Redux is an interesting word. I read about it in The Word Detective. It sounds like it means "reduced" or perhaps summarized or something like that. But it doesn't. Redux means "brought back" or "revived". According to Wikipedia, it is mostly used in literature, film and video game titles, and was made much more popular when John Updike published Rabbit Redux in 1970. Google's ngram viewer shows that the use of redux has had a lot of peaks and valleys, peaking in 1806-1808, then again in 1904, then there was a long decline in use and, indeed, a resurgence after 1970 that, so far, shows no sign of slowing down. Indeed, one could say "redux redux". But it's never been really popular - the peaks are at about 0.0000045% of all words, or about 1 in every 22 million words.
One unusual thing about redux is that (unlike nearly all adjectives in English) it is used only after the noun it modifies. Another unusual thing is that it has no comparative or superlative form (the -er and -est of most adjectives). It comes from Latin reducere "to lead back or bring back" - the same root as reduce, which changed its meaning later on.
Wednesday, November 30, 2016
Sunday, November 27, 2016
The Balloon Joke
This is a joke I made up when I heard that people with nonverbal learning disabilities (which I have) do not have a sense of humor.
A guy is flying in a hot air balloon, and he's lost. He lowers himself over a field and calls to a guy "Can you tell me where I am and where I'm headed?"
"Sure. You're at 41 degrees 2 minutes and 14 seconds North, 144 degrees 4 minutes and 19 seconds East; you're at an altitude of 762 meters above sea level, and right now you're hovering, but you were on a vector of 234 degrees at 12 meters per second"
"Amazing! Thanks! By the way, do you have Asperger's Syndrome?"
"I do! How did you know that?"
"Because everything you said is true, it's much more detail than I need, and you told me in a way that's no use to me at all."
"Huh. Are you a clinical psychologist?"
"I am, but how the heck did you know that???!!??"
"You don't know where you are. You don't know where you're going. You got where you are by blowing hot air. You put labels on people after asking a few questions, and you're in exactly the same spot you were 5 minutes ago, but now, somehow, it's my fault!
A guy is flying in a hot air balloon, and he's lost. He lowers himself over a field and calls to a guy "Can you tell me where I am and where I'm headed?"
"Sure. You're at 41 degrees 2 minutes and 14 seconds North, 144 degrees 4 minutes and 19 seconds East; you're at an altitude of 762 meters above sea level, and right now you're hovering, but you were on a vector of 234 degrees at 12 meters per second"
"Amazing! Thanks! By the way, do you have Asperger's Syndrome?"
"I do! How did you know that?"
"Because everything you said is true, it's much more detail than I need, and you told me in a way that's no use to me at all."
"Huh. Are you a clinical psychologist?"
"I am, but how the heck did you know that???!!??"
"You don't know where you are. You don't know where you're going. You got where you are by blowing hot air. You put labels on people after asking a few questions, and you're in exactly the same spot you were 5 minutes ago, but now, somehow, it's my fault!
Intersting words: Acnestis: The parts you can't reach
Does your back ever itch? Mine does. And, sometimes, it's in the part I can't scratch! That's so annoying. Sometimes I will rub against a chair or something like that. And they even sell back scratchers to let you reach those parts.
But ... what are those parts? Not only is it annoying to be unable to scratch where it itches, it's annoying to have to say "where I can't reach". And now, you don't have to. Because English has a word for those parts: Acnestis.
Can you scratch my acnestis?
Do cats even have an acnestis?
Where is your acnestis?
When I was younger, my shoulders were so flexible that I had no acnestis, but now I do.
And do you know of any animal that has an acnestis that is not on its back?
But ... what are those parts? Not only is it annoying to be unable to scratch where it itches, it's annoying to have to say "where I can't reach". And now, you don't have to. Because English has a word for those parts: Acnestis.
Can you scratch my acnestis?
Do cats even have an acnestis?
Where is your acnestis?
When I was younger, my shoulders were so flexible that I had no acnestis, but now I do.
And do you know of any animal that has an acnestis that is not on its back?
Saturday, November 26, 2016
What are you reading? November 26, 2016
(Sorry I missed last week)
Here is what I am reading this week. Use the comments to tell us what you are reading.
Here is what I am reading this week. Use the comments to tell us what you are reading.
Books
- The Year's Best Science Fiction edited by Gardner Dozois. A good annual "best of" book. On p.181 (12 pages read).
- Tips on Cardplay by Mike Lawrence. Lawrence is one of the best bridge writers alive. Play is the worst part of my game. This book also includes some tips on defense. p. 138 (no pages read this week).
- Watson's Play of the Hand at Bridge, the classic book on play. On p. 113 (no pages read this week).
- A Beautiful Question by Frank Wilczek, it's a combination of physics, philosophy and art. The question is whether the world can be regarded as a work of art. On p. 65 (8 pages read this week).
- How to Reassess your Chess by Jeremy Silman. A really good chess book. p 32 (no pages read).
- How to Reassess your Chess Workbook also by Silman and the companion to the above. On p. 43 (no pages read).
- The Dream of Reason by Anthony Gottlieb. A history of philosophy from its Thales to the Renaissance. This is a really good survey, I think. Gottlieb writes very clearly and uses analogy and humor to help. page 330 (24 pages read this week).
- John Quincy Adams by James Traub. A bio of our 6th president, an unjustly neglected figure. On page 379 (100 pages read).
- I finished A Clean Killing in Tokyo by Barry Eisler. The first book in the John Rain series. Spies, assassins, fun stuf.. My review
- I also finished The Word Detective by Paul Simpson.My review.
Periodicals
- The New York Times - I read the front section every day (although I am sometimes behind!), Science Times on Tuesdays, parts of the Food section on Wednesdays and the Book Review and Magazine on Sundays
- The Economist - Nothing beats it for coverage of world news.
- New York Review of Books - Because I love books
- Mother Jones - Because it aligns with my views.
- The ACBL Bridge Bulletin - I like bridge
- Bridge World - I like bridge. This is mostly too advanced for me, but I like the Master Solvers' Club
- Foreign Affiars - Good in-depth articles.
- Asimov's Science Fiction. My favorite story this month was The Mind is its own Place by Carrie Vaughn
- Hightower Lowdown. Jim Hightower on politics.
- American Atheist . Because I am both of those things.
- Various professional publications
Your turn
Use the comments to tell me what you are reading and what you think of it.Book review: The Word Detective by John Simpson
Year published: 2016
Date I finished reading: November 26, 2016
Genre: History, memoir, English
Rating: B
Review: The Word Detective is the story of John Simpson's time working at the Oxford English Dictionary. He applied for a job in 1976 after his girlfriend (and later his wife) saw an ad and thought it might suit him. He stayed for 35 years, rising to become the chief editor of the famous dictionary.
The Word Detective is partly about words. Simpson looks at various words in depth, showing their etymology and how their meaning changed over time. It's partly about Simpson's personal life - marriage, children and so on. It's partly about what it takes to be a lexicographer (one note: You shouldn't love words). But mostly it's about moving the Oxford Dictionary into the 21st century, putting it first on CD-ROM and then on the Internet, updating words, finding editors and all the parts of editing the massive dictionary.
I found it quite interesting, but it's a bit repetitive (how many times do we need to be told that the OED was behind the times?). Except for this, Simpson writes with a nice style. He has a very dry English sense of humor, and his love of his former job comes through quite clearly.
Date I finished reading: November 26, 2016
Genre: History, memoir, English
Rating: B
Review: The Word Detective is the story of John Simpson's time working at the Oxford English Dictionary. He applied for a job in 1976 after his girlfriend (and later his wife) saw an ad and thought it might suit him. He stayed for 35 years, rising to become the chief editor of the famous dictionary.
The Word Detective is partly about words. Simpson looks at various words in depth, showing their etymology and how their meaning changed over time. It's partly about Simpson's personal life - marriage, children and so on. It's partly about what it takes to be a lexicographer (one note: You shouldn't love words). But mostly it's about moving the Oxford Dictionary into the 21st century, putting it first on CD-ROM and then on the Internet, updating words, finding editors and all the parts of editing the massive dictionary.
I found it quite interesting, but it's a bit repetitive (how many times do we need to be told that the OED was behind the times?). Except for this, Simpson writes with a nice style. He has a very dry English sense of humor, and his love of his former job comes through quite clearly.
Tuesday, November 22, 2016
Book review: A Bomb Built in Hell: Wesley's Story by Andrew Vachss
Year published: 2012
Date I finished reading: November 22, 2016
Genre: Crime/thriller
Rating: C
Review: I picked this up because I am a fan of Vachss' Burke series, especially the earlier volumes, and, in the forward, Vachss notes that, although A Bomb Built in Hell was published in 2012, it was written much earlier. Fans of the Burke series will recognize Wesley's name as one of the deadliest and coldest assassins.
But the subtitle to this book could better be "Watch Wesley Kill". There's a tremendous amount of killing - killing by gun, knife, poison gas, killing for revenge, killing for money, killing at random. But the book doesn't really tell Wesley's story. It doesn't cover his childhood (how the bomb got built) and there's a minimum of plot and character development.
Fans of the Burke series will like Vachss' prose and may want to read this to add to their knowledge of Wesley, but I found it rather disapponting.
Date I finished reading: November 22, 2016
Genre: Crime/thriller
Rating: C
Review: I picked this up because I am a fan of Vachss' Burke series, especially the earlier volumes, and, in the forward, Vachss notes that, although A Bomb Built in Hell was published in 2012, it was written much earlier. Fans of the Burke series will recognize Wesley's name as one of the deadliest and coldest assassins.
But the subtitle to this book could better be "Watch Wesley Kill". There's a tremendous amount of killing - killing by gun, knife, poison gas, killing for revenge, killing for money, killing at random. But the book doesn't really tell Wesley's story. It doesn't cover his childhood (how the bomb got built) and there's a minimum of plot and character development.
Fans of the Burke series will like Vachss' prose and may want to read this to add to their knowledge of Wesley, but I found it rather disapponting.
Monday, November 21, 2016
Great quotations: Israel Salanter on morality
The quote:
Who said it: Israel Salanter
Source:
Thoughts on the quote:
Why do I, an atheist who doesn't even believe in souls, like this quote? I think we can take "soul" as a metaphor. Salanter is saying that we should help others in material ways, and worry about ourselves in spiritual ways. This is, as the quotation notes, too often the reverse of what people do. Many people seem concerned with how much stuff they have and how evil other people are being.
This quote and modern politics
To me, this quote could be the foundation of liberalism and progressivism. I think that the current definition of "conservative" often fits the "most people" and the current definition of "liberal" fits the "ought". Conservatives are very worried about gay marriage, abortion, drug use, and all sorts of things that are really "other people's souls", while liberals tend to be more worried with making sure that other people have enough to eat and so on.
About the author:
Israel Salanter (ne Lipkin) was a rabbi in Lithuania. He was born on November 3, 1810,
in Zhagory and died on February 2, 1883 in Konigsberg. Israel Salanter was a noted Torah scholar and talmudist. A devoutly orthodox Jew, Salanter's views were, nevertheless, outside the mainstream, and he stressed ethical and moral teachings, and also wrote about the role of the subconcious.
Most people worry about their own bellies, and other people's souls, when we all ought to worry about our own souls and other people's bellies
Who said it: Israel Salanter
Source:
Thoughts on the quote:
Why do I, an atheist who doesn't even believe in souls, like this quote? I think we can take "soul" as a metaphor. Salanter is saying that we should help others in material ways, and worry about ourselves in spiritual ways. This is, as the quotation notes, too often the reverse of what people do. Many people seem concerned with how much stuff they have and how evil other people are being.
This quote and modern politics
To me, this quote could be the foundation of liberalism and progressivism. I think that the current definition of "conservative" often fits the "most people" and the current definition of "liberal" fits the "ought". Conservatives are very worried about gay marriage, abortion, drug use, and all sorts of things that are really "other people's souls", while liberals tend to be more worried with making sure that other people have enough to eat and so on.
About the author:
Israel Salanter (ne Lipkin) was a rabbi in Lithuania. He was born on November 3, 1810,
in Zhagory and died on February 2, 1883 in Konigsberg. Israel Salanter was a noted Torah scholar and talmudist. A devoutly orthodox Jew, Salanter's views were, nevertheless, outside the mainstream, and he stressed ethical and moral teachings, and also wrote about the role of the subconcious.
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