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I grew up attending Hempfield Area Senior High School, although interestingly, kids never seemed to make fun of that name.

Sorry, but it seems silly to rename a school simply because people might make fun of it. Can you imagine everyone named Dick or Randy deciding to have their names changed? If all the Dicks in the world can live with it, then I think a college can certainly live with it.

I grew up attending Hempfield Area Senior High School, although interestingly, kids never seemed to make fun of that name.

Sorry, but it seems silly to rename a school simply because people might make fun of it. Can you imagine everyone named Dick or Randy deciding to have their names changed? If all the Dicks in the world can live with it, then I think a college can certainly live with it.

You really need to read up on your definitions:
Democracy
Republic

Just because the US is a republic does not mean its not a democracy. Claiming that the US is not a democracy is simply wrong. Sorry.

You really need to read up on your definitions:
Democracy
Republic

Just because the US is a republic does not mean its not a democracy. Claiming that the US is not a democracy is simply wrong. Sorry.

The word lonely has two definitions. One corresponds roughly with the definition used in this study - physical solitude. While it is not difficult to imagine many Netizens as lonely in this sense, I really can't think of regular Net users who fit the second, more important definition: "Dejected by the awareness of being alone." (Definitions from the AH3.) The Internet does have interesting implications for personal psychology - as recent discussions about Internet addiction have shown - but by far, its ability to keep people connected and involved with other people outweighs this dubious loss of physical interaction. What's more, for people condemned to physical solitude by old age, ailing health or other conditions, the Internet can be a lifeline that lets them interact with more freedom than ever before.

What about the professors' other fear - that the Internet will alter our civil society beyond repair? Perhaps they fear we will all become soulless hermits, surrounded by our machines and isolated from other people, like in Asimov's Naked Sun . But is our civil order really threatened by something we choose to do, on our own, because it pleases us? The end of feudal communities, the flight to suburbia, the break-up of the nuclear family - these were all social trends which resulted in people farther apart from one another physically. Only because this latest trend - our ability to contact others anywhere, anytime, without leaving one location - involves technology are the Cassandras clucking. The important thing to remember is that, to the extent increasing Web use is a trend at all, it is caused by millions of individual people deciding for themselves what they want to do; that makes it a pleasant and unprecedented expression of our freedom.

And this leads to my final point: What do these professors think we need to change? Who do they think should make the decisions for us? Should a panel of professors make rules saying, "People should spend no more than X hours online each day"? Any time a new study comes out claiming to descry some evil trend technology encourages, we should eye it suspiciously. More often than not, such studies have sinister implications for our freedom to pursue happiness as we wish.

A. Keiper
The Center for the Study of Technology and Society

That's precisely what I want out of life. My statment that I work 70 hours to improve the quality of life was merely an intentionally ironic statment. It's mostly a part of my cynical view. I work one job to pay for my life, and the other to improve my future. But I in no way believe that one begets the other 100%. I wish my job made my life more fun. Perhaps one day it may sate my hunger for something important and fun to do with my life.

Unfortunately, work==boredom

"Hack" is a word that far predates the typewriter. It comes from the Old English word hakken: To cut irregulary, without skill or definite purpose; to notch; to mangle by repeated strokes of a cutting instrument; as, to hack a post.

The journalistic use of the word is logical and predates computers by quite a bit. A hack writer is one who writes without skill or definite purpose.

The definition has mutated a bit since in the computer era, to come to mean: Originally, a quick job that produces what is needed, but not well.

Once it got that connotation, it continued to mutate to be a particularly brilliant piece of code.

A little time spent over at Dictionary.com - term: Hack will clear up definitions and give you actual etymology for most words. Real etymology can be fun, but you've got to have more than a coincidence to create a word's history.

Practice safe linguistics.

LetterJ

I actually had to look this one up, but the definition prooves rather intresting, and imo, quite different from just "idea": (from our friends at www.dictionary.com)

meme

/meem/ [By analogy with "gene"] Richard Dawkins's term for an idea considered as a replicator, especially with the connotation that memes parasitise people into propagating them much as viruses do.

Memes can be considered the unit of cultural evolution. Ideas can evolve in a way analogous to biological evolution. Some ideas survive better than others; ideas can mutate through, for example, misunderstandings; and two ideas can recombine to produce a new idea involving elements of each parent idea.

The term is used especially in the phrase "meme complex" denoting a group of mutually supporting memes that form an organised belief system, such as a religion. However, "meme" is often misused to mean "meme complex".

Use of the term connotes acceptance of the idea that in humans (and presumably other tool- and language-using sophonts) cultural evolution by selection of adaptive ideas has become more important than biological evolution by selection of hereditary traits. Hackers find this idea congenial for tolerably obvious reasons.

See also memetic algorithm.

(1996-08-11)

Source: The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2000 Denis Howe

I actually had to look this one up, but the definition prooves rather intresting, and imo, quite different from just "idea": (from our friends at www.dictionary.com)

meme

/meem/ [By analogy with "gene"] Richard Dawkins's term for an idea considered as a replicator, especially with the connotation that memes parasitise people into propagating them much as viruses do.

Memes can be considered the unit of cultural evolution. Ideas can evolve in a way analogous to biological evolution. Some ideas survive better than others; ideas can mutate through, for example, misunderstandings; and two ideas can recombine to produce a new idea involving elements of each parent idea.

The term is used especially in the phrase "meme complex" denoting a group of mutually supporting memes that form an organised belief system, such as a religion. However, "meme" is often misused to mean "meme complex".

Use of the term connotes acceptance of the idea that in humans (and presumably other tool- and language-using sophonts) cultural evolution by selection of adaptive ideas has become more important than biological evolution by selection of hereditary traits. Hackers find this idea congenial for tolerably obvious reasons.

See also memetic algorithm.

(1996-08-11)

Source: The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2000 Denis Howe

I actually had to look this one up, but the definition prooves rather intresting, and imo, quite different from just "idea": (from our friends at www.dictionary.com)

meme

/meem/ [By analogy with "gene"] Richard Dawkins's term for an idea considered as a replicator, especially with the connotation that memes parasitise people into propagating them much as viruses do.

Memes can be considered the unit of cultural evolution. Ideas can evolve in a way analogous to biological evolution. Some ideas survive better than others; ideas can mutate through, for example, misunderstandings; and two ideas can recombine to produce a new idea involving elements of each parent idea.

The term is used especially in the phrase "meme complex" denoting a group of mutually supporting memes that form an organised belief system, such as a religion. However, "meme" is often misused to mean "meme complex".

Use of the term connotes acceptance of the idea that in humans (and presumably other tool- and language-using sophonts) cultural evolution by selection of adaptive ideas has become more important than biological evolution by selection of hereditary traits. Hackers find this idea congenial for tolerably obvious reasons.

See also memetic algorithm.

(1996-08-11)

Source: The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2000 Denis Howe

I actually had to look this one up, but the definition prooves rather intresting, and imo, quite different from just "idea": (from our friends at www.dictionary.com)

meme

/meem/ [By analogy with "gene"] Richard Dawkins's term for an idea considered as a replicator, especially with the connotation that memes parasitise people into propagating them much as viruses do.

Memes can be considered the unit of cultural evolution. Ideas can evolve in a way analogous to biological evolution. Some ideas survive better than others; ideas can mutate through, for example, misunderstandings; and two ideas can recombine to produce a new idea involving elements of each parent idea.

The term is used especially in the phrase "meme complex" denoting a group of mutually supporting memes that form an organised belief system, such as a religion. However, "meme" is often misused to mean "meme complex".

Use of the term connotes acceptance of the idea that in humans (and presumably other tool- and language-using sophonts) cultural evolution by selection of adaptive ideas has become more important than biological evolution by selection of hereditary traits. Hackers find this idea congenial for tolerably obvious reasons.

See also memetic algorithm.

(1996-08-11)

Source: The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2000 Denis Howe

Don't you yanks have nice retirement homes?

This is fairly straight-forward: Making money at a day job, and pursuing a hobby (read: Open Source software development) are two entirely different things for many people. Some fortunate people at a growing number of companies get to develop "free" software and be paid for it, but a lot don't... and that's fine. OSS is -not- a de-facto industry; it's a well-developed hobby, purused by thousands and thousands of people around the world.

Linus Torvalds' day-job has nothing to do with his hobby, which is a sort of stweardship and direction-provider for the Linux kernel. Sure, Linux is part of the Transmeta strategy; why? Not because Linus works for them, but becuase they're smart... it doesn't take a lot of marbles to figure out that the Linux kernel is a very suitable fit for the 'portable computing' and 'internet appliance' market, than, say, the Windows 98 kernel.

Of course, they also got Windows to operate on their platform, which is really just a demonstration of 100% x86-compatibility. Good for them; it shows that they're not blind to where a good chunk of the market is still at.

You said: If the Open Source movement and philosophy are strong enough that companies such as Red Hat, SuSe, TurboLinux, VA Linux, and others are willing to build a business around it, then Transmeta, with Open Source's icon as an employee, should be out in front of everbody else. Instead, they cynically use Linus to garner interest and at the same time to shield themselves from criticisms of the company's behaviors.

Uhh, no. Transmeta isn't targeting just the Linux audience. Linus is there, helping with the Linux end of things; that doesn't exclude Transmeta from creating something that's Windows-compatible, too. And let's face it, the Technology behind Transmeta is pretty darned cool (literally!)... But he's not a decision-maker there by any means. He's an employee.

So what if he's world-famous for the work he's done outside of the context of Transmeta? It's a hobby...

Daltorak.

(P.S. For what it's worth, more and more companies are putting up "open source"esque pages. Why? Cause they want to give the appearance that they're 'with it', and they want to attract the attention of the otherwise hard-to-impress segment of computing society -- the geeks)

Hello,

This is my theory and my question.

Mr. Katz is an entity that keeps on writing relativly low tech stories to a bunch of people who arnt mainly interested in these stories, over time they got real frustrated and kept bringing their vengence upon him.

But, he didnt change his style, he just kept on writing in the same tone in the same form. He didnt even try to adjust to the form needed neither did he just give up... Which leads to the assertion that.. Katz might be an AI entity (maybe piped off from Everything ) with a little bit of hacked Mega Hal code.

Thus my question is. Katz, are you human?

Thank you.

Note: wrote that with a straight face :)
--

• Many of the stories posted are neither news, nor do they matter. Particularly compared to the things that get left out to make room for the stuff that doesn't matter.

• Of late it seems that /. is about the last place to publish a story. So even when it would otherwise qualify as "news" and it really does matter, it's old news by the time you see it on /.

• Stories with massive inaccuracies, incorrect/broken links, misspellings, mind-bogglingly poor usage of the language. Or just down-right incorrect usage.

• Slashdot performance, well... sucks. Poor response times. Site just not responding for minutes or tens-of-minutes at a time.

• Of course: /. could lower its load a bit by turning the default for comments back to "Threaded" from "Flat." Thus obviating the need for those of use who don't see the need for a /. "account" from having to hit the machine twice every time we go to comments. (Gotta wonder who came up with that idea.)

• The so-called "moderation" system, well... sucks. Geek/nerd/hacker wanna-be types
  down-moderating anything they don't understand or that appears to deviate from the One True Way Of Open Source.

Point taken, but then again, we are all human. I'm proud of my work, yes, as you should be, or anybody else should be, but there's nothing a group of white people can do that a group of black people can't do, and there's nothing that a group of black people can do that a group of white people can't do. So is that not pride, but racism instead? Pride means "A sense of one's own proper dignity or value; self-respect." But when that falls under a group that as a whole is no better or worse then another group of people (lets not forget, we ARE all human beings) then it becomes racism, and if taken further then that, malice...

I did = I'm proud of this

We did (even though one member did and the rest jump on the bandwaggon) = a member of my race did so we're better then your race...

faerie also faery n., pl. faeries.
1.A tiny, mischievous, imaginary form; a fairy.
2.The land or realm of the fairies.

fairy n., pl. fairies.
1.A tiny imaginary being in human form, depicted as clever, mischievous, and possessing magical powers.
2.Offensive. Slang Used as a disparaging term for a gay or homosexual man.

The part about "disparaging" isn't necessarily true if "fairy/faerie" is reserved for the specific meaning "a long-haired effeminate gay man", as any of these sites would testify.

faerie also faery n., pl. faeries.
1.A tiny, mischievous, imaginary form; a fairy.
2.The land or realm of the fairies.

fairy n., pl. fairies.
1.A tiny imaginary being in human form, depicted as clever, mischievous, and possessing magical powers.
2.Offensive. Slang Used as a disparaging term for a gay or homosexual man.

The part about "disparaging" isn't necessarily true if "fairy/faerie" is reserved for the specific meaning "a long-haired effeminate gay man", as any of these sites would testify.

faerie also faery n., pl. faeries.
1.A tiny, mischievous, imaginary form; a fairy.
2.The land or realm of the fairies.

fairy n., pl. fairies.
1.A tiny imaginary being in human form, depicted as clever, mischievous, and possessing magical powers.
2.Offensive. Slang Used as a disparaging term for a gay or homosexual man.

The part about "disparaging" isn't necessarily true if "fairy/faerie" is reserved for the specific meaning "a long-haired effeminate gay man", as any of these sites would testify.

It's not just an operating system. Solaris is an "operating environment".

Let's see. Solaris=environment while linux=penguin. Environments (as we all know) get abused by developers whereas penguins swim around and micturate on the environment. Highly metaphorical, no? Ok, maybe no.

If I'm not mistaken, many, many people had sex in the Bible. It was not a sin. It was not bad to do. So why is it that so many people these days say that God or the Bible, or whatever, say that sex is bad, sex only with whom you are married to, etc? And besides, when did it become "bad" or "immoral" to get married to someone of your own gender? Marriage is the bond between two loved ones, right? By definition from Dictionary.com, marriage is a bonding between man and woman as husband and wife, OR wedlock... I find it weird that in a country of the free, for the people, by the people, there are so many things that are bad, immoral, wrong, etc... Why? What's worse, is most people who want to make a change, can't, because they're political minorities, and the people who want to push laws on others to make them do as how they see fit as "moral" and "right", won't want people who see otherwise in power. I hate it.

hmmmm....let's see. According to Dictionary.com, one definition of insecure is:

Inadequately guarded or protected; unsafe.

According to the same source, the only definition of unsecure is:

unsecure \Un`se*cure"\, a. Insecure.

I would also like to correct a common mistake I see here, talking without thinking.

hmmmm....let's see. According to Dictionary.com, one definition of insecure is:

Inadequately guarded or protected; unsafe.

According to the same source, the only definition of unsecure is:

unsecure \Un`se*cure"\, a. Insecure.

I would also like to correct a common mistake I see here, talking without thinking.

hmmmm....let's see. According to Dictionary.com, one definition of insecure is:

Inadequately guarded or protected; unsafe.

According to the same source, the only definition of unsecure is:

unsecure \Un`se*cure"\, a. Insecure.

I would also like to correct a common mistake I see here, talking without thinking.

Have a look for yourself: http://www.dictionary.com/cgi- bin/dict.pl?term=virus

Excerpt: "Unable to replicate without a host cell, viruses are typically not considered living organisms."

--

Hmmm...let's see here...

-------------------------------------
their (thâr)
adj. The possessive form of they.

1. Used as a modifier before a noun: their accomplishments; their home town.
2. Usage Problem. His, her, or its: It is fatal for anyone who writes to think of their sex (Virginia Woolf). See Usage Note at he1.

1. At or in that place: sit over there.
2. To, into, or toward that place: wouldn't go there again.
3. At that stage, moment, or point: Stop there before you make any more mistakes.
4. In that matter: I can't agree with him there.

1. Used to introduce a clause or sentence: There are numerous items. There must be another exit.
2. Used to indicate an unspecified person in direct address: Hello there.

Usage Note: The standard rule states that when the pronoun there precedes a verb such as be, seem, or appear, the verb agrees in number with the following grammatical subject: There is a great Italian deli across the street. There are fabulous wildflowers in the hills. There seems to be a blueberry pie cooking in the kitchen. There seem to be a few trees between me and the green. Nonetheless, it is common in speech for the contraction there's to be used when technically a plural verb is called for, as in There's a couple of good reasons for going. There is also a tendency to use a singular verb when the phrase with which the verb must agree is a conjunction in which the subject closest to the verb is singular: To the left, there is a beautiful entry hall, a sitting room, and a sun porch. Although this usage is strictly incorrect, the attraction of the verb to the singular noun phrase following it is so strong that few writers manage to avoid the construction entirely. The demonstrative forms that there and this here are nonstandard.

-------------------------------------

to (too)
prep.

1. 1. In a direction toward so as to reach: went to the city.
   2. Towards: turned to me.
2. 1. Reaching as far as: The ocean water was clear all the way to the bottom.
   2. To the extent or degree of: loved him to distraction.
   3. With the resultant condition of: nursed her back to health.
3. Toward a given state: helping minority women to economic equality.
4. In contact with; against: their faces pressed to the windows.
5. In front of: stood face to face.
6. Used to indicate appropriation or possession: looked for the top to the jar.
7. Concerning; regarding: waiting for an answer to my letter.
8. In a particular relationship with: The brook runs parallel to the road.
9. As an accompaniment or a complement of: danced to the tune.
10. Composing; constituting: two cups to a pint.
11. In accord with: job responsibilities suited to her abilities.
12. As compared with: a book superior to his others.
13. 1. Before: The time is ten to five.
    2. Up till; until: worked from nine to five.
14. 1. For the purpose of: went out to lunch.
    2. In honor of: a toast to the queen.
15. 1. Used before a verb to indicate the infinitive: I'd like to go.
    2. Used alone when the infinitive is understood: Go if you want to.
16. 1. Used to indicate the relationship of a verb with its complement: refer to a dictionary; refer me to a dictionary.
    2. Used with a reflexive pronoun to indicate exclusivity or separateness: had the plane to ourselves.

1. In one direction; toward a person or thing: owls with feathers wrong end to.
2. Into a shut or closed position: pushed the door to.
3. Into a state of consciousness: The patient came to.
4. Into a state of action or attentiveness: sat down for lunch and fell to.
5. Nautical. Into the wind.

1. In addition; also: He's coming along too. See Synonyms at also.
2. More than enough; excessively: She worries too much.
3. To a regrettable degree: My error was all too apparent.
4. Very; extremely; immensely: He's only too willing to be of service.
5. Informal. Indeed; so: You will too do it!

Source: www.dictionary.com
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition
Copyright © 1996, 1992 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Hmmm...let's see here...

-------------------------------------
their (thâr)
adj. The possessive form of they.

1. Used as a modifier before a noun: their accomplishments; their home town.
2. Usage Problem. His, her, or its: It is fatal for anyone who writes to think of their sex (Virginia Woolf). See Usage Note at he1.

1. At or in that place: sit over there.
2. To, into, or toward that place: wouldn't go there again.
3. At that stage, moment, or point: Stop there before you make any more mistakes.
4. In that matter: I can't agree with him there.

1. Used to introduce a clause or sentence: There are numerous items. There must be another exit.
2. Used to indicate an unspecified person in direct address: Hello there.

Usage Note: The standard rule states that when the pronoun there precedes a verb such as be, seem, or appear, the verb agrees in number with the following grammatical subject: There is a great Italian deli across the street. There are fabulous wildflowers in the hills. There seems to be a blueberry pie cooking in the kitchen. There seem to be a few trees between me and the green. Nonetheless, it is common in speech for the contraction there's to be used when technically a plural verb is called for, as in There's a couple of good reasons for going. There is also a tendency to use a singular verb when the phrase with which the verb must agree is a conjunction in which the subject closest to the verb is singular: To the left, there is a beautiful entry hall, a sitting room, and a sun porch. Although this usage is strictly incorrect, the attraction of the verb to the singular noun phrase following it is so strong that few writers manage to avoid the construction entirely. The demonstrative forms that there and this here are nonstandard.

-------------------------------------

to (too)
prep.

1. 1. In a direction toward so as to reach: went to the city.
   2. Towards: turned to me.
2. 1. Reaching as far as: The ocean water was clear all the way to the bottom.
   2. To the extent or degree of: loved him to distraction.
   3. With the resultant condition of: nursed her back to health.
3. Toward a given state: helping minority women to economic equality.
4. In contact with; against: their faces pressed to the windows.
5. In front of: stood face to face.
6. Used to indicate appropriation or possession: looked for the top to the jar.
7. Concerning; regarding: waiting for an answer to my letter.
8. In a particular relationship with: The brook runs parallel to the road.
9. As an accompaniment or a complement of: danced to the tune.
10. Composing; constituting: two cups to a pint.
11. In accord with: job responsibilities suited to her abilities.
12. As compared with: a book superior to his others.
13. 1. Before: The time is ten to five.
    2. Up till; until: worked from nine to five.
14. 1. For the purpose of: went out to lunch.
    2. In honor of: a toast to the queen.
15. 1. Used before a verb to indicate the infinitive: I'd like to go.
    2. Used alone when the infinitive is understood: Go if you want to.
16. 1. Used to indicate the relationship of a verb with its complement: refer to a dictionary; refer me to a dictionary.
    2. Used with a reflexive pronoun to indicate exclusivity or separateness: had the plane to ourselves.

1. In one direction; toward a person or thing: owls with feathers wrong end to.
2. Into a shut or closed position: pushed the door to.
3. Into a state of consciousness: The patient came to.
4. Into a state of action or attentiveness: sat down for lunch and fell to.
5. Nautical. Into the wind.

1. In addition; also: He's coming along too. See Synonyms at also.
2. More than enough; excessively: She worries too much.
3. To a regrettable degree: My error was all too apparent.
4. Very; extremely; immensely: He's only too willing to be of service.
5. Informal. Indeed; so: You will too do it!

Source: www.dictionary.com
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition
Copyright © 1996, 1992 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Hmmm...let's see here...

-------------------------------------
their (thâr)
adj. The possessive form of they.

1. Used as a modifier before a noun: their accomplishments; their home town.
2. Usage Problem. His, her, or its: It is fatal for anyone who writes to think of their sex (Virginia Woolf). See Usage Note at he1.

1. At or in that place: sit over there.
2. To, into, or toward that place: wouldn't go there again.
3. At that stage, moment, or point: Stop there before you make any more mistakes.
4. In that matter: I can't agree with him there.

1. Used to introduce a clause or sentence: There are numerous items. There must be another exit.
2. Used to indicate an unspecified person in direct address: Hello there.

Usage Note: The standard rule states that when the pronoun there precedes a verb such as be, seem, or appear, the verb agrees in number with the following grammatical subject: There is a great Italian deli across the street. There are fabulous wildflowers in the hills. There seems to be a blueberry pie cooking in the kitchen. There seem to be a few trees between me and the green. Nonetheless, it is common in speech for the contraction there's to be used when technically a plural verb is called for, as in There's a couple of good reasons for going. There is also a tendency to use a singular verb when the phrase with which the verb must agree is a conjunction in which the subject closest to the verb is singular: To the left, there is a beautiful entry hall, a sitting room, and a sun porch. Although this usage is strictly incorrect, the attraction of the verb to the singular noun phrase following it is so strong that few writers manage to avoid the construction entirely. The demonstrative forms that there and this here are nonstandard.

-------------------------------------

to (too)
prep.

1. 1. In a direction toward so as to reach: went to the city.
   2. Towards: turned to me.
2. 1. Reaching as far as: The ocean water was clear all the way to the bottom.
   2. To the extent or degree of: loved him to distraction.
   3. With the resultant condition of: nursed her back to health.
3. Toward a given state: helping minority women to economic equality.
4. In contact with; against: their faces pressed to the windows.
5. In front of: stood face to face.
6. Used to indicate appropriation or possession: looked for the top to the jar.
7. Concerning; regarding: waiting for an answer to my letter.
8. In a particular relationship with: The brook runs parallel to the road.
9. As an accompaniment or a complement of: danced to the tune.
10. Composing; constituting: two cups to a pint.
11. In accord with: job responsibilities suited to her abilities.
12. As compared with: a book superior to his others.
13. 1. Before: The time is ten to five.
    2. Up till; until: worked from nine to five.
14. 1. For the purpose of: went out to lunch.
    2. In honor of: a toast to the queen.
15. 1. Used before a verb to indicate the infinitive: I'd like to go.
    2. Used alone when the infinitive is understood: Go if you want to.
16. 1. Used to indicate the relationship of a verb with its complement: refer to a dictionary; refer me to a dictionary.
    2. Used with a reflexive pronoun to indicate exclusivity or separateness: had the plane to ourselves.

1. In one direction; toward a person or thing: owls with feathers wrong end to.
2. Into a shut or closed position: pushed the door to.
3. Into a state of consciousness: The patient came to.
4. Into a state of action or attentiveness: sat down for lunch and fell to.
5. Nautical. Into the wind.

1. In addition; also: He's coming along too. See Synonyms at also.
2. More than enough; excessively: She worries too much.
3. To a regrettable degree: My error was all too apparent.
4. Very; extremely; immensely: He's only too willing to be of service.
5. Informal. Indeed; so: You will too do it!

Source: www.dictionary.com
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition
Copyright © 1996, 1992 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Hmmm...let's see here...

-------------------------------------
their (thâr)
adj. The possessive form of they.

1. Used as a modifier before a noun: their accomplishments; their home town.
2. Usage Problem. His, her, or its: It is fatal for anyone who writes to think of their sex (Virginia Woolf). See Usage Note at he1.

1. At or in that place: sit over there.
2. To, into, or toward that place: wouldn't go there again.
3. At that stage, moment, or point: Stop there before you make any more mistakes.
4. In that matter: I can't agree with him there.

1. Used to introduce a clause or sentence: There are numerous items. There must be another exit.
2. Used to indicate an unspecified person in direct address: Hello there.

Usage Note: The standard rule states that when the pronoun there precedes a verb such as be, seem, or appear, the verb agrees in number with the following grammatical subject: There is a great Italian deli across the street. There are fabulous wildflowers in the hills. There seems to be a blueberry pie cooking in the kitchen. There seem to be a few trees between me and the green. Nonetheless, it is common in speech for the contraction there's to be used when technically a plural verb is called for, as in There's a couple of good reasons for going. There is also a tendency to use a singular verb when the phrase with which the verb must agree is a conjunction in which the subject closest to the verb is singular: To the left, there is a beautiful entry hall, a sitting room, and a sun porch. Although this usage is strictly incorrect, the attraction of the verb to the singular noun phrase following it is so strong that few writers manage to avoid the construction entirely. The demonstrative forms that there and this here are nonstandard.

-------------------------------------

to (too)
prep.

1. 1. In a direction toward so as to reach: went to the city.
   2. Towards: turned to me.
2. 1. Reaching as far as: The ocean water was clear all the way to the bottom.
   2. To the extent or degree of: loved him to distraction.
   3. With the resultant condition of: nursed her back to health.
3. Toward a given state: helping minority women to economic equality.
4. In contact with; against: their faces pressed to the windows.
5. In front of: stood face to face.
6. Used to indicate appropriation or possession: looked for the top to the jar.
7. Concerning; regarding: waiting for an answer to my letter.
8. In a particular relationship with: The brook runs parallel to the road.
9. As an accompaniment or a complement of: danced to the tune.
10. Composing; constituting: two cups to a pint.
11. In accord with: job responsibilities suited to her abilities.
12. As compared with: a book superior to his others.
13. 1. Before: The time is ten to five.
    2. Up till; until: worked from nine to five.
14. 1. For the purpose of: went out to lunch.
    2. In honor of: a toast to the queen.
15. 1. Used before a verb to indicate the infinitive: I'd like to go.
    2. Used alone when the infinitive is understood: Go if you want to.
16. 1. Used to indicate the relationship of a verb with its complement: refer to a dictionary; refer me to a dictionary.
    2. Used with a reflexive pronoun to indicate exclusivity or separateness: had the plane to ourselves.

1. In one direction; toward a person or thing: owls with feathers wrong end to.
2. Into a shut or closed position: pushed the door to.
3. Into a state of consciousness: The patient came to.
4. Into a state of action or attentiveness: sat down for lunch and fell to.
5. Nautical. Into the wind.

1. In addition; also: He's coming along too. See Synonyms at also.
2. More than enough; excessively: She worries too much.
3. To a regrettable degree: My error was all too apparent.
4. Very; extremely; immensely: He's only too willing to be of service.
5. Informal. Indeed; so: You will too do it!

Source: www.dictionary.com
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition
Copyright © 1996, 1992 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Yes, recessions are inevitable. Find a dictionary and look up the term business cycle... no wait, I'll do it for you

The Fed's true role is to moderate the business cycle. When successful, as they have generally been since the hard lessons of the 30's, recessions still occur, they just don't become full blown depressions.

Say the word... Color. Color. Colour. Colour.

Damnit, Slashdot strips IMG tags!!

(From Dictionary.com)

Color
Colour

If you scroll down to the punctuation of the words, you'll see they're exactly the same...

I just don't hear that 'U' in there anywhere. To me that last section would be more like the 'ooh' sound in 'you' -er (the sound of the last budweiser frog).

- 8Complex

Say the word... Color. Color. Colour. Colour.

Damnit, Slashdot strips IMG tags!!

(From Dictionary.com)

Color
Colour

If you scroll down to the punctuation of the words, you'll see they're exactly the same...

I just don't hear that 'U' in there anywhere. To me that last section would be more like the 'ooh' sound in 'you' -er (the sound of the last budweiser frog).

- 8Complex

EXACTLY! When you hear the story about the guy waking up in a bathtub full of ice and his kidney gone, you freak out and remember it.

Since it's a titalating story, and certainly could be true, you remember it and perhaps even tell a couple of friends about it.

And the cycle begins again, keeping the idea fresh and strong.

If you want more information on information, ideas and how they spread, look for information on "memes" (meme on Dictionary.com)

Want a definition? You got several!

homonym n : two words are homonyms if they are pronounced or spelled the same way but have different meanings.
dictionary.com

Now, IANALS (I am not a linguistics scholar), but isn't virus(the computer term) a homonym for virus(the biology term) in the same way that bark(the tree skin) is a homonym for bark(the sound a dog makes)?

If this is true, Virus(computer) is most likely an English word, and no official linguistic rules have been made for it.

The beauty of the English language is that we are free to modify it to suit our needs. It's adaptable, and if we feel like spelling the plural of virus, virii, viruses or vira, it should be accepted.

The way I see it, in biology, it's unlikely to see one viral cell. Virus seems like it would be plural already. I'm probably totally wrong in this paragraph.

I've read the articles you point to, and understand them. This is definately not meant as a flame, but aren't there more important things to worry about than how we spell the plural of virus?

Dictionary.com has an even more damning definition.

I withdraw my claim that Annonymous Coward does not understand justice, on the basis that I have been convinced that my own understanding is less firm than I had thought.

Touche.

Stenography The art or process of writing in shorthand.

Steganography The art of writing in cipher, or in characters which are not intelligible except to persons who have the key [fairly loose definition from Webster's]

Stenography The art or process of writing in shorthand.

Steganography The art of writing in cipher, or in characters which are not intelligible except to persons who have the key [fairly loose definition from Webster's]

Well, I'm assuming we'll see a lot of pissed off survivalists and terrorists soonish.

On a more useful (but pedantic) topic..
Millennium and "Millenium"

Two Ms, two Ls, two Ns, two Is, an e, and a U is the correct number of letters (if not spelling). So all single Ned "millenium" people can go on spouting about how this is the start of a new "millenium" as we can get the Webster people to add it:
"Millenium (n):
1. A thousandth anniversay of years, on the Gregorian calendar, since the time 1 BC."

This would make it proper to say "01/01/2000 is the start of the third millenium." Of course, I'm still going to have to resist the urge to curse and/or attack the person who says/writes these things ;-)


The other millennium has no such definition of a fixed window of time (from dictionary.com ):
"1. A span of one thousand years."
"4. A thousandth anniversary."

So (im)proper spelling will count. I'm not sure how the pronunciation thing will work out, as we'll probably have to muddle through via context.
---

Its a variant of labor... chiefly british
dictionary entry.

I think you'll find that many of the laws "of biology" tend to really be much more general, and are instead general laws of diverse complicated systems. Biology happens to be an interesting and easy to study niche in this larger field.

Survival of the fittest?

You have a cardboard box with a bunch of things made out of legos in it. Shake the whole box a lot. The ones that doesn't break are what's left over. If that stuff can get reproduced somehow (by itself, or by anything else), "natural" selection happens.

This happens with wholes (organisms & web sites) as well as parts (genes & memes/paradigms) - if the part causes the whole to break, that part won't be very common. We don't see a lot of humans with the "dead" gene.

Nothing comes free, even existence. That's what makes this whole thing work. (in other words, your website is in a cardboard box getting banged against legos)

For internet entities, the cost of existence is bandwidth & server space. Human interest is what it costs to cover these needs. Whether people are interested enough to pay the internet bill because the entity is neat or useful or lucrative is irrelevant.

Existence for humans is normal activity, as well as healing wounds - general metabolism. This cost is paid by an influx of chemical energy (food).

Biological things expend energy getting food, Internet things expend energy getting people interested. If either one of those entities's costs of existance exceeds it's resources, the data pipe will be shut down, so to speak.

Reproduction?

Q: What's the best way to learn HTML?
A: View->Source

In biological systems the notion of parenthood is pretty clear-cut. In memetic systems, however, it can be very difficult to see where ideas come from. But don't tell me that everybody who's implemented a web-based shopping cart thought of the idea themselves.

There are differences, sure. Darwinian vs. Lemarkian evolution.. One or two parents vs dozens or hundreds of 'parents'.

But what's important is that the environment has only limited resources (food, eyeballs), there is some kind of non-exact reproduction (cells divide, ideas get solen), combined with a non-zero cost for existance. Given those constraints, you're pretty much guaranteed to get an ecosystem, or something similar to it.

Is it (the internet) life? I don't care. If it is, great. If it's not, make a new word that means the same thing as "life" without requiring the processes be biological in nature. Good luck getting people to use it.

That's C-H-I-L-I, dude. One 'L'. Thanks.

Hate to correct you, but you're wrong.. It's both. (In british english, at least)

At least, according to my New Zealand dictionary.. (of which I would name, but the cover's ripped off and it starts at alphanumeric.....).

chilli or chili ('tfili) n., pl. chillies or chilies. the small red or green hot-tasting pod of a type of capsicum, used in cookery, often in powdered form. [Mexican Indian]

thanks to babelfish: in french: écoute clandestine
in german: Heimlich zuhören
in italian: ascoltare di nascosto
in spanish: el escuchar detras de las puertas
in portuguese: eavesdropping (!?!)

maybe the portuguese don't do such things. ;)

pork belly

pork barrel

we clear?

pork belly

pork barrel

we clear?

See http://www.dictionary.com/cgi-bi n/dict.pl?term=sic.

Otherwise, that was funny.... t

Ok, you've got me -- what does "merconium" mean? I can't find it, though I did find this, which might be what you meant.

Ok, you've got me -- what does "merconium" mean? I can't find it, though I did find this, which might be what you meant.

Some executives[?] at Andover[?] must have figured out how to make slashdot[?] be more like an eMac[?]. Colorfull[?] and more userfriendly[?] Watch out for those lawsuits[?] though :)