English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

The other day I read that the scientists of the world were working on creating yet another pointless millenium bug hysteria, because the last pointless millenium bug hysteria is a while ago.

Robusto

@JasperLoy Having lust and being lusty are different things.

Jasper Loy

@Robusto Now I need to check the dictionary.

Robusto

@RegDwigнt Who are these Scientists of the World? Do they wear matching lab coats?

RegDwigнt

1:08 PM

Get this. This time it's not because of a millenium, but because of a second.

These scientists of the world really have nothing to do.

Jasper Loy

@RegDwigнt Millennium*

Robusto

Leap second?

RegDwigнt

Yeah.

Robusto

@RegDwigнt That has to be a first.

RegDwigнt

Everything will explode, and your computers will blend themselves to death in your toasters.

Robusto

1:09 PM

The Internet of Everything Awful.

RegDwigнt

Also, nuclear plants will automatically fly into jet planes.

It will all come true.

Which is why American scientists of the world are now working on telling Unamerican scientists of the world that the leap second must not prevail.

Instead they propose that every hundred years we have an additional year added or something.

Robusto

I thought the Mayan calendar had failed to fly nuclear plants into airliners.

RegDwigнt

And the Unamerican scientists of the world counter, "um, if you can't remember now all the things that you must keep an eye on and update because of a leap second, then how does it help to try and remember them all in a hundred years?"

It's a funny little argument those funnly little scientists are having. Unfunny big tax money at work.

Jasper Loy

The security guards here have stars on their uniform, like generals lol.

@RegDwigнt When will you bring back the viscacha?

RegDwigнt

The viscacha will bring back itself in due time, to announce the age of all things exploding and toasters flying into blenders.

Jasper Loy

1:15 PM

@RegDwigнt Maybe then a miracle will happen in my life.

RegDwigнt

You shall not question the timeplan of the viscacha.

Robusto

Jasper, stop spamming the starboard.

Jasper Loy

How did you know?

RegDwigнt

The worldcupstarboard.

Robusto

@JasperLoy How do you think I knew?

RegDwigнt

1:17 PM

@Robusto Why do you think he thinks?

Robusto

A fair question.

Jasper Loy

Ah, mods removing my stars. Moderator abuse, lol.

Robusto

Not a mod. It was me. Now behave.

Jasper Loy

Where I live, they cane people at home, in school and in prison. Barbaric country.

RegDwigнt

This room is so anarchistic, even non-mods do mod things. This room is the opposite of England.

Robusto

1:20 PM

@JasperLoy Maybe you shouldn't be living in Caneada.

RegDwigнt

Barbaric county.

Jasper Loy

@Robusto I plan to move after I get well.

Robusto

Maybe moving would itself be therapeutic.

Jasper Loy

@RegDwigнt UCSB is a pretty good university.

RegDwigнt

He is the rape Gotham deserves, not the rape you tick.

Jasper Loy

1:22 PM

I don't like Batman. I like Spiderman.

RegDwigнt

It's tough to like Spiderman, he constantly has full-body surgery.

Jasper Loy

What happened to them? Accidents?

RegDwigнt

39 mins ago, by RegDwigнt

Nick

@RegDwigнt And now, Miles Morales is African-American.

@JasperLoy No no, they're all in different universes.

RegDwigнt

And then, you know, in 2017 they'll announce that the next Spider-Man is Ben Affleck.

terdon

1:24 PM

Ugh

@RegDwigнt At least this guy is a good actor.

Jasper Loy

@Nick The Ubuntu repositories are called Main, Restricted, Universe, and Multiverse.

Nick

@RegDwigнt Because it all boils down to him.

RegDwigнt

@terdon I wouldn't know. He looks so cheesy I can't look past that.

Nick

@JasperLoy Thank you for that wonderfully interesting fact.

RegDwigнt

He literally looks at me like "ignore my acting, pay attention to my annoying".

terdon

1:25 PM

@RegDwigнt He was fine in The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnsasus.

Jasper Loy

@RegDwigнt All three are handsome.

RegDwigнt

@terdon Oh, he must have worn a lot of makeup.

Jasper Loy

@RegDwigнt I have never combed my hair in my entire life.

RegDwigнt

Also, being fine in a Monty Python anime is not hard. It's not like you have to make sense or what have you.

@JasperLoy I have never combed your hair in my entire life, either.

Jasper Loy

Today, I walked 1 hour to see the doctor, waited 2 hours, then walked 1 hour home.

I carry an umbrella in my left shorts pocket, which may be mistaken as my banana.

RegDwigнt

1:28 PM

Math quiz time: how many doctors would have Jasper seen if he waited 6 hours?

Jasper Loy

The plastic bag they gave me says "Loving hearts, beautiful minds"

RegDwigнt

Jesus, you expect me to have recognized him?

Nick

@RegDwigнt He's busy screwing lightbulbs

RegDwigнt

I would have rather guessed she was Spider-Man.

Jasper Loy

@RegDwigнt I recognised immediately.

RegDwigнt

1:30 PM

Yeah yeah like you ever watched Imaginarium?

Robusto

Me: The url you gave me does the wrong thing.
Them: It should do the right thing.
Me: ...

RegDwigнt

Well, that settles it!

Robusto

Yep, QED.

RegDwigнt

Again, you're missing the fine difference between should and do.

Jasper Loy

You should both say what right thing and what wrong thing to make progress.

Robusto

1:31 PM

Pineapple salad.

RegDwigнt

Yesterday you missed the one between access and see.

I can't wait to learn what fine difference they will teach you tomorrow.

It's like a Santa Barbara episode.

Faheem Mitha

@JasperLoy That sounds unpleasant. Where was this?

Jasper Loy

@FaheemMitha Ah, where I live is secret for secret reasons. =)

Faheem Mitha

@JasperLoy if you say so.

Jasper Loy

@FaheemMitha You recently joined this room?

Faheem Mitha

1:33 PM

I think people here tend to carry paranoia a bit too far. Even Gilles is willing to tell us he lives in France.

@JasperLoy I've been here for a while. Don't normally say much, though.

Jasper Loy

@FaheemMitha That is because France is a good country.

Faheem Mitha

@JasperLoy Define "good".

RegDwigнt

Full of French wine but not French fries.

terdon

@RegDwigнt I was very impressed with the kid when I watched that movie so I'd been keeping an eye out for him. It's nice to get leading actors who can actually act for a change (I'm looking at you Keanu)

RegDwigнt

The thing with Keanu is, he is the nicest person ever. He is nicer than Buddah would be to Jesus.

Faheem Mitha

1:35 PM

@terdon People give Mr. Reeves a hard time. At least he is (apparently) a reasonable human being. From what I've read.

Oh, @terdon, didn't see it was you there.

RegDwigнt

This Garfield thing, I dunno. He looks like I dunno. Would he ever feed pigeons with his last breadcrumb?

terdon

@FaheemMitha Good for him. Just don't make me watch him try to act. Actually, I doubt he even tries.

Faheem Mitha

@RegDwigнt should we say jinx or something?

@terdon Well, he's really rather attractive. So he gets a pass, I think.

RegDwigнt

I will say jinx for $3000.

terdon

@RegDwigнt Yes, a lot of mentally challenged people are really sweet.

Faheem Mitha

1:37 PM

He's probably among the 10 ten most attractive male human beings I've seen in person or in media.

RegDwigнt

Can you imagine Mr Garfield in The Matrix? I know I can't.

terdon

And among the 10 worst actors, too. Why couldn't he just model or something?

RegDwigнt

If you can do only one thing good, do that one thing good. If that thing is not acting, then that thing is not acting.

Faheem Mitha

@terdon Maybe he does/did. I actually though that bus film was fun. He worked well in that.

Speed, it was, I think.

terdon

He was in Speed?

Robusto

1:38 PM

And The Matrix, etc.

RegDwigнt

Hello?

Faheem Mitha

@terdon 10 worst actors is definitely an exaggeration. Though he does seem to play the same character over and over. Not much of a range.

@terdon You're kidding, right?

Robusto

He's no Edward Norton.

RegDwigнt

You wouldn't believe it, but he was also in Constantine and in Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure.

terdon

@Robusto No! He did not act in the matrix. He was just about acceptable because he didn't need to show any emotion. He just stood around throwing religious propaganda and sappy cliches through all the gaping plot holes.

Faheem Mitha

1:39 PM

@Robusto Do you think Edward Norton is a good actor?

terdon

@FaheemMitha Not for me, seriously, he can't act. He just can't.

Robusto

And he was horribly miscast in The Devil's Advocate.

Faheem Mitha

Well, there are certainly some very accomplished actors out there. Often quite minor names.

RegDwigнt

@Robusto see, Edward Norton does only one thing good, too. Play a person that's two different persons. Fight Club, The Score, American History X.

Robusto

@FaheemMitha I do. He has done some great roles. Should have had more.

terdon

1:40 PM

@FaheemMitha No, I saw it in the movies when it came out 20 years ago. I didn't remember.

Robusto

@RegDwigнt Oh, really? How about Rounders?

Faheem Mitha

I've seen people who looked exactly the same in Film 1 and Film 2, and completely failed to connect them because they were playing completely different personalities.

Has anyone here ever watched "Party Down"?

terdon

Norton is great! Shame he's been getting no roles/bar parts recently.

Faheem Mitha

@Robusto Ok. The Incredible Hulk, right?

RegDwigнt

@Robusto I've not seen that one. Also, I made the mistake of watching 23, after which I sort of gave up on all poker movies forever.

Robusto

1:41 PM

@RegDwigнt American History X is about showing a character arc. It's editing that makes that look like two different people.

terdon

^^

Faheem Mitha

Ken Marino is a really good actor -> en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Marino

In Party Down.

Case in point.

terdon

@FaheemMitha Poor guy did what he could there. He wasn't bad. But he really shone in American History X.

Faheem Mitha

I've seen him in three different places, and didn't connect them at all. And he wasn't wearing a disguise in any of them. You probably wouldn't have that problem with Keanu.

@terdon I've not seen that.

RegDwigнt

@Robusto it doesn't matter how it is accomplished. At the end of the day, the script still requires him to play two different characters.

terdon

1:43 PM

@FaheemMitha No, 'cause he doesn't act, you know, that thing where you change the way your face looks and body moves and try to impersonate a character?

Faheem Mitha

@terdon Yes, quite.

terdon

@FaheemMitha Excellent movie. Hard-hitting but very good.

Robusto

@RegDwigнt So you have some kind of problem with range now?

Faheem Mitha

Though I personally don't care that much whether people are excellent actors or not.

RegDwigнt

Jesus Christ, I was cracking my usual jokes, but then Rob started taking them seriously.

Robusto

1:44 PM

Though I will point out that you didn't have a problem with Walter White being, essentially, two different persons.

Faheem Mitha

It's kind of fun to watch the really accomplished people though. For example Helen Mirren.

RegDwigнt

Er. I did not have a problem with anyone being two different persons.

Robusto

@FaheemMitha Yes! Excellent actress.

@RegDwigнt Wevs, I'm only sharing my attention with chat. So I may not pick up on all your fol de rol.

RegDwigнt

But if you want this discussion to get all serious, then I will point out that Bryan Cranston does play a wide range of roles, not just dentists all over and over and over again.

Faheem Mitha

@Robusto yes. The problem with having her in a film is she makes everyone else look silly.

Apparently she was also well known once upon a time for taking her clothes off a lot. But the then prevailing standards.

But I guess that was a while back.

RegDwigнt

1:47 PM

So in conclusion, I have to conclude that Bryan Cranston is totally not Keanu Reeves. And you can do nothing to prevent me from concluding that.

Robusto

She was great in The Tempest. Surprisingly, for me.

Faheem Mitha

She was acting in that crime drama, and I was riveted. And I can't stand crime dramas.

What was it called again?

Robusto

Dunno. Never saw it.

Faheem Mitha

I think Prime Suspect.

Yes, that is right.

But yes, poor Keanu is not in Helen's weight class.

RegDwigнt

Teaching Mrs Tingle.

Mitch

1:50 PM

@JasperLoy So how is the weather in Antarctica? Is it raining there now? How long is the rainy season?

Faheem Mitha

@RegDwigнt Yes, I saw that. I remember a review which pointed out that having Barry Watson and Helen Mirren in the same film was cruel and unusual punishment towards Barry.

Not to mention the other young things acting alongside.

Dinner time. Take care everyone.

Nick

2:19 PM

@RegDwigнt Where do you get these pictures from?

@RegDwigнt Hey, isn't that the last Heath Leger movie after The Dark Knight

Robusto

2:42 PM

@Nick No Heath Ledger in DKR. Maybe why it sucked.

RegDwigнt

And Leger is an actor from another movie altogether, California Dream.

@Robusto I myself like to put my mind at ease with that thought, and yet somewhere deep down it knows that that isn't true. If you look at Nolan's last three movies, he's simply caught the same virus Peter Jackson got from George Lucas.

"Keep making all things ever grander, with no understanding whatsoever of why the little things we did worked".

Robusto

2:57 PM

Sounds about right.

Jasper Loy

I just sent 2 comments to Kris, LOL.

Robusto

0

A: In baseball, is it proper to pluralize "RBI"?

The buck stops here: No letter s on this acronym....EVER! It's probably ok to "s" it on some occasions - particularly possessive ones; "His RBIs have come in bunches". For sanity's sake though, lets drop the s forever because no thing sounds goofier than to hear a broadcaster say, "Batting 270 wi...

This guy is just ranting.

Matt E. Эллен

> No letter s on this acronym....EVER! It's probably ok to "s" it on some occasions

from ever to sometimes in the blink of an eye

inb4 reg

RegDwigнt

I wasted too much time contemplating how on Earth "his RBIs" was possessive.

Matt E. Эллен

:D

RegDwigнt

3:02 PM

Then I realized he means not the RBIs but the his.

Matt E. Эллен

which in turn makes things make less sense

RegDwigнt

It is okay to pluralize the acronym when it's modified by a possessive pronoun.

Matt E. Эллен

exactly

RegDwigнt

English has so many weird rules that you never know which ones you never know.

Jasper Loy

It is not OK to write okay for OK.

user116848

3:05 PM

Hi all

Hello one.

Hi

Hi five.

Low rider

Low randorder.

3:06 PM

I get many downvotes these days.

Robusto

@JasperLoy Okay.

RegDwigнt

@JasperLoy That's because you started posting again.

Protip: people can't vote on what you don't post.

I have literally OVER 20000 answers nobody ever downvoted, and never will.

Jasper Loy

Ants are crawling out from holes in my laptop.

RegDwigнt

They must be running away from the bugs.

Jasper Loy

sudo apt-get dist-upgrade to fix the bugs

The internet has posted lots of misleading Ubuntu tips.

Like many people still don't know that dist-upgrade exists, and use only upgrade

@RegDwigнt You must be the culprit.

Nick

3:19 PM

@Robusto It sucked because it relied on momentum from the dark knight and reintroduced a villain we previously saw chauffeuring Poison Ivy in that batman movie with Arnold The Terminator

RegDwigнt

yesterday, by RegDwigнt

Die Hard IV was actually the first movie ever that I turned off before it ended. The other one was The Dark Knight Rises.

I even sat through Titanic, mind you.

And Sex and the City 2.

Nick

@Robusto I'm sure someone must have asked about appending an 's' to acronym before this guy. If that's the first time, then this site is screwed.

RegDwigнt

It's not even the 1001st time.

It is literally the 9001st time.

145

Q: What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym?

For example, if I wanted to write the equivalent of There are many automated teller machines in this city. Would it be There are many ATMs in this city. or There are many ATM's in this city. (could get confused with possessive form or contraction). or just There are many...

Nick

@RegDwigнt Why don't you just duplicate all those to this more general one.

RegDwigнt

I have. I always do.

This one question is different, though.

It is not asking how to spell ATMs. It is asking if the plural is ATM.

Jasper Loy

3:24 PM

auto teller machine = ATM = at the moment

Quiet Elegant Dude, Quit Explaining Dictionaries.

Nick

@RegDwigнt The noun has a plural. The phrase does not require it.

Robusto

> And the name Mayakovsky hangs in the clean air.

Nick

Quick question, which is correct: "He was at court." or "He was at the court."

RegDwigнt

@Nick right, now can you count all the ways in which saying that is radically different from saying "The Chicago Manual of Style omits the apostrophe, unless there are periods in the abbreviation"?

Jasper Loy

@Nick How about he was in court?

RegDwigнt

3:29 PM

Is it a golf court or a court of law?

Nick

@RegDwigнt Court of law.

@RegDwigнt I will take that as some sort of insult to my injured punctuation for I don't know exactly what you mean.

RegDwigнt

@Robusto Mayakovsky was so disappointed with not getting enough attention, he held an exhibition titled "20 years of work", at the age of 30, then killed himself. I say bravo. Not everyone can pull off that kind of stunt.

@Nick then you haven't read the answer to the canonical question, or what I was saying, or what you were saying. :))

Jasper Loy

@RegDwigнt I say stupid.

Nick

Eh, forget it. I found an answer.

RegDwigнt

(Not that the word court appears anywhere on that page.)

((But I'll let it pass, since you never said you found an answer to your question, you only said you found an answer.))

Nick

3:45 PM

@RegDwigнt This room failed the quick question test. This will be in future used to generate a rank list of all rooms. Have a nice day.

@RegDwigнt You're right I wasn't paying attention to that. Who the hell uses periods in abbv.'s anymore?

@JasperLoy This is confuzzling but I think that's acceptable too.

RegDwigнt

@Nick this room didn't fail the quick question test. This room answers quick questions all day long, every day, for five years. So obviously it must be you who have failed. This will be in future used to generate a rank list of you.

But only in the future for I have to mute commies now.

Nick

@RegDwigнt I was just kidding but you never know when something like that jumps up.

Robusto

5:16 PM

> And sorry for my English the lessons were poor.