Pluto is finally getting some respect — from wordsmiths. "Plutoed" was chosen as the 2006 Word of the Year by the American Dialect Society at its annual meeting on Friday.
To "pluto" is "to demote or devalue someone or something," much like what happened to the former planet last year when the General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union decided Pluto did not meet its definition of a planet.
"Our members believe the great emotional reaction of the public to the demotion of Pluto shows the importance of Pluto as a name," said Society President Cleveland Evans. "We may no longer believe in the Roman god Pluto, but we still have a sense of personal connection with the former planet."
"Plutoed" won against "climate canary," defined as "an organism or species whose poor health or declining numbers hint at a larger environmental catastrophe on the horizon."
Other words in the running were: murse (a man's purse), flog (a fake blog that promotes products) and macaca (an American citizen treated as an alien).
Former Senator George Allen, a Republican who sought re-election last year, was comfortably ahead in polls until August, when he referred to the son of Indian immigrants as a macaca, regarded by some as a racial slur. Allen lost to Democrat Jim Webb. You could say that he plutoed himself!
The 117-year-old American Dialect Society includes linguists, grammarians, historians and independent scholars. In conducting the vote, members do so for fun and not in any official capacity of inducting words into the English language.
(AP)
愛咬文嚼字的人總算給了冥王星一點公道，「Plutoed」在週五美國方言協會年度會議上被選為二○○六年年度風雲詞彙。
「to pluto」表「降級或貶值某人或某物」，正如同冥王星去年的遭遇，因為國際天文學聯合會裁定冥王星不符合行星的定義標準。
「我們的會員相信社會大眾對於冥王星遭降級會產生如此大的反應，顯示出冥王星名稱的重要性，」方言協會主席克里夫蘭．伊凡斯表示︰「我們可能不會再相信羅馬主神冥王星，但我們仍對這顆前任行星有個人情感上的連結。」
「Plutoed」擊敗「climate canary」而勝出，後者定義為「健康狀況不佳或數量下降的有機物或物種，預示著即將發生的大規模環境災害」。
其他入選的字包括︰「murse」（男用皮包）、「flog」（促銷產品的假部落格）、「macaca」（被當成外國人的美國公民）。
前共和黨參議員喬治．艾倫去年競選連任時，民調直到八月都遙遙領先，卻在以被部份人士認為種族歧視的「瑪卡卡」稱呼印度移民後裔後，敗給民主黨的吉姆．韋布。你可以說他讓自己落選了。
有一百一十七年的歷史的美國方言學會，成員包括語言學家、文法學家、歷史學家與獨立學者，他們舉行投票只為樂趣，並不具備將字彙引入英語的正式效力。（美聯社／翻譯︰鄭湘儀）
Even as he grows older, Microsoft founder Bill Gates still fondly remembers the catalytic computer code he wrote 50 years ago that opened up a new frontier in technology. Although the code that Gates printed out on a teletype machine may look crude compared to what’s powering today’s artificial intelligence platforms, it played a critical role in creating Microsoft in April 1975 — a golden anniversary that the Redmond, Washington, company celebrated on April 4. Gates, 69, set the stage for that jubilee with a blog post reminiscing on how he and his old high school friend — the late Paul Allen
Australia’s strict immigration policies have long been criticized, particularly for how they treat people with disabilities. Having been residents of Australia for years, Scottish Laura Currie and her Italian partner, Dante Vendittelli, recently experienced the impact of these immigration policies. Their son Luca, born in Australia and diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, became the reason their residency application was denied due to the anticipated high healthcare costs. Had Luca been healthy, there would have been no objections to their permanent residency. This case not only highlights discrimination against disabled individuals, but also raises questions about fairness and inclusion within Australia’s immigration
The study had several issues. Small sample sizes made it hard to draw __7__ conclusions. Additionally, taking a __8__ like pure MSG on an empty stomach is likely to make a person ill in any case. Choosing individuals who already had a history of the symptoms could have created a bias because they were likely to __9__ the reactions again. When real scientific research on the effects of MSG was eventually done, many of the myths surrounding it were proven __10__. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and other global organizations have found MSG safe to eat. Today, MSG
1. 為了在最短期間精通日文，他非常用功。 ˇ He is working very hard (in order) to master Japanese in the shortest possible time. χ He is working very hard for mastering Japanese in the shortest possible time. 註: 用 for ＋ 動名詞表示目的，是不合習慣的，應改用不定詞。請看下列句子： 農夫們拿起了武器來保衛他們的村莊。 The farmers took up arms to defend their village. 為了改進工作，我們修改了部分計劃。 We made some changes in our plan (in order) to improve our work. for 作「為了」解，後面跟名詞則是通順的。例如： 我們為這個計畫拚命。 We are working hard for this project. 我們正在為下一代創造更幸福的生活。 We are building a happier life for our children. 2. 他很怕冷。 ˇ The cold bothers him. ˇ Cold weather bothers him. χ He is afraid of the cold. 註: 我們在英漢詞典或中學課本中所看到的英文字詞的中文解釋，和它的英文原義往往只有局部相等。中文的「怕」只有在表達恐懼時，才能用fear 或be afraid of，不能隨便套用，請參考下面二例： 這錶不怕水。 The watch is waterproof. 我不怕熱。 The heat doesn’t
RSS