Pedants rejoice

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AlanMiller
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Pedants rejoice

Post by AlanMiller »

I've been waiting for something like this to happen for a while: China's quantum satellite in big leap. Finally, the gross misuse/abuse of the word "quantum", to describe something big and powerful, with a hint of science behind it, has backfired. "Quantum", when used in reference to physics, is usually very small (the smallest possible in many cases) and a decidedly unimpressive amount, not at all suited to sensational headlines. But the word conjures up something of great significance and power to the casual reader - something akin to the Big Bang. So let's sound all impressive and toss it in whenever we want to make something sound ... WOW!

I guess "China's quantum satellite in quantum leap" might have sounded somewhat redundant. And "China's big satellite in quantum leap" would be disingenuous, since the satellite isn't particularly big. It's nice to see this come back to bite them :evilgrin:. Maybe it will help to force the journos back into using more properer English!

The history of using ‘quantum’ to mean ‘really big’.

Alan

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Rudi
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Post by Rudi »

The noun, quantum can also mean: "The amount or quantity observably present, or available."
Maybe the engineers, after admiring their creation, observed it and said, "We made something out of nothing". :nuts:
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AlanMiller
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Rudi wrote:"We made something out of nothing". :nuts:
That would be more in line with the creation of the universe ... right up the opposite end of the scale from the quantum. Although the "seed" would indeed be a quantum fluctuation. Spontaneous creation of the Universe Ex Nihilo ... if you happen to be interested.

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Re: Pedants rejoice

Post by Rudi »

I am very interested in quantum sciences, but I can only pretend to know much about it.
You could say my interest is large, but my knowledge about it is rather quantum. :grin:
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AlanMiller
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Post by AlanMiller »

It sounds like you're on the right track then:
"I think I can safely say that nobody understands quantum mechanics." —Richard Feynman

Alan

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Re: Pedants rejoice

Post by BobH »

Another word I have seen misused by very well educated and well read people is 'penultimate.'

Many people think that it means something more ultimate when it means the last thing before the ultimate. I once had a boss, president of a very large bank, who misused quite often. He did so one day were one-on-one and celebrating a success. I suggested that he look the word up as he was misusing it to his discredit. I think he continued to misuse it as matter of habit. Strangely, he was not aware of the word 'parse' and asked me once what it meant. He apparently had never had a grammar teacher ask him to parse a sentence but understood its meaning when I told him that you had to parse a sentence in order to diagram it.
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AlanMiller
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Post by AlanMiller »

BobH wrote:Another word I have seen misused by very well educated and well read people is 'penultimate.'
I've heard it used in that context too. It probably starts with some ignorant journo wanting to sound both cool and educated, finding a "new" word and not checking its meaning. Then the other dumb journos have to use it too, lest they will sound less cool. Then it gets into common usage. As you say, it's been taken to mean something like megaultimate. A rather sad reflection when public figures, politicians and teachers also adopt it so that they too can sound cool ... or pencool.

Alan

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Re: Pedants rejoice

Post by StuartR »

I hate to hear the word epicentre misused. The epicentre is the point on the Earth's surface above the centre of an earthquake, but the word is often used to mean "the centre, honest I really mean the centre"
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AlanMiller
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Also misused in relation to airburst explosions as the spatial centre of the explosion. The correct term is hypocentre; the epicentre is the point on the surface directly below the hypocentre.

Alan

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Post by John Gray »

How about "centring around", rather than "centring on [a point] "? :hairout:
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Post by BobH »

Another that I don't understand is 'on line' vs 'in line'. I suspect that the English use queue instead of line but I haven't a clue how being in a queue is expressed 'across the pond'.

And . . . one I hear quite often here in central Texas is 'on accident' not 'by accident'.
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John Gray
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BobH wrote:I haven't a clue how being in a queue is expressed 'across the pond'.
Exactly like that!
"We are all in the queue for the Waitrose Essentials caviar."
"On a queue" is unknown.
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Re: Pedants rejoice

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BobH wrote:Another word I have seen misused by very well educated and well read people is 'penultimate.'
My favorite (proper) use of penultimate was in a Monty Python sketch I delightedly witnessed live at the Hollywood Bowl.

K
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Re: Pedants rejoice

Post by BobH »

Thank you, Karen!

I'm jealous of your having seen them perform en vivo.

My upbringing makes me cringe a bit at the sacrilege implied by their insouciance, though.
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Post by kdock »

Hey Bob,

It was fantastic. I still have the T-shirt.

I also realize that I abbreviate my name so often that no one knows what it is! It's Kim. I don't really mean to be anonymous--it's just habit.

Kim
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BobH wrote:And . . . one I hear quite often here in central Texas is 'on accident' not 'by accident'.
Speaking of "accident", I recently saw a news item in which a country cop described how "an accident then insured". :hairout:

Alan

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kdock wrote:I also realize that I abbreviate my name so often that no one knows what it is! It's Kim. I don't really mean to be anonymous--it's just habit.
You used your full name in Woody's Lounge, so I knew that your name is Kim.
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Post by Rudi »

According to Kim's penultimate post, her name is K (or Kay).
With all this confusion I wouldn't want to see the portrait that Michelangelo (or is that Michael Angelo?) paints of you Kim , or K or Karen. :grin:

PS: I was called Ruudy in a post not too long ago.
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AlanMiller wrote:Speaking of "accident", I recently saw a news item in which a country cop described how "an accident then insured".
Our local newspaper's website recently headlined a very sad story: "Cyclist dies in fatal accident"...
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John Gray wrote:Our local newspaper's website recently headlined a very sad story: "Cyclist dies in fatal accident"...
I've still yet to see one that tops this headline.

Alan