English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

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RaceYouAnytime

12:41 AM

Could someone create a BNF grammar using "only the ten hundred words people use the most often?" xkcd.com/1133

Cerberus

@MetaEd Ed!

That must have been quite a bit of work.

1 hour later…

tchrist

1:53 AM

> Most of the rednecks in Canada and United States also give the English language quite a thrashing.

Should that be edited out or removed?

It seems offensive to thrashers to me.

Toxostomata are like that, what can I say?

> As a member of the genus Toxostoma, the bird is a large-sized thrasher. It has brown upper parts with a white under part with dark streaks. Because of this, it is often confused with the smaller wood thrush (Hylocichla mustelina), among other species. The brown thrasher is noted for having over 1000 song types, and the largest song repertoire of birds.

We need to be careful not to offend these guys or we'll never hear the end of it.

Brown thrasher

The brown thrasher (Toxostoma rufum) is a bird in the family Mimidae, which also includes the New World catbirds and mockingbirds. The dispersal of the brown thrasher is abundant throughout the eastern and central United States, southern and central Canada, and is the only thrasher to live primarily east of the Rockies and central Texas. It is the state bird of Georgia. As a member of the genus Toxostoma, the bird is a large-sized thrasher. It has brown upper parts with a white under part with dark streaks. Because of this, it is often confused with the smaller wood thrush (Hylocichla mustelina...

Rednecks -> thrashers -> "Stage bird of Georgia" -> rednecks

So my question stands.

> The brown thrasher was originally described by Linnaeus in his 18th century work Systema Naturae as Turdus rufus.

He thought it was a robin, really?

Shouda been turdus furdus then, at least it would have been funny.

I don't think L. spent much time here, just sayin'.

3 hours later…

Shafizadeh

5:15 AM

Stackexchnge has a sort option named "active". Does anybody know what's it based on? I mean, a question should has what parameter to be on the top of list?

6 hours later…

Matt E. Эллен

10:47 AM

@Shafizadeh active questions are ones that have had the question or answers on the question edited recently, or questions that have had new answers posted

3 hours later…

MetaEd

1:27 PM

@Cerberus Yes ... all incurred years ago when I coded it.

2 hours later…

Shafizadeh

3:16 PM

@MattE.Эллен I see, thx

englishstudent

3:52 PM

@Tonepoet What if the other English student comes to this chat? We will both be getting pinged I think.

It can confusing. Well, I came before them so I'm keeping this name. Maybe I should have made a patent of my name =)

Or a copyright or whatever.

@Mitch I see, thanks a bunch. But "How is your shifting going?" sounds better to me than "How is your moving going?"

Not natural sounding though. Sadly.

@MetaEd Do you have a beard in real life too?

Mats Granvik

4:31 PM

I constantize! Jag konstaterar! RESPECT MY AUTHORATAI!

Lawrence

5:05 PM

@englishstudent Of interest:

No, that happens relatively rarely. For comments on the site, you two must both have commented on a post (or one of you have written or edited the post) for that to occur. Otherwise, the software knows which of you is meant by @111. In chat, it happens if both of you were active in the room in question not too long ago. Then the software doesn't know whom @111 refers to, and pings you both, iirc. — Daniel Fischer ♦ Jan 12 at 16:06