Glimpse Fall 2001.NORA MILLER, EDITOR A brief look at things for people interested in general semantics gen·er·al semantics n. (used with a sing. verb) A discipline developed by Alfred Korzybski that proposes to improve human behavioral responses through a more critical use of words and symbols. . "Facts as we see them are little more than quick glimpses of a ceaseless transformation ..." -- Wendell Johnson Dr. Wendell Johnson (April 16, 1906 – August 29, 1965) was an American psychologist, speech pathologist and author and was a proponent of General Semantics (or GS). Stuttering contributions , 'People in Quandaries' Find more at http://glimpse.blogspot.com Quoted Wisdom What a strange illusion it is to suppose that beauty is goodness. Leo Leo, in astronomy Leo [Lat.,=the lion], northern constellation lying S of Ursa Major and on the ecliptic (apparent path of the sun through the heavens) between Cancer and Virgo; it is one of the constellations of the zodiac. Tolstoy, novelist and philosopher (1828-1910) A person without a sense of humor Noun 1. sense of humor - the trait of appreciating (and being able to express) the humorous; "she didn't appreciate my humor"; "you can't survive in the army without a sense of humor" sense of humour, humor, humour is like a wagon without springs -- jolted by every pebble in the road. Henry Ward Beecher, preacher and writer (1813-1887) A man is too apt to forget that in this world he cannot have everything. A choice is all that is left him. Harry Mathews Harry Mathews (February 14,1930 - ) is an American author of various novels, volumes of poetry and short fiction, and essays. Born in New York City to an upper middle class family, Mathews was educated at private schools there and at the Groton School in Massachusetts , author and member of OuLiPo (1930-) Words form the thread on which we string our experience. Aldous Huxley Noun 1. Aldous Huxley - English writer; grandson of Thomas Huxley who is remembered mainly for his depiction of a scientifically controlled utopia (1894-1963) Aldous Leonard Huxley, Huxley , writer and critic (1894-1963) On the Topic of Language Misuse Our misapprehension mis·ap·pre·hend tr.v. mis·ap·pre·hend·ed, mis·ap·pre·hend·ing, mis·ap·pre·hends To apprehend incorrectly; misunderstand. mis·ap of the nature of language has occasioned a greater waste of time, and effort, and genius, than all the other mistakes and delusions with which humanity has been afflicted af·flict tr.v. af·flict·ed, af·flict·ing, af·flicts To inflict grievous physical or mental suffering on. [Middle English afflighten, from afflight, . It has retarded immeasurably our physical knowledge of every kind, and vitiated vi·ti·ate tr.v. vi·ti·at·ed, vi·ti·at·ing, vi·ti·ates 1. To reduce the value or impair the quality of. 2. To corrupt morally; debase. 3. To make ineffective; invalidate. what it could not retard. A. B. Johnson, Treatise on Language, or the Relation Which Words Bear to Things, 1836 Science -- a Human Activity Can science improve on our ability to perceive the truth? San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden Chronicle's Jon Carroll discusses the difficulties of using a human (and therefore flawed) scientific tool to detect lies: Science is not some monolithic body of knowledge; it's a mishmash mish·mash n. A collection or mixture of unrelated things; a hodgepodge. [Middle English misse-masche, probably reduplication of mash, soft mixture; see mash. of old beliefs, new beliefs, superstitions, guesses, counter-arguments and disputes. It's not useless -- far from it -- but it has to be understood as a cultural artifact, a production of the flawed human mind.... The polygraph An instrument used to measure physiological responses in humans when they are questioned in order to determine if their answers are truthful. Also known as a "lie detector," the polygraph has a controversial history in U.S. law. , the "many writings" machine, measures small changes in heart rate, respiration, perspiration and other bodily functions. The theory behind the polygraph is that people who lie get nervous when they lie, and the nervousness is reflected in the polygraph results.... The reasons that people get nervous are many and various; only some of them have to do with guilty knowledge of a crime. There are sociopaths who have guilty knowledge, but it does not make them nervous. And there are tricks -- you can bite your tongue at odd times, for instance, to confuse the "control" responses. Indeed, one of the interesting things about polygraphs is that they are only as good as their operators. An experienced polygraph operator can tease info out of data that others cannot. It seems like science, but it's actually intuition.... A thermometer, for instance, does not require intuitive interpretation to be useful. The thermometer, we may say, is good science -- provided it is placed in the right location and calibrated cal·i·brate tr.v. cal·i·brat·ed, cal·i·brat·ing, cal·i·brates 1. To check, adjust, or determine by comparison with a standard (the graduations of a quantitative measuring instrument): correctly. The raw data of a polygraph may be as good as the raw data of a good thermometer, but the interpretation is just an art form, like Afro-Cuban dancing. And yet, because we want to believe -- even though the legal system itself doesn't believe -- we keep using polygraphs. We keep attaching significance to their results, even though that's wrong. In My Opinion If the WORD is not the thing, how about the thought? Does a thought constitute an act? Does thinking about doing something have the same effect as doing that thing? I came across this proverb on a quotes page, 0(http://www.geocities.com/Pspanoudi/topic-v1.html) "The willing contemplation of vice is vice." I believe this proverb confuses two levels of abstraction in such a way as to result in confusion and needless difficulty in those who would try to act in accordance with it. The consequences of a thought that does not lead to action, in my mind, differs in meaningful ways from the consequences of taking the action, regardless of any evaluation of the morality of the action itself. Does this medium become the message? Advertising delivered in a very unusual place... From Barry Brown at ABCNEWS.com TORONTO, Dec. 28 -- A poster with a surprise behind it is giving new meaning to the phrase "doing your business" in the bathroom. From the same Canadian firm that pioneered the placement of advertising posters above men's urinals in restaurants and bars comes a new twist -- interactive audio ads pushing beer just as the potential customer is making room for more. For its first foray, Montreal-based Zoom Media teamed with Toronto's Labatt Breweries, placing the ads in nearly 150 bars and pubs in five Ontario cities and a number of university campuses. The ads promote Labatt's Blue brand of beer among 18- to 34-year-olds. While the poster promotes Blue beer, the four 30-second ads say almost nothing about the product, relying instead on surreal comedy. One audio ad is set up like an answering machine -- complete with flashing message light -- that plays back "messages" from your mother, best friend and sister. Another is designed to make you feel like you're taking a taxi ride on a trip to French-speaking Montreal. It offers handy phases such as "oui" (yes), "bonjour" (hello), and "Je voudrais voir un avocat" (I'd like to talk to a lawyer). The campaign may take a little getting used to. Bookstore worker Janet Milligan, who now thinks the ads are funny, says she first found them intrusive and annoying, especially since mostly male voices are used. "It's jarring to hear a male voice in a woman's washroom." What a lack of critical thinking skills can get you Pregnant, in this case ... the story from BBC BBC in full British Broadcasting Corp. Publicly financed broadcasting system in Britain. A private company at its founding in 1922, it was replaced by a public corporation under royal charter in 1927. News: Some teenagers think Coca Cola and wrist watches are contraceptives. A survey for Doctor Magazine highlighted a worrying lack of understanding about contraception among UK teenagers. The lack of understanding could be one reason why teenage pregnancy teenage pregnancy Adolescent pregnancy, teen pregnancy Social medicine Pregnancy by a ♀, age 13 to 19; TP is usually understood to occur in a ♀ who has not completed her core education–secondary school, has few or no marketable skills, is rates are soaring in the UK. About 8,000 teenagers under 16 get pregnant every year in the UK, and rates of sexually transmitted infection in British teenagers are running at about 10%. One teenager was quoted as saying: "Putting a watch around your penis before sex means the radioactivity of the dial kills off sperm." Phil Johnson, editor of Doctor, said GPs have a major part to play in helping teenagers understand sex and pregnancy. But Jan Barlow, chief executive of [a] charity ... which deals with teenage sexual health issues, said adults were continuing to fail young people. "Far too often young people tell [us] that the information they get about sex is too little, too late and it's too biological," she said. "They need plain-speaking and impartial information so that they can make informed choices." RELATED ARTICLE: UK Teenage Myths I You can't get pregnant on a boat. You can't get pregnant if you drink a lot of milk. You get pregnant if you take folic acid folic acid: see coenzyme; vitamin. folic acid or folate Organic compound essential to animal growth and health and needed by bacteria as a growth factor. . Keeping your eyes closed stops you getting pregnant. A boy is only fertile if his testicles Testicles Also called testes or gonads, they are part of the male reproductive system, and are located beneath the penis in the scrotum. Mentioned in: Testicular Cancer, Testicular Surgery, Vasectomy feel cold. There's no risk if you're standing on a telephone directory. UK Teenage Myths II If you drink a lot of alcohol you won't get a girl pregnant. You can't get pregnant unless you have sex every night. Coke douches douches, n.pl water-based solutions intended for use on the skin or in a body cavity, sometimes containing herbal decoctions. work and you can use crisp bags as condoms. You can't get pregnant if you don't have an orgasm. You can't get pregnant if you have sex in the bath. |
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