Dennis Baron, Professor of English and Linguistics at the University of Illinois, is the latest grammar pundit to write about the lack of English singular pronouns that don’t have to be selected according to the sex of the person referred to. continue
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‘I am not an investigative journalist,’ says former Mirror editor Roy Greenslade, ‘and I don’t have much time for people like John Pilger and Duncan Campbell.’ continue
The Guardian blogs Firebox’s Power Plant Growing Machine, noting its ‘obligatory iPod-style casing’. What the heck is iPod-like about this? continue
Just been browsing a Facebook group called ‘Correct Spelling, Punctuation and Apostrophe Use’. It was recommended by Kenny, a magazine editor who’s pretty hot on all those things. The group itself, though, seems to be populated largely by the kind of language maven satirised by Steven Pinker continue
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New research suggests (has your heart begun to sink at those words?) that cats are less – or, as the researcher politically correctly has it, differently – intelligent than previously suspected. continue
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Referring to Daily Express articles speculating that Michael Owen’s footballing career might be finished, his solicitor, John Kelly, told a libel hearing: ‘These incredulous allegations are entirely without foundation.’ continue
Just saw an advert for a computer power supply that described it as ‘very silent’. What’s ‘very silent’? Surely it’s either silent or it isn’t? continue
It’s hard to know what to make of Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez, who prefers regional solidarity and social reform to appeasing a US-centric world economic agenda but doesn’t appear to have a coherent economic agenda of his own, more a make-it-up-as-you-go-along mix of expropriation, energy deals with Mugabe and, oh yes, badly organised coups d’état. continue
On the right, celebrated graphic designer Sagi Haviv, currently of Chermayeff & Geismar, New York. On the left, his logo for the Library of Congress. Is it just me? see this with the picture
One of the things I’ve been pondering while relaunching this site is the practicality of reading long text – specifically, pieces that have been written primarily for print and reproduced online – in a web page. continue
adambanksdotcom He must be older than me. Still, good #IanTomlinson story (in the Mail! Really!) by Stephen Glover http://bit.ly/9MKMmH — go to this tweet