[R] OT --- grammar.

[Patrick Connolly]

How about "Physics / politics / economics are my favoruite subject"?

Might be fun to see how long we could make that list.  It seems to be
a fact of life that it's impossible to make a (useful) language that
has totally consistent grammar.  

Something else to consider:I knew an English teacher who frowned on
what Rolf wrote (to quote) "...almost never .. "  which *should be*
"... hardly ever ... "

How boring it would be if we all agreed. :-)

On Mon, 25-Jun-2018 at 12:16PM +1200, Rolf Turner wrote:

|> On 25/06/18 12:03, Bert Gunter wrote:
|> >Ted, et. al.:
|> >
|> >Re: "Data is" vs "data are" ... Heh heh!
|> >
|> >"This is the kind of arrant pedantry up with which I will not put."
|> >(Attributed to Churchill in one form or another, likely wrongly.)
|> >
|> >See here for some semi-authoritative dicussion:
|> >
|> >http://www.onlinegrammar.com.au/top-10-grammar-myths-data-is-plural-so-must-take-a-plural-verb/
|> 
|> I beg to differ.  "The data was out of date" sounds just plain
|> stupid to my sensitive ears.
|> 
|> It's rather like using the phrase "begs the question" to mean
|> "raises the question" or "invites the question" rather than to
|> carry its *correct* meaning of "assumes what is to be proved".  The
|> fact that the phrase is almost always used in its *incorrect* sense
|> these days, and almost never in its *correct* sense, does not
|> diminish the fact that those who use it incorrectly are ignorant
|> scumbags!  The language is weakened and diminished by the
|> encroachment of incorrect usage.
|> 
|> cheers,
|> 
|> Rolf
|> 
|> 
|> -- 
|> Technical Editor ANZJS
|> Department of Statistics
|> University of Auckland
|> Phone: +64-9-373-7599 ext. 88276
|> 
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-- 
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   ___    Patrick Connolly   
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 _( Y )_  	         Average minds discuss events 
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