Slashdot Mirror
Amazonian Tribe Has No Word To Express Numbers
In 2004 we discussed the Piraha, a tribe in the Amazon, when a study appeared characterizing their language as a "one, two, many" language. Now reader mu22le informs us of a new study of the Piraha pointing to the possibility that they use no number words at all. Instead they seem to use the word formerly thought to mean "two" to represent a quantity of 5 or 6, and the "one" word for anything from 1 to 4. The language has about 300 native speakers. "The study... offers evidence that number words are a concept invented by human cultures as they are needed, and not an inherent part of language, Gibson said."
So, if these tricks would work for baboons, perhaps we could also assume that they also work for Slashdot moderators. And in fact, it seems that they do. For example: if you post a funny, but trollish remark, and it gets moderated to '+2, Funny' before the next humorless moderator finds it, it will probably get moderated either '-1, Troll' or. Ditto if it makes it to '+3, Funny'. But if it makes it '+4, Funny or +5, Funny' it invariably only ever get moderated 'to '+1, Funny' if it can, or it may get a '-1, Overrated' but it will never get moderated below '+3, Funny'.
So, like baboons, moderators can only count to 3!
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Sure there is, using the new easy IRS 1040BONEHEAD Form. There are only two questions: a. How much did you make last year? b. Send it in.
Actually, that's the 1040OBAMA.
Think it's just a bad joke? Then riddle me this, Batman: How the fuck would taxing oil companies help lower the price poor people pay for gasoline?
PS - see the latest New Yorker cover? Obama's going down in FLAMES come November.
This. Is. Piraha!
They say the first thing to go is your penis. Well, it's either that or your brain. I forget which...
Kind of like Bush administration who can't count the $$ spent on Iraq war.