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Hitchhiker
Rear Admiral
Joined: 11 Aug 2004
Posts: 3514
Location: Ontario, Canada
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 Mon Jun 06, 2005 4:01 pm |
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English is a weird language. Technically, it is the ultimate product of thousands of years of assimilation by other cultures. It has a heavy rooting in Latin, which means that a lot of its weirds originate from or are similar to French, Spanish, et cetera.
I think that the various forms of English are closer than Spanish or Portugese, they are more dialects. However, there are very distinct differences in each one. I, for example, have coerced Windows and MS Word to let me use Canadian English, which is based primarily off British English (colour instead of color) but has also adopted American conventions (tire instead of tyre).
A difference between Canadian English and American English, for example, is the meaning of the verb to table. In Canada, if one "tables a motion," this means they are suggesting it to the others and opening the floor for discussion. In American English, it is the opposite; to "table a motion" is to close discussion and shelve it.
It's interesting to note that Canadian English can be subdivided into further forms, just as American English does. These locales usually vary the pronunciation of words.
For more information, see Wikipedia Article: Canadian English (has links to British English, American English, etc).
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madlilnerd
Duchess of Dancemat
Joined: 03 Aug 2004
Posts: 5885
Location: Slough, England
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| Mon Jun 06, 2005 4:05 pm |
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To table? I don't think we even use that in England!
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lionhead
Rear Admiral
Joined: 26 May 2004
Posts: 4020
Location: The Delta Quadrant (or not...)
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| Mon Jun 06, 2005 4:18 pm |
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| Dirt wrote: | I'm only a grammar Nazi sometines with Dutch  |
I hate dutch grammer. Its so unlogical.
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Never explain comedy or satire or the ironic comment. Those who get it, get it. Those who don't, never will. -Michael Moore
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zero
Rear Admiral
Joined: 03 Apr 2005
Posts: 4566
Location: Texas
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| Tue Jun 07, 2005 2:45 pm |
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I make mistakes a lot!!
But I don't make a big deal about it. People should be worrieng about more important things instead of trying to figure out where to place a comma.
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Leo Wyatt
Sweetest Angel
Joined: 25 Feb 2004
Posts: 19045
Location: Investigating A Crime Scene. What did Quark do this time?
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| Tue Jun 07, 2005 2:47 pm |
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So true. But, I would like to improve my spelling and grammar.
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Theresa
Lux Mihi Deus
Joined: 17 Jun 2001
Posts: 27256
Location: United States of America
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| Mon Jul 04, 2005 12:45 pm |
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| Quote: | Poor Writing Skills Cost Americans Millions
By JUSTIN POPE, AP
States spend nearly a quarter of a billion dollars a year on remedial writing instruction for their employees, according to a new report that says the indirect costs of sloppy writing probably hurt taxpayers even more.
The National Commission on Writing, in a report to be released Tuesday, says that good writing skills are at least as important in the public sector as in private industry. Poor writing not only befuddles citizens but also slows down the government as bureaucrats struggle with unclear instructions or have to redo poorly written work.
"It's impossible to calculate the ultimate cost of lost productivity because people have to read things two and three times," said Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, vice chairman of the National Governors Association, which conducted the survey for the commission.
The commission, established by the College Board, drew attention with its first report in 2003. That outlined problems with how writing is taught in American schools and proposed remedies. The group's second report, last year, tried to drum up support for writing education by highlighting the value that business and industry leaders place on writing skills.
This year, the commission surveyed human resource directors who oversee nearly 2.7 million state government employees, and found writing skills even more important than in the private sector.
While two-thirds of companies surveyed in the 2004 report said writing was an important responsibility for workers, 100 percent of the 49 states responding to the anonymous survey said it was. More than 75 percent said they take writing skills into account when hiring.
But while 70 percent of state managers said large majorities of their professional employees had adequate skills, just one-third said clerical and support staff did. The report estimates the states spend $221 million annually on remedial writing training, sometimes sending workers to $400-per-employee classes.
"You have to be able to write, convert an idea and turn it into words," said Bob Kerrey, the former U.S. senator and governor from Nebraska, who is chairman of the commission.
In public office, "I read things that were absolutely incomprehensible," Kerrey said. He shudders to think how Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence, published 229 years ago Monday, would have read in standard, government-worker bureaucrat-speak.
"It would be 10 times as long, one-tenth as comprehensive, and would have lacked all inspiration," Kerrey said.
In a conference call interview last week, Kerrey, Huckabee, and Gaston Caperton - a former West Virginia governor who now leads the College Board - said many of the costs when state employees cannot express themselves clearly are hard to pin down. E-mail, which is so easy that workers can fire something off without thinking it through, may compound the problem.
"Increasingly as more things are done electronically, or via e-mail or blackberry, I think we tend to almost get even more sloppy," Huckabee said. "The truth is we need to get clear and concise. That adds to productivity."
Another hidden cost is that good ideas may never see the light of day.
"I see that all the time in writing and political speaking," Huckabee said. "There are some really bright people who can't communicate and as a result their ideas probably aren't given the attention they deserve."
The commission is calling for more Congressional funding for the National Writing Project, a professional development program for teachers, and what Kerrey says are proven methods for improving writing instruction in classrooms.
But the biggest boost to writing instruction may come from the decision by the College Board, under Caperton, to add a written essay to the SAT college entrance exam. The essay, which debuted in March, is expected to cause many high school English teachers to put more emphasis on composition. Critics, however, say the essay is formulaic, coachable, and a poor way to test the kind of writing skills students need in college.
07-04-05 07:03 EDT
Copyright 2005 The Associated Press.
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Some of us fall by the wayside
And some of us soar to the stars
And some of us sail through our troubles
And some have to live with our scars
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Joey
Rear Admiral
Joined: 13 Jul 2001
Posts: 4708
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| Mon Jul 04, 2005 12:46 pm |
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i admint i have a small problem
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lionhead
Rear Admiral
Joined: 26 May 2004
Posts: 4020
Location: The Delta Quadrant (or not...)
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| Mon Jul 04, 2005 1:56 pm |
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| harrykim234 wrote: | | i admint i have a small problem |
very small i see 
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Never explain comedy or satire or the ironic comment. Those who get it, get it. Those who don't, never will. -Michael Moore
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Joey
Rear Admiral
Joined: 13 Jul 2001
Posts: 4708
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 12:28 am |
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Can you raed tihs? Olny sxey poelpe can. cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! can raed tihs ?
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nadia
cookie
Joined: 08 Apr 2005
Posts: 8560
Location: Australia
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 12:35 am |
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I can! Thats so cool!I wish my teachers would belive this!!
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Joey
Rear Admiral
Joined: 13 Jul 2001
Posts: 4708
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 12:37 am |
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print it out  ......
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B'Elanna Torres 7 of 9
Ballet Babe
Joined: 20 Aug 2001
Posts: 3642
Location: DISNEY WORLD
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 12:38 am |
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My Grandma corrected all of us in this email not to long ago how "Anyways" is incorrect! It's "Anyway" minus the "s". Ever since then i've caught myself doing it EVERY TIME! Good correction.
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"...I want so much more than they've got planned."*Belle Reprise* Beauty and the Beast
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nadia
cookie
Joined: 08 Apr 2005
Posts: 8560
Location: Australia
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 12:39 am |
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| harrykim234 wrote: | | print it out ...... |
I will and then I will run away and laugh if they cant read it
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lionhead
Rear Admiral
Joined: 26 May 2004
Posts: 4020
Location: The Delta Quadrant (or not...)
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 12:43 am |
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| harrykim234 wrote: | | Can you raed tihs? Olny sxey poelpe can. cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! can raed tihs ? |
thats cool, i'm not even enlgish and i can still read it good.
I agree, spelling isn't important really, as long as we all know what we are tlaking about there si really no need for spelling.
a few years back in my country they intoduced a new kind of spelling, but since people didn't really understand what it was for they removed it a while back . its was really annoying thing because people actually started too worry about what was the right new spelling of certain words. a lot of confusion, people asking eachother what it was while others didn't know eighter and then later people just stopped caring.
-------signature-------
Never explain comedy or satire or the ironic comment. Those who get it, get it. Those who don't, never will. -Michael Moore
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mayxlh
Commodore
Joined: 29 Apr 2005
Posts: 1618
Location: In Oz
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 3:39 am |
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English is not my first lanuage , i try to spell correctly and use grammar in right place. i try to do my best.
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To hold your hand to grow older with you !!
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lionhead
Rear Admiral
Joined: 26 May 2004
Posts: 4020
Location: The Delta Quadrant (or not...)
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 8:38 am |
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me too. 
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Never explain comedy or satire or the ironic comment. Those who get it, get it. Those who don't, never will. -Michael Moore
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Birdy
Socialist
Joined: 20 Sep 2004
Posts: 13502
Location: Here.
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 8:42 am |
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| lionhead wrote: | | me too. |
Yeah me too. Though I find English a language that's much more 'logical' than my first language, Dutch. For instance; when you have a number, 39. In English you pronounce that as thirty-nine. In Dutch you say it the other way around, first the 9 and than the 3. 
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Nosce te ipsum
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lionhead
Rear Admiral
Joined: 26 May 2004
Posts: 4020
Location: The Delta Quadrant (or not...)
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 11:48 am |
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they say thirty-nine and we say nine and thirty.
well, thats not very confusing to me. but i can't think of a better one right now.
What is very confusing about the english language is your alphabet, its the same but you pronounce it so weird.
the A is an E and the E is a I. whats going on?
When we say A, we actually mean A, not E.
and what is Double U all about?
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Never explain comedy or satire or the ironic comment. Those who get it, get it. Those who don't, never will. -Michael Moore
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zero
Rear Admiral
Joined: 03 Apr 2005
Posts: 4566
Location: Texas
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 1:27 pm |
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| harrykim234 wrote: | | Can you raed tihs? Olny sxey poelpe can. cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! can raed tihs ? |
Impressive. I read it. But I still think people NEED and SHOULD be able to spell correctly if they are going to speak English.
Especially on english speaking websites like this one ...
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B'Elanna Torres 7 of 9
Ballet Babe
Joined: 20 Aug 2001
Posts: 3642
Location: DISNEY WORLD
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 1:39 pm |
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it's interesting to see keyboards from other countires. When i was over in Europe, i was only able to get on computers in Germany, Italy, France, and Portugal -- but anyway, many of the letters were switched around -- and each country's keyboard was different from the other. Obviously it has to do with the spelling of their words and language and the most convinient spot for them when they type. It sucked for me though b/c my emails looked like a mess when i was sending them home!
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"...I want so much more than they've got planned."*Belle Reprise* Beauty and the Beast
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Joey
Rear Admiral
Joined: 13 Jul 2001
Posts: 4708
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 4:07 pm |
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i like the QWERTY keyboard, im so adapted to it
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Seven of Nine
Sammie's Mammy
Joined: 16 Jun 2001
Posts: 7871
Location: North East England
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 5:02 pm |
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Even the American and British keyboards are different- if my computer reverts back to American English, I can't find half the keys I'm looking for They're both QWERTY
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Joey
Rear Admiral
Joined: 13 Jul 2001
Posts: 4708
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 5:13 pm |
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hmm what is ZWERTY? someone told me a looong time ago, but i forgot
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lionhead
Rear Admiral
Joined: 26 May 2004
Posts: 4020
Location: The Delta Quadrant (or not...)
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| Tue Jul 05, 2005 11:39 pm |
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In the Netherlands we also have QWERTY. Well, i have never seen the other one anyways.
Its called a QWERTY keyboard since those are the first letters from left too right and top to bottom.
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Never explain comedy or satire or the ironic comment. Those who get it, get it. Those who don't, never will. -Michael Moore
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Joey
Rear Admiral
Joined: 13 Jul 2001
Posts: 4708
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| Wed Jul 06, 2005 2:20 am |
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YUPPERS
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