Language Overflow - 2018-05-10 (page 1 of 2)

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New Meta Question

03:17

1

Q: How can I insert a Google Ngram chart relatively easily?

I know this question probably belongs to the Meta of Metas, but I figure this is a more familiar place to me. Plus, Ngram is definitely a very important external feature for ELL and ELU users. I was trying to insert a Google Ngram chart into this question. Google Ngram has a Embed Chart function...

0

Q: Why should question contain incorrect source be downvoted?

Why can "core" be a plural form of "core"? This question receives 3 downvotes. One of the downvoter says that because it contains incorrect source. But even so, then why doesn't it show any research effort, not useful or unclear?

discussion down-votes

2 hours later…

userr2684291

05:25

What can one do when one encounters an obviously incorrect answer that's already been upvoted quite a bit? Can I edit it to contain factually correct information? Of course, I'm talking about that answer by the user formerly known as Cookie Monster that says covert mandative is "[in]correct [because] this is [...] called a subjunctive mood" (this is obviously not even an actual explanation and a good example of a logical misleap – they're merely saying something exists (???)).

Many people have seen this answer and I'm glad Araucaria jumped in to post their own, but obviously the answerer trusts their limited experience (what they refer to as "evidence") reading Kremlin Daily more than actual evidence.

userr2684291

05:43

Why I'm asking this is because I'm surprised no one attempted to do so, so maybe people have a good reason they didn't. Comments are, as moderators preach, ephemeral and, in my experience (especially when not upvoted (with no edits addressing the issues they point out), but at the same time not refuted) only sowing a seed of doubt and the reader (at least I would if I didn't understand the topic) might be left confused which answer to believe.

Should I give Araucaria a bounty; do people trust these more?

2 hours later…

CowperKettle

07:34

> After the 1964 rubella pandemic, the incidence of schizophrenia rose from less than 1% in the unexposed population to about 20% in the exposed population (4).

Shouldn't it be in an unexposed population instead?

frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2017.00174/full

userr2684291

@CowperKettle Hm. But can there be more than one unexposed population?

So something like the front wheel on a bike.

CowperKettle

Ah, thank you!

userr2684291

07:51

There actually can be more than one population of anything (as a biological term, or as a group), but it doesn't seem they're talking about a study which looked at different populations suffering from the pandemic or something like that.

Araucaria

08:15

Hi there

userr2684291

Hello.

CowperKettle

08:47

I hate the word rack.

For instance, bicycle rack means both the luggage carrier attached to a bicycle and a rack for parking bicycles.

And it's used here and there in technical texts. It's too ambiguous

userr2684291

09:04

Ack at rack.

Standalone it is ambiguous but I doubt you'd confuse them in context.

2 hours later…

userr2684291

10:43

@Araucaria Why do some sources say the subjunctive is making a comeback in English, while you just said it's actually dispreferred (by which I think you're referring to its replacement with the should construction in BrE)?

Hm, actually maybe there has been a decline within Modern English, but overall it's more prevalent in Modern English than it was in Middle English (hence "revival")?

I'm gonna chalk it up to the general principle of styles' cyclically waxing and waning in arts (language being one) across the board. (W'ere's mah pee-aitch-dee?)

Araucaria

11:04

@userr2684291 Well, most of those studies compare subjunctive mandatives with should-madatives. In general, I believe, the subjunctive is increasing compared to the should-mandative which is descreasing. For example, see here: Noëlle Serpollet

But those studeis don't seem to compare subjunctive with indicative mandatives (because there's less change, perhaps!). But there's no doubt it also depends on text type and so forth. There seem to be more mandatives in general in newspaper stuff nowadays, I believe and comparatively more subjunctives there too. People have speculated that this might be the influence of American English.

All of that research is partly motivated, of course, because it had previously been speculated that the subjunctive was on its death bead and was going to practically disappear. But that doesn't seem to be the case at all!

userr2684291

Righto.

Araucaria

@userr2684291 Sorry about the typos there. That SEU survey was on spoken English. A friend of mine is doing (or maybe has finished?) his PhD on subjunctives in B English at SEU at UCL. That's why I know a teeny bit about it (plus that fact I teach English in an EFL context and that Br/Am split comes up all the time with use of English exams, etc). That SEU slide only covers spoken English, btw! :)

2 hours later…

Anonymous

13:15

@userr2684291 It's tricky. The HNQ effect distorts the post scores, and in this case it's basically impossible to ever counteract all the upvotes with downvotes, so I'm not sure downvoting helps at all.

Anonymous

I tried to leave the key comments when I moved the rest to chat. It devolved somehow into an argument over whether the subjunctive exists and whether verbs conjugate … at tha point I probably should have deleted the off-topic comments outright instead of moving them to chat.

Araucaria

@snailboat Hi Snail, What's an HNQ effect?

Anonymous

When questions make it onto the Hot Network Questions list, people come in from all across the SE network and upvote stuff. They can't downvote in most cases because they have 101 reputation (from the association bonus) but not 125, and they tend not to be experts on the topics they're voting on.

Anonymous

So it creates an upward bias on the scores for posts which are promoted as Hot Network Questions.

Anonymous

I don't like HNQs personally.

Anonymous

13:26

Even without the HNQ effect people like upvoting more than downvoting because they (unfortunately) feel like upvotes are nice and downvotes are mean. Voting isn't supposed to be taken personally but that doesn't change how a lot of people feel about it.

Anonymous

So we'll just have to hope your post gets more upvotes eventually, or that the OP accepts your post, which would put it at the top.

userr2684291

@snailboat Yes. And I think editing the answer to say something completely different is kinda rude, but then again shouldn't people edit everything they find incorrect? Or does that principle apply only to Community-something answers?

Captain Bohemian

can "will" as an auxiliry verb be used together with "have" as an auxiliry verb? Doesn't this sound absurb because "will" refer to the future while "have" refer to from the past until now?

But I see such an example in a dictionary!

‘She will, moreover, have invested a vast amount of time and energy in creating her novel.’

Anonymous

@userr2684291 Ultimately each user has control over what edits are acceptable. In general we're not supposed to edit a post in a way that conflicts with the intention of the author.

userr2684291

@CaptainBohemian "...refer to from the past until now" – well, with will you shift this "now" to some future time.

Hopeless.

Captain Bohemian

13:44

@snailboat indeed, I would be happy with good-willedly editing my post, but often I find people editing my posts wrongly presume the scenario I wish to convey.

@userr2684291 wow! 'shift this "now" to some future time"! I had never learnt English sentences can be constructed in this way.

userr2684291

@CaptainBohemian I think that's the easiest way to describe it. The way I interpret the example sentence is that at some point in the future it'll become possible to say She has invested a vast amount...

@CaptainBohemian For your record, this construction is commonly referred to as the future perfect (simple).

Captain Bohemian

14:12

@userr2684291 OK. Thank you. I actually don't know a lot of grammatical terms in English, because when the English grammar was first taught in my middle school, we just began to learn English and hadn't learnt enough English vocabulary to understand those grammatical terms in case they were expressed in English. Then as our English vocabulary was broadened enough to understand those terms in English, like high school, our school didn't reteach them in English.

Anonymous

When I took French and Spanish as a child, we were taught all grammatical terms in French and Spanish from the very beginning.

userr2684291

Same here for English and German.

Captain Bohemian

how could a beginner of a language know those grammatical terms, which are usually not first taught when a language is first taught?

when I first learnt Japanese, grammatical terms were not taught in Japanese, either.

they were taught in Chinese.

userr2684291

@CaptainBohemian Is that your native language?

Captain Bohemian

@userr2684291 yes.

@userr2684291 but our Chinese doesn't have the counterparts of most English grammar.

userr2684291

14:21

I see no reason why they shouldn't be taught in the target language.

Captain Bohemian

I mean Chinese doesn't have most grammatical rules that English has.

userr2684291

I don't think I ever had trouble with this either. There are relatively few terms to memorize, anyway. And they're fairly easy to remember because you're provided with lots of examples.

Captain Bohemian

for me, I really had a hard time in memorizing English vocabularies when I just started to learn it. Meanwhile, in English tests I always got the scores of final several ranks in my class.

Anonymous

When I was little, I didn't know what subjunctive meant, and I didn't know what subjonctif meant either, so it didn't really matter whether they used the English or French terms. Either way it was something new for me.

Captain Bohemian

I had the similar difficulty when I first learnt Japanese, but not that worse in that I didn't get that poor grades in test.

userr2684291

14:29

@CaptainBohemian I don't know what you're trying to say here.

Captain Bohemian

@userr2684291 I mean I had the difficulty in memorizing vocabularies when I first learnt Japanese.

I just couldn't memorize the spelling of vocabularies and often spelt wrong or confused one word with another.

userr2684291

@CaptainBohemian Don't say vocabularies; you learn vocabulary, and that includes more than one word.

You can just say learn words, or if you really wanna stick to it, learn (different) vocabulary items, but that might sound strange in casual conversation.

Captain Bohemian

I am not good at memorization so I usually have difficulty with subjects requiring excellent memorization, like history.

@userr2684291 but I not long ago saw an example using plural vocabularies in dictionary.

Anonymous

Memorization is a skill. There are a lot of techniques to help with it, like the method of loci.

Anonymous

Anyone can get better at it if they learn to memorize things in the right way.

Anonymous

14:38

@CaptainBohemian Vocabulary can be plural, but it doesn't mean 'multiple vocabulary items' in that case. It means 'multiple groups of vocabulary items'.

userr2684291

@snailboat Yeah, but are you really going to use that method to memorize a few words?

Anonymous

In any case, although plural vocabularies is a word, it's not what most people want to say most of the time.

Captain Bohemian

@snailboat then I can mean I learnt 'multiple groups of vocabulary items' when I use vocabularies, can't I?

Anonymous

@userr2684291 There are lots of methods used by mnemonists to memorize stuff. But to answer directly, no, probably not.

userr2684291

Haha.

Araucaria

14:41

@userr2684291 Oh, I missed the second instalment of that comment! I've just read the Leech et al you linked to. It's very interesting ...

Anonymous

Sometimes I use a trick which involves making associations with shocking or horrifying imagery, the sort of thing you might call unforgettable. The more vivid the association, the less likely you are to forget it.

Anonymous

But in general I learn vocabulary by listening and reading and taking notes.

userr2684291

@snailboat Interesting!

Anonymous

I don't always take notes, but I sometimes do. Sometimes I use a highlighter for words I don't know, or want to emphasize for whatever reason.

Anonymous

I also have thousands of flash cards I've made over the years and used to use Anki quite a bit, but those have mostly fallen by the wayside for me.

userr2684291

14:44

@snailboat So if you were to learn the word factitious, what imagery would you try to associate it with, for example?

Anonymous

Erm, I see a potentially offensive word as a substring you could use as a hook for an association.

userr2684291

Lol.

Captain Bohemian

@snailboat But I think memorzation ability is innate. My sister can remember materials in history textbook easily just by reading them one time like listening pleasing stories and got very high scores in history tests while I can't remember many details depiste repetitively reading the materials trying to memorize them.

userr2684291

Maybe you shouldn't "try".

Anonymous

There are innate differences for sure, but anyone can work on the relevant skills.

Anonymous

14:48

Reading the materials over and over doesn't seem to be working for you. Maybe you could try another approach, one that's more active. Do you take notes physically, writing on paper?

Captain Bohemian

I was very poor at history in middle school and I couldn't even understand history textbook in high school.

Anonymous

Another thing you can do is discuss the facts and ideas laid out in the text. Explain them to someone.

userr2684291

But you should try to retell the text, paragraph by paragraph.

Anonymous

If you don't have someone, explain them to a plushie. :-)

Anonymous

The idea is to actively get the information through your head, not to passively absorb it by merely reading. Do something with the information.

Captain Bohemian

14:50

fortunately in our high school, we can choose to study in science group or society group.

userr2684291

Yes. So the first step to memorization is scoring yourself a plushy toy.

Captain Bohemian

people choosing science group don't need to study history.

Anonymous

Also, this might be difficult, but try your best to take an interest in whatever you're studying. It's harder to remember stuff you don't care about.

userr2684291

That's good advice.

I think that's why reading over and over didn't work.

You're reading but you're not there.

Captain Bohemian

but some subjects just can't interest me much no matter what.

userr2684291

14:54

That sounds childish to me, no offense.

Captain Bohemian

for example, I am just not interested in politics.

our history subject is mainly politics.

our history subject mainly taught us the history of our dynasties or other countries' dynaties.

userr2684291

@CaptainBohemian You have a chance to learn about your people's history. That's amazing, haha.

Captain Bohemian

@userr2684291 well, if our subject history is archeology, I would be more interested in it. But it's not. It's manly the history of politics.

userr2684291

@CaptainBohemian Well, you chose your path.

The motivation for things you're generally not interested in can simply be "I want to get this over with".

Captain Bohemian

15:11

I would be quite interested in the history of how humans evolve from monkeys through various humankinds, like Neanderthal, to modern humankind.

@userr2684291 well, actually our middle school had tried to motivate us to study all subjects, whether we like them or not, by giving us an overwhelming number of exams.

until entering university, our education was overwhelmed with exams.

userr2684291

@CaptainBohemian We didn't really evolve from monkeys.

Captain Bohemian

@userr2684291 then what did we evolve from?

userr2684291

Chimpanzee–human last common ancestor

The chimpanzee–human last common ancestor, or CHLCA, is the last common ancestor shared by the extant Homo (human) and Pan (chimpanzee) genera of Hominini. Due to complex hybrid speciation, it is not possible to give a precise estimate on the age of this ancestral individual. While "original divergence" between populations may have occurred as early as 13 million years ago (Miocene), hybridization may have been ongoing until as recent as 4 million years ago (Pliocene). Speciation from Pan to Homo appears to have been a long, drawn-out process. After the original divergences, there were, according...

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monkey See this, too.

userr2684291

15:38

So apparently people say in a shambles. I've only learned about this peculiar thing today. I wonder if there are other nouns which are obviously in the plural that are used with an a(n).

Captain Bohemian

I just learnt a new word, drawn-out, in this article chimpanzee–human last common ancestor.

Anonymous

@userr2684291 Oh, yes! Shambles is syntactically singular but morphologically plural.

Featured Questions

0

Q: Next up vs up next

When you watch TV programs such as British Got Talent, the TV hosts sometimes say: ''Next up is the talented singer from...'' (performers number or sequencing method kind of thing) Whereas, when you play Youtube, then there a window on the uppermost right corner link indicating ''up next''....

difference phrases

Anonymous

Using shambles as though it were plural is ungrammatical. That makes it different from, say, species, for which the singular and plural forms both contain a plural suffix etymologically.

Anonymous

Well, you might get away with arguing that some speakers think of it as a plural form in the phrase in shambles (without a). But in general it can't be used where you'd expect a plural noun.

Anonymous

15:44

So it's not particularly meaningful to call it a plural form.

userr2684291

Yeah, I was gonna say that.

Anonymous

CGEL addresses shambles on page 514.

userr2684291

Thanks.

Anonymous

@userr2684291 What do you think of a species as an example? Or thumbs up in I gave him a thumbs up?

Anonymous

Thumbs up isn't such a clear example since it's clearly a compound and the plural marking isn't at the end. Species isn't a singulare tantum.

Anonymous

15:49

But they do both have a plural suffix in them somewhere :-)

Anonymous

Means is another interesting word.

userr2684291

Ah, yes.

@snailboat Species is a good example (and very appropriate with respect to the discussion above).

Anonymous

> Kant would not hold that one conditionally ought not to commit murder if one wishes to avoid incarceration (even though, ceteris paribus, it is one means to that end); rather, saying that one ought not to commit murder is an end in itself and, moreover, is a conclusion that any rational person would arrive at [ . . . ]

Anonymous

This is my reminder to myself that I need to write a meta post about pronunciation questions.

Anonymous

I've already done so in the past:

Anonymous

15:54

14

Q: Questions about pronunciation which are NOT entirely answerable with a dictionary

Earlier today, I saw a question about phonetics: When do I REALLY need to pronounce an s as a z? Yeah, I know the rule that after a voiced consonant, the plural or 3rd person S should be realized as a Z. But I wouldn't trust that rule as far as I could throw it, because I constantly hear...

discussion close-reasons

userr2684291

I see a thumbs up as something different. Of course, the disagreement between a and thumbs is obvious but not as striking because it looks like situational objectifying for lack of a better word. I gave him a "thumbs up".

Anonymous

@userr2684291 My feeling is that it's a single word, even though it's often written with a space. Sometimes with a hyphen, I think, and never (?) as a closed compound: a thumbsup

Anonymous

But I feel like there's no sense that the /z/ there actually marks the word as plural when I say it. It just feels like an opaque part of the middle of the word.

Anonymous

I feel like the compounding is relevant to that in some way.

Anonymous

Since the /z/ is hidden inside the word instead of being at the end.

Anonymous

15:59

But I don't know if my intuition is lying to me about that. :-)

userr2684291

(:

> They marched on until their first and second lines were shambles of dead and dying men.

Anonymous

When is that from?

userr2684291

Oh-seven.

Anonymous

Wow.

Anonymous

Well, I do imagine some speakers thinking of shambles as plural.

Anonymous

16:07

Hey, look at what 2014 snailboat thinks:

Anonymous

(I didn't downvote.). It can be singular, but it can also be plural, and it usually is: in shambles is more common than in a shambles today. — snailboat ♦ Apr 9 '14 at 12:28

userr2684291

( :

Anonymous

2014 snailboat apparently thinks .). is kosher punctuation.

Anonymous

Sheesh.

userr2684291

Oh my, indeed.

Anonymous

16:08

Get with the program, 2014 snailboat.

Anonymous

I must have done some sort of research around then.

Anonymous

But I don't appear to have linked to it in my comment.

userr2684291

I think of it as plural (having only ever really encountered it in that phrase).

+1 Exactly right. But very few contemporary speakers have ever encountered the word outside the phrase in a shambles, and fewer know what the word means; so it is understandable that they come to think it is a plural and should be treated so - hence, in shambles. That's how language changes. — StoneyB Apr 8 '14 at 11:41

Anonymous

Yay.

userr2684291

But hm, I'd say it's shambles sounds fine as well. So it's an uncountable noun for me, I guess.

Captain Bohemian

16:20

I actually have learnt the word drawn-out based on my record but I forget it, so I considered I learnt a new word. So I said my memory is not good--I usually have to seen a word many times to remember it.

Anonymous

@CaptainBohemian Everyone has to learn things multiple times.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

Good evening folks

Anonymous

There are "spaced repetition" programs designed around this idea.

Anonymous

Spaced repetition

Spaced repetition is a learning technique that incorporates increasing intervals of time between subsequent review of previously learned material in order to exploit the psychological spacing effect. Alternative names include spaced rehearsal, expanding rehearsal, graduated intervals, repetition spacing, repetition scheduling, spaced retrieval and expanded retrieval. Although the principle is useful in many contexts, spaced repetition is commonly applied in contexts in which a learner must acquire a large number of items and retain them indefinitely in memory. It is, therefore, well suited for...

Anonymous

There will always be some things you learn right away, and they stick around forever. Other things you'll have to learn multiple times to get them into your head. That's just how memory is.

Captain Bohemian

16:22

I have recorded the new words I learnt every day in files in my computer so that I can check whether I have learnt a word previously.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

Ha, I do stuff like that and it doesn't have a fancy name

Anonymous

@CaptainBohemian Yeah, I've had countless experiences where I learned something only to find that I'd already put it in my notes :-)

userr2684291

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ Me too. I think I know how to challenge my brain to learn stuff. It comes with experience.

Anonymous

The nice thing is, with multiple exposures to the stimulus over time, the memory gets stronger.

Anonymous

Even if it feels like you don't remember it at all the second time, on average you'll remember better than if you had learned it for the first time.

Captain Bohemian

16:23

@snailboat so you can relate to me.

Anonymous

@CaptainBohemian Oh, definitely.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@userr2684291 my brain is more awesome than yours

Anonymous

There's sometimes a little frustration. "I should have known that!" But I try to let that feeling pass over, since it's not really useful, and I just move on. You have to be aware that it happens to everyone and it's a natural part of learning.

Captain Bohemian

I am better at memorizing analytical things.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@snailboat That feeling sucks

Anonymous

16:25

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ Yeah. But it's okay. :-)

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

And I just had it a couple of times today

@snailboat and it sucks

Anonymous

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ Yeah.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

OK can be sucky

userr2684291

Haha.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

An OK pizza is sucky

So if I'm going to consume protein, it'd better be perfect, or else I'll eat it

Anonymous

16:28

Is there a limit on how much protein you can consume each day?

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@snailboat I don't blame you, it was trending back then

Captain Bohemian

my ability at memorizing the detail of events happening to me is better than others though I am not good at memorizing history or literature.

Anonymous

@CaptainBohemian You could be, though.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@snailboat recommendations are 30 grams a week

userr2684291

There must be a limit on how much food you can eat each day.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

16:29

HAHA who does that

userr2684291

Oh...

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@userr2684291 oh you'd be surprised

Anonymous

Just treat them as skills that require work. There are innate differences in our abilities, but they're overwhelmed by the differences in how hard we work and the effort we put into learning.

userr2684291

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ Are you saying that's for your condition?

Anonymous

So in the end, it's the work that matters, not what your innate aptitudes are.

Captain Bohemian

16:30

@snailboat which of my message were you replying me?

Anonymous

At least for the vast majority of people.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@userr2684291 what is? The red meat restriction?

Anonymous

@CaptainBohemian You can click the little arrow to see. I was responding to "my ability at memorizing the detail of events happening to me is better than others though I am not good at memorizing history or literature."

userr2684291

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ Protein intake.

Anonymous

I don't consume red meat, but I do try to get a fair amount of protein in my diet. I need it for various reasons.

Captain Bohemian

16:31

@snailboat but why is your reply placed prior to that message of mine?

Anonymous

@CaptainBohemian Umm, on my screen, it is not.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@userr2684291 yep. I technically don't have a kidney, so

userr2684291

I don't know what that entails with respect to that, but I took your reply as pertaining to your condition.

I mean with respect to protein intake.

Captain Bohemian

@snailboat so strange.

Anonymous

@CaptainBohemian Yeah, maybe the software is being buggy.

Anonymous

16:35

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ Eating less than 30 grams of protein a week sounds challenging.

userr2684291

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ I've grown out of my kid knees and now they're young-adult knees, or something like that.

@snailboat But don't vegans, for example, struggle with getting enough protein?

So just go ahead and switch to that diet.

Captain Bohemian

I actually have got tired of eating; I usually just stuff anything in my stomache just to treat hunger.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@userr2684291 see, more proof that I'm mature

Anonymous

@CaptainBohemian Oh. I just eat because I need nutrition. I don't eat specifically when I'm hungry.

Anonymous

But I'm weird.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

16:40

@snailboat I used to do that with drinking water and thirst

Captain Bohemian

@snailboat but hunger is a great pain, like an illness.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@snailboat healthy eating habits are soooo weird

@CaptainBohemian what, no

Unless you mean the left alone in the jungle type

Captain Bohemian

@snailboat if I am not hungry, I don't really bother to eat anything most of time.

Anonymous

It's interesting because we think of hunger as the primary driver of food seeking behavior, but in reality everyone eats for reasons other than hunger as well.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

I don't usually eat because I'm hungry

If I'm hungry, I eat a lot

Captain Bohemian

16:44

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ well, I would only feel eating enjoyable when there is good accompanying atmosphere, like congenial people and places, and new food, but these conditions don't happen often, so most of times I feel eating quite boring.

userr2684291

Heh. I just got an invitation to have dinner.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

Well, if you think about the movement of jaw muscles you forgot existed, it would indeed be boring

@userr2684291 that was @CaptainBohemian. You're such an electric guy

Think of eating as vacuuming. Vacuum cleaners are never bored of the trash they eat

Anonymous

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ To bring this back to language, isn't it interesting that in English we bite down, even though biting is more of an upward movement? Your lower jaw is the one that moves.

Anonymous

I mean, you can move your whole head if you want to :-)

Captain Bohemian

well, I have to eat new food to feel eating fun, but most foods in my neighborhood are old foods which I have eaten uncountable times and have long tired of them. I eat them just for treating hunger.

I am lazy to travel just for looking for new food.

Anonymous

16:49

@CaptainBohemian That's called habituation.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@snailboat if you bite things up they jump

Captain Bohemian

@snailboat I don't like habituation. I like constant variation.

Anonymous

@CaptainBohemian Maybe you could become a chef famous for your quality and variety :-)

Captain Bohemian

@snailboat well, I am not interested in cuisine.

Anonymous

Oh. Maybe not, then!

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

16:52

If you bite down things, it sounds like you just defeated them in a wrestling match

Captain Bohemian

I just got tired of eating the same food.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

Take that, broccoli

Anonymous

I will take that broccoli. Nom.

Captain Bohemian

and I don't really like to eat. but when I have to eat, I don't like the same food.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@CaptainBohemian I find eating the same 5 or 6 dishes for lunch isn't that boring

Captain Bohemian

16:55

I prefer to be invited to travel, conference, exhibition, etc. than for pure eating.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

My little brother doesn't eat lots of delicious stuff, so I feel ya

Also I'm an expert in habituauauation

Captain Bohemian

if someone invites me just to eat, I would usually reply:"how boring it is just to go to eat!Why not have a trip to somewhere?"

Anonymous

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ We have an expert here! Yay.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

Haha a Jason Statham movie on TV

@snailboat SE attracts experts in every field

But mostly my expertise is about yelling "I hate rice and chicken"

userr2684291

@snailboat Um, I keep my lower jaw fixed in place and move the rest of my head.

Anonymous

17:01

@userr2684291 That must be very entertaining.

Anonymous

Does your neck get tired?

userr2684291

Hahah.

Well, I just tried it and it made me laugh, so you're right.

I think I move my jaw in some kinda ellipse.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@userr2684291 it made me laugh without trying

userr2684291

(:

Bye, everyone.

Anonymous

See you around, user r bunch of numbers.

Captain Bohemian

17:23

why do some people like to use the shown name user + a number? It's difficult to identify a person with a number.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@CaptainBohemian that's the default name the system chooses if you don't choose a name for yourself

Captain Bohemian

i don't choose a name to register.

i use my email to creat an account, then I automatically have a name.

CowperKettle

You can use your cell phone number as your number in the username

Handy, this way anyone could send you an SMS

(0:

If you remembered, send me an SMS

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@CaptainBohemian The system didn't automatically decide to name you Capt Bohemian :)

@CowperKettle I can do better than that

@Cowp so are there any prefixes or suffixes or I can SMS that number?

Captain Bohemian

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ well, if the system gives me a name in pattern user+a series number, I would immediately change it into a name I conceive, because I don't like that kind of name, which is not easy to remember and identify.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

17:32

Phone numbers are so weird

CowperKettle

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ Yes, you can call me. But I'm feeling quite bad, in no state for talking much. Been to doctors, feeling weak for some reason.

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ it starts with 8, which is the prefix for Russia, as far as I recall

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@CowperKettle no, I meant I'm an RO and can see deleted messages content, and so can you

Calling would be weird

CowperKettle

I can see deleted messages?

ha

Yes )))

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@CowperKettle Get invigorated soon! I'd consume vitamin supplements

Captain Bohemian

@CowperKettle can I, too?

Anonymous

17:34

Do you want me to destroy the message for all time and wipe it from the history of the earth?

CowperKettle

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ It all started after a longish jog on April 20. Vitamins haven't helped thus far

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@CaptainBohemian nope, not yet at least. I'm a Room Owner, RO, and I have slightly more features available than normal users

CowperKettle

@snailboat Why? Only room owners can see it

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@snailboat Noooooooo

At least lemme record it somewhere

CowperKettle

Besides I doubt that disclosing a phone number is that bad. I'm not a movie star

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

17:35

@Capt you can tell by my and @Cowp's italicized name

@CowperKettle is that you DiCaprio?

Captain Bohemian

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ you mean I can't see the deleted message but you have the privilege to see it?

CowperKettle

Haha

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@CaptainBohemian sure, me too. Defaults suck

@CaptainBohemian yep

Anonymous

@CowperKettle No reason. It's only if you want me to do it.

Anonymous

I would always offer if someone put PII (personally identifiable information) in chat.

CowperKettle

17:37

Russia's international phone code is +7 but I don't know how to dial that in, so I use 8

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@CowperKettle I'm gonna send a text message, see if it works

CowperKettle

Okay

Khorosho

Captain Bohemian

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ I didn't know room owner has this privilege. Someone added me as the co-owner of his room without a reason known to me but remove it later. I just wondered what privilege a room owner has.

Anonymous

80

A: A guide to moderating chat

What tools are available to room owners? Room owners are users that have some elevated permissions in a chatroom. Typically, they will be the first line of defense when it comes to inappropriate content or behavior in a room. Users will look to the room owners to guide the room. The room owners...

CowperKettle

user image

Anonymous

17:39

@CaptainBohemian The post above should tell you what you need to know.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@CaptainBohemian It's pretty much the coolest thing they can do

Everything else is not as awesome

@CaptainBohemian well, temporary chatrooms about a question or something aren't that important anyway

Captain Bohemian

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ really? but that's not a popular room.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

The main chatroom for a site has to have ROs that can act responsibly when needed, though

Shoot, I'm an RO

@CaptainBohemian yes, exactly.

@Cowp did you get anything?

CowperKettle

No

Maybe the first number should be not 8 but +7

But how exactly to enter the + sign, I don't know

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@CowperKettle with a keyboard

In Iran's case, 098 instead of +98 usually, if not always, works

CowperKettle

17:45

> Ohai, Kettle sensei

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@CowperKettle Yippee

CowperKettle

(0:

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

I wonder if a message sent to a foreign country costs 30 dollars per letter

Captain Bohemian

I usually feel weak for not eating for too long.

CowperKettle

It's probably cheaper to do via Skype. My mobile provider charges an arm and a leg for any communication over any border ))

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

17:47

@CaptainBohemian that sounds like you should try different food like, right now

CowperKettle

I once chatted with my sister in India for a couple of minutes and payed my usual monthly mobile phone bill

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

Unless you're an astronaut and have no choice

Captain Bohemian

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ it's dificult to find different food. Most eateries cook the same food for generations.

CowperKettle

My hematocrit is a tiny bit higher than normal, and ESR = 1, but I don't believe that means anything. For some reason Etoricoxib removes this weakness and fatigue instantly, but one can only take it for 7 days, no longer

When I stopped the drug, the weakness returned

Good night ))

Anonymous

My hematocrit is just a bit low.

Anonymous

17:50

Have a good night, Cowper Kettle!

Captain Bohemian

I don't know what is hematocrit and what is Etoricoxib.

Anonymous

The latter is a medication.

Anonymous

Hematocrit is something that can be measured on a blood test. It refers to the amount of red blood cells you have.

Captain Bohemian

@snailboat Oh, but that kind of test would't be done usually. It's not like blood pressure, which you can measure on your own if you have the instrument.

Anonymous

@CaptainBohemian True, not everyone has a comprehensive blood count done on a regular basis.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

17:54

@snailboat no not the amount

Relative amount

Anonymous

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ Sorry, volume.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

Aha

Anonymous

I have blood taken weekly so I tend to know what my numbers are.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@snailboat whoa, why? I mean, mine is once a month

Captain Bohemian

@snailboat but I found strange that by measuring something on your finger non-invastively, one can know you can't sleep well. I have that experience.

Anonymous

17:56

@M.A.R.ಠ_ಠ Well, I was born with a blood disorder.

Anonymous

It's no big deal though.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@snailboat whoa :(

@snailboat what's it called?

Anonymous

It just means I get to go to the infusion center regularly.

Anonymous

Umm, at the moment I don't feel like saying the name, because I don't really want people to look it up.

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

My Hb is naturally low because of my unnatural condition, but hematocrit is meh

Anonymous

17:58

But it's not a big deal :-)

M.A.R. ಠ_ಠ

@snailboat I'll take your word for it

Anonymous

On the bright side, I always know all sorts of stuff, like if I'm slightly hypokalemic or such.

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