English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

@JasperLoy i suppose that depends on what you mean by "creationism"

I said that "the" and "of" mark the gerund as nounish, so that no object is possible with "the". I also noted that "of" normally forces the article, and I said it was a bit hard to explain why exactly. He stated roughly the same things. What is the function of the diagrams exactly? I mean, sure, they look pretty...

6:33 PM

no hypothesis is inherently incompatible with science, but some hypotheses can be safely regarded as disproven

@Cerberus Oh, I wasn't talking about THOSE PARTICULAR diagrams. I was talking about a hypothetical good diagram.

@MrShinyandNew安宇 Uh you seem to be talking about diagrams in general? Yes, I know what diagrams are for, thank you.

user19161

@JSBᾶngs So I looked up Wikipedia. How would you define creationism?

@MrShinyandNew安宇 Ah OK.

@Cerberus I thought when you said "what do they add" you were asking about diagrams in general due to Jasper's comment about his geo teacher wanting diagrams.

6:35 PM

i actually don't want to have a discussion about creationism. sorry, @Jasper

Why would I ask such an inane question?

Sorry.

i was in a car accident today, and it's deflated me pretty badly

I was talking about why that guy added his diagrams and wondering whether they added something I had missed.

@cerb Sometimes you ask questions that might be construed as inane depending on your perspective.

user19161

@JSBᾶngs Oh, I misunderstood your "aw" then.

6:36 PM

@JSBᾶngs Oh, no!

@JSBᾶngs are you ok?

Anybody wounded?

everyone's fine. it was just me, sliding off the road when going around the corner after a snowfall

@JasperLoy I would say it's your definition of creationism that we need, so we can understand the meaning of your statement that it can be compatible with science.

@Cerberus (Is wounded the right word? I heard that you get wounded in combat but injured in car accidents, etc)

6:37 PM

but i was going about 50 mph (speed limit was 55mph), and i took out a road sign on the way

@JSBᾶngs That sucks. I've been there.

that's actually the biggest bummer. serious damage to the car, probably totalled

@MrShinyandNew安宇 I...suppose you're right. Injured sounds much more idiomatic.

and i liked my car!

Yikes.

Do you have insurance on it?

6:38 PM

@JSBᾶngs Take heart: car repairs only cost money. Bodily repairs may prove impossible. So if you're ok, that's what matters.

simchona

@MetaEd Please don't encourage talking about creationism. It Urkels me.

@simchona Back to Wikipedia I go …

aedia λ

@JSBᾶngs Oh noes! But I'm really glad you're ok.

@simchona Annoying as Steve Urkel?

simchona

@MetaEd Yup.

6:43 PM

Somehow I avoided that program. I'm not much of a televidiot.

Q: How would you categorize the phrase "Big Shortage"?

So what's with that big-shortage question.

0

I heard this in a news report this morning. It's clear to me that a "big shortage" means less is missing that would be the case with a "small shortage". Nevertheless, it sounds a little odd when I think about it, but it's probably not that uncommon. How would you classify this type of phrase?

terminology

I am kind of following but then again not.

@RegDwightѬſ道 Q is looking for the word "oxymoron" while also misunderstanding what the size of a shortage indicates.

> @Cerberus: I'd argue that "Their" vs. "There" is a pure spelling issue and has nothing to do with one's understanding of grammar. – bitmask ↵ 16 mins ago

What's wrong with people?

Everything.

A: 'The X-ing of Y' vs just 'X-ing Y' : why are both 'the' and 'of' necessary together?

1

There is no such thing as a gerund in present-day English (CGEL p. 1220-1222). They are only present participle verb forms (or gerund participles if you wish) and (gerundial) nouns. Verbs take objects and nouns don't. Nouns take determiners and verbs don't. So you have catching chickens was har...

6:53 PM

Are they are aping the last paragraph they read in their freshman's linguistics textbook, in some warped version?

I love a good cockfight.

Ugh.

I am gathering what strength I can muster to jump into the ring.

@JSB ! I'm glad you are OK, but your poor car!

@KitFox thanks, Kit

Hi Fox, I guess the name change makes sense.

6:57 PM

Hello everyone

also, this was not the time that i want to spend a few thousand dollars on a new car (or on repairs)

@Alenanno Molto bene.

@Robusto What is molto bene?

@Alenanno Ha, was just trying to say very good in Italian.

@Robusto It's correct! I was just wondering what you were referring to. :D

The stress was on the "what". It was ambiguous, sorry. :D

7:01 PM

@Alenanno Just that it was good you popped in.

@Robusto Oh. Thanks! It's been a while since I seriously popped in.

Anything new 'round here?

@Alenanno Still as incomprehensible as ever.

@Robusto That makes it peculiar, doesn't it? :P

@Alenanno Not within the context of its own internal logic, or lack of same.

@Robusto Mind to rephrase that? I don't understand the "or lack of same" part...

7:09 PM

Think of "same" as a stand-in for the object of the preposition in the first clause ("... or lack of said internal logic").

@Cerberus I have left a comment in reply.

Hey I have an idea. Why don't we all change our avatars to be a single red-coloured character on a white background!

I can't stand it when someone is wrong on the Internet.

@MrShinyandNew安宇 You mean transparent?

Word. Where did that "white" come from?

7:11 PM

whatever

@Robusto I get it grammatically now, thanks. But it's still too complex for me now. :D

@MrShinyandNew Me and Robusto are already ahead. :P

@RegDwightѬſ道 Oh!

Sure, what's a color more or less.
"Mrs. Anderson's Swedish baby.
Might well have been German or Spanish,
Yet that things go round and again go round
Has rather a classical sound."

@Owl: +1

I am here to get +1ae's.

AFK regen.

7:16 PM

@RegDwightѬſ道 He wasn't talking to you. He was talking to someone named Owl.

-1

Q: One word for

I want a word to describe all of following properties A thing which convey information of all sorts its managed by community Its there to help others Its concise It will help to build your portfolio/reputation/trust among community I want one word which describes all these character(if its po...

synonyms

Kill it quickly before it rises again.

Wow. Just wow.

What a beauty.

@KitFox Voted.

I think we have a winner.

7:19 PM

@Robusto ahah

@Robusto WTF, there's a children's day? Cuz my children don't get pampered enough throughout the year?

in lɪŋˈɡwɪstɪks, 31 mins ago, by Alenanno

@Alenanno Who says writing isn't an action?

@MrShinyandNew安宇 Bad dad.

@Robusto how am I bad?

@MrShinyandNew安宇 You are a self-confessed non-pamperer. Deal with it.

7:32 PM

@Robusto I thought I was confessing to being a pamperer

What else is there no * of in this chat.

@MrShinyandNew安宇 An insufficient pamperer, if I read you right.

@MetaEd No flirting.

@MrShinyandNew安宇 Why is Putin quoting Cole Porter?

@Robusto and why is he on a snack?

7:34 PM

@Alenanno It is a Ritz cracker. That is the joke.

simchona

Mmm Ritz.

Jinx.

yesterday, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No Gary Barlow in this chat.

(?!asking for what you don't want to get|creationism|doing inappropriate things with him in your office|double-entendres|flirting|Gary Barlow|giants|hazoodling your bloempz|plagiarizing Rod Stewart|tilting heads)

Feb 11 at 23:12, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No hazoodling your bloempz in this chat.

7:34 PM

@Robusto Ah right Ritz. I didn't remember the name lol

Feb 1 at 21:02, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No giants in this chat.

Jan 24 at 23:06, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

@aediaλ No tilting heads in this chat.

Jan 24 at 0:28, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No asking for what you don't want to get in this chat.

Jan 20 at 20:46, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No plagiarizing Rod Stewart in this chat.

Jan 20 at 19:31, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No double-entendres in this chat.

Jan 20 at 19:14, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No doing inappropriate things with him in your office in this chat.

Yeah, like we listened to any of that.

Jan 18 at 20:37, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No giggling at own — um, jokes? I guess — in this chat.

Jan 17 at 11:05, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No rhetorical questions in this chat.

Jan 12 at 21:42, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

no donkey salami in this chat

But when I see his oeuvre laid out like that, he does come off as one proscriptive bastard, doesn't he? "Get off my lawn" isn't even in it with his frown of frothing disapproval.

Jan 13 at 14:40, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

@Kitḫ Oh and no drugs in this chat.

7:37 PM

Besides, who would ban donkey salami?

Jan 5 at 16:50, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No investigative journalism in this chat.

Jan 4 at 14:57, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No licking in this chat.

Jan 4 at 14:14, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No sorting out armpits in this chat.

That's just through January.

But let's not forget the very important:

Dec 21 '11 at 20:16, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No Gordita in this chat.

Oh, well, screw that. If we're banning Gorditas, I'm out of here.

Well, specifically it was a ban on searching Google images for "gordita."

Trust me, you do not want to do that.

12

Hahahaha

7:40 PM

(?!asking for what you don't want to get|creationism|doing inappropriate things with him in your office|donkey salami|double-entendres|drugs|falling TO THE GROUND|flirting|Gary Barlow|giants|giggling at own – um, jokes\? I guess –|Gordita|hazoodling your bloempz|investigative journalism|licking|making more sense|plagiarizing Rod Stewart|rhetorical questions|sorting out armpits|tilting heads)

...and that's just through January.

I've been waiting for the Definitive RegDwight compendium for a while. Thanks @Kit

Dec 21 '11 at 19:53, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No falling TO THE GROUND in this chat.

I'm beginning to think it's just “no (?!.*) in this chat”.

Dec 20 '11 at 14:36, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No making more sense in this chat.

Maybe I should write up a rules list.

7:42 PM

@KitFox Do, and post it on Meta.

@KitFox The regular expression above should do it.

You can create your own talking owl here

@MetaEd But there's more...

Dec 19 '11 at 14:19, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No Bon Jovi in this chat.

Dec 16 '11 at 16:00, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No speaking English in this chat.

Dec 16 '11 at 16:00, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No homophones in this chat.

Don't forget, owl is an anagram of low. I'm just saying.

Nov 21 '11 at 13:36, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No boo mood in this chat.

Nov 17 '11 at 16:22, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No help in this chat.

Nov 17 '11 at 16:21, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No Nazi Germany in this chat.

Nov 17 '11 at 16:19, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

No throwing animals in this chat.

Jun 15 '11 at 12:55, by Robusto

Nov 16 '11 at 21:37, by RegDwight Ѭſ道

@MattЭллен No tritransitivity in this chat.

Q: How would you categorize the phrase "Big Shortage"?

7:45 PM

Hey there, 20K users. We need one vote to delete this:

-3

I heard this in a news report this morning. It's clear to me that a "big shortage" means more is missing than would be the case with a "small shortage". Nevertheless, it sounds a little odd when I think about it, but it's probably not that uncommon. How would you classify this type of phrase?

terminology

@Robusto But...it's beautiful!!

@Cerberus Didn't you ever see Fight Club?

In fact I did!

All right, it's a goner.