), I (or someone very much like
me) happen to be his Aide. Many people think I'm under his mind-control-- he
could indeed do that, but hasn't, and it's considered very impolite in any
case. Still, he hasn't yet been able to arrange a meeting with GWB, whose
advisers are fearful of just such an outcome. Other world leaders have been
happy to meet with him, and emerged none the worse for the experience, but
as you can imagine, the idea of an large furry alien (black, to boot)
tromping around here on Earth doesn't set well with certain groups.

> T'vopah Jennifer:
> >I think I'll go to bed and have a nice long chat with my informant.
The rona, like many Kash, tends toward the gay side of the spectrum, but we
haven't yet made it to bed. I should think there might be physical and/or
allergic problems. But he does feel sooo alone here on Earth..... (Uh-oh, I
feel a Mary Sue coming on.......!!)