Does grammar matter?
On one side: the language sticklers, who hold that good grammar is a necessity for communication, and even a matter of upholding standards and courtesy. But there’s another side: that grammar rules are often just made up, designed to reinforce social barriers, and that an insistence on good grammar is a form of elitism and snobbery. Which view is supported by the facts?
Kylie, Ben, and Daniel are watching their words on this episode of Talk the Talk.
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Promo
We have a chat in advance of the show. Daniel finds that the Talk the Talk audience is a bit different from the ABC radio audience. Also, a bit about the Voynich Manuscript.
Also at https://www.patreon.com/posts/14339753
Cutting Room Floor
There’s a whole new news item that we didn’t include. It’s about a tormented nun who invented a writing system to transcribe messages from Satan. Has it been deciphered? How can you avoid being tricked by this stuff?
Who has the best veins? What’s an adverb? How can we help students’ writing?
Ben tells us about the time he was in the eye of a cyclone. And we meet Sir Francis Richard Burton, a Renaissance man with whom no one trifles.
Also at https://www.patreon.com/posts/14402770
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Show notes
Voynich manuscript: the solution
https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/public/voynich-manuscript-solution/
Sravana Reddy and Kevin Knight: What We Know About the Voynich Manuscript (PDF)
http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/%7Esravana/slides/voynich_latex_slides.pdf
Indecipherable Voynich Manuscript Finally Decoded After a Century
https://www.inverse.com/article/36271-voynich-manuscript-decoded
The mysterious Voynich manuscript has finally been decoded [UPDATED]
https://arstechnica.com/science/2017/09/the-mysterious-voynich-manuscript-has-finally-been-decoded/
So much for that Voynich manuscript “solution”
https://arstechnica.com/science/2017/09/experts-are-extremely-dubious-about-the-voynich-solution/
‘Devil’s letter’ written by 17th century possessed nun finally decoded thanks to dark web code
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/devils-letter-written-by-17th-century-possessed-nun-finally-decoded-thanks-dark-web-code-1638490
So Trump Makes Spelling Errors. In the Twitter Age, Whoo Doesn’t?
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/27/technology/donald-trump-twitter-spelling.html?_r=0
Why Kids Can’t Write
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/02/education/edlife/writing-education-grammar-students-children.html
No, Insisting on Proper English Grammar and Spelling Is Not ‘Elitist’
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/451030/proper-english-grammar-spelling-are-not-elitist
It’s Finally Time To Stop Correcting People’s Grammar, Linguist Says
http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/entry/accidence-will-happen-oliver-kamm-interview_us_576ae249e4b09926ce5d718e
Online Etymology Dictionary: typhoon
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=typhoon
The Word “Typhoon.” Its History and Origin. (1880)
https://www.jstor.org/stable/1798728?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents
Wiktionary: tornado (etymology)
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/tornado#Etymology
Willy-Willy, Dust Devil or Cockeyed Bob?
https://pwlinfo.wordpress.com/2013/11/20/willy-willy-dust-devil-or-cockeyed-bob/
Bob Dixon: Australian Aboriginal words in English: their origin and meaning
Google Books link
Downburst Causes Damage, Closes Key U.S. Border Bridge in Laredo, Texas
https://weather.com/news/news/world-trade-bridge-downburst-damage-laredo-texas
WATCH: A “Rain Bomb” Drops on Queensland, Australia
http://www.sciencealert.com/watch-a-rain-bomb-drops-on-queensland-australia
Image credit: https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/500/0*5VbTEq794hL6bxDv.jpeg
Transcript
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