Round the blogs (2)
Language Log, which for some incomprehensible reason I had not thoroughly explored before now, is one of the most informative and funniest sites around; not only the articles, but the banter below. This article on an escaped chimp in Kansas City and this one on leaf blowers are two recent examples.
No one will be surprised to learn that I made a fool of myself on John Wells's phonetic blog by suggesting that /əʊ/ might exist in Italian. It doesn't of course, although I was pleased to learn on further reading that /ɔ:/ is higher in Milanese Italian than in the Standard variety, sounding much like /o/. Only 70% wrong then; a triumph.
Redbubble is a lovely place for art and writing. So good in fact that I have honoured it by posting some of my verse there (under Simonmh). Another shameless plug: my Facebook writer's page is open to anyone who wants to give it a like, which as you've got this far you may as well; I promise not to sell you anything.
You've all heard the old chestnut about the Inuits' 97 words for snow. Well, that's been trumped: John Maidment has uncovered a number of Cheyenne words for... Well, you can see for yourselves.
For a breath of fresh air you could try Dr. Samuels, whose excavations into recently discovered Elizabethan texts are as fascinating as they are informative. Going even further back, some classical prayers can be found in the Meadows of the Helicon.
Sorry to all the good blogs I've missed out. The world of work (horror!) beckons with its greasy lucre and I may be relocating to foreign climes in the near future. If there are more cop-out You Tube clips and less original content here over the next few weeks you will a) be relieved and b) understand.
© Simon M Hunter 2010
No one will be surprised to learn that I made a fool of myself on John Wells's phonetic blog by suggesting that /əʊ/ might exist in Italian. It doesn't of course, although I was pleased to learn on further reading that /ɔ:/ is higher in Milanese Italian than in the Standard variety, sounding much like /o/. Only 70% wrong then; a triumph.
Redbubble is a lovely place for art and writing. So good in fact that I have honoured it by posting some of my verse there (under Simonmh). Another shameless plug: my Facebook writer's page is open to anyone who wants to give it a like, which as you've got this far you may as well; I promise not to sell you anything.
You've all heard the old chestnut about the Inuits' 97 words for snow. Well, that's been trumped: John Maidment has uncovered a number of Cheyenne words for... Well, you can see for yourselves.
For a breath of fresh air you could try Dr. Samuels, whose excavations into recently discovered Elizabethan texts are as fascinating as they are informative. Going even further back, some classical prayers can be found in the Meadows of the Helicon.
Sorry to all the good blogs I've missed out. The world of work (horror!) beckons with its greasy lucre and I may be relocating to foreign climes in the near future. If there are more cop-out You Tube clips and less original content here over the next few weeks you will a) be relieved and b) understand.
© Simon M Hunter 2010
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