Re: CHAT Jargon-mangling (was: Worse Greek 102)

taliesin the storyteller sikayal:

> Spoilers ahead, beware.
>
> * Padraic Brown <pbrown@...> [010205 19:36]:
> > I gather it must be very hard for someone educated in a particular
> > discipline to hear or read the lingo mangled so badly [..]
>
> Ever read Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson? I'm quite proud I managed to
> finish it in spite of his (ab)use of linguistic theory. It's still a
> good book, but to imagine how great it might have been if I hadn't
> been reading linguistics texts for years, or if the main plot point
> hadn't hinged on a *very* strong version of Sapir-Whorf... urrrgh
Haven't read that one, although my curiosity is piqued now.  In a similar
vein is _Way of the Pilgrim_ by, um, (looking up author) Gordon
R. Dickson.  The plot hinges on the idea that some people preserve the
language-learning ability of small children all the way through
life, and so are able to learn an alien language otherwise
impossible for humans to speak.  Of course, such people don't exist, but
if they did I'm sure they would be the envy of everyone on conlang
. . . ;)

Jesse S. Bangs jaspax@u.washington.edu
"It is of the new things that men tire--of fashions and proposals and
improvements and change.  It is the old things that startle and
intoxicate.  It is the old things that are young."
-G.K. Chesterton _The Napoleon of Notting Hill_
Conlanger code: CLI> l%p+++ cS:R:N:H a++ y n18d:6 X+++ A-- E-- L-- N2.5
Idmp k++ ia-- p+ m++ o+++ P d++ b++ Yivríndil