“In the Hopi language surukaphe means ‘tail coffee’, or coffee watered down to
make it go further. In Brazilian Portuguese slang, chafé means ‘bad coffee’,
a blend of the words for ‘tea’ and ‘coffee’. Then there’s cholo in Louisiana
French, from chaud-l’eau , or ‘hot water’.”
posted 12/1/2022 8:00pm ∞
“For years, many linguists have believed that learning language is impossible
without a built-in grammar template. The new AI models
… demonstrate that the ability to produce grammatical language can be learned
from linguistic experience alone.”
posted 11/4/2022 8:00pm ∞
“Real questions are almost never settled in terms of right or wrong but rather
how best to balance the competing equities of various solutions. Sarcasm is too
lazy to engage in such important discussion.”
Andrew Bosworth ,
On Sarcasm
(July 21, 2022 )
posted 10/3/2022 8:00pm ∞
“In a famous anecdote in the Confessions , Augustine describes seeing Ambrose
of Milan reading on his own without making a sound. Ambrose was not the first
person in history to read silently, but his quiet, private reading was unusual
enough to make an impression.”
Irina Dumitrescu ,
How to Read Aloud
(London Review of Books September 10, 2020 )
posted 3/27/2021 8:00pm ∞
“The Nazis were dedicated trolls who weaponized their insincerity to take
advantage of liberal societies ill-equipped to confront them. This was not done
just for political advantage—rather, the insincerity itself was a moral act, an
expression of contempt for the weak.”
Adam Serwer ,
Nazis Have Always Been Trolls
(The Atlantic March 21, 2019 )
posted 1/16/2020 8:38pm ∞