Category Archives: language

Them Dry Bones

Posted on March 9, 2023 by JE

I misread an Old Norse word bœnhús (“begging from house to house”) as beinhús (“bonehouse”), and now I can’t get that wrong word out of my head. Maybe, in an upcoming story, Morlock will be trapped in a bonehouse. It … Continue reading →

Posted in language, Morlock, Typo of the Day, words, writing | Comments Off on Them Dry Bones

Swords in the Mistletoe

Posted on March 7, 2023 by JE

I was reading Snorri’s Edda today, trying to sort out the story-differences between Snorri’s version and the poems in the Elder Edda. For instance, the famous story where Thor goes fishing and catches Jormungandir, Midgard’s Serpent, plays out differently in … Continue reading →

Posted in books, language, Myth & Legend, words | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Swords in the Mistletoe

“Brain and Brain! What Is Brain?”

Posted on March 3, 2023 by JE

Some great demonstrations here of how chatbots don’t think. I especially like the bot’s explanation of why a pound of feathers weighs the same as two pounds of bricks. An entity that could think would recognize the issue there. The … Continue reading →

Posted in AI is a misnomer, grammar, language | Tagged | Comments Off on “Brain and Brain! What Is Brain?”

Human vs. Parrot

Posted on March 1, 2023 by JE

A great piece by Elizabeth Weil about Emily Bender, who is waging a war of ideas against stochastic parrots. https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/ai-artificial-intelligence-chatbots-emily-m-bender.html

Posted in academia, AI is a misnomer, language | Comments Off on Human vs. Parrot

Invasion of the Stochastic Parrots

Posted on February 20, 2023 by JE

Apparently enough fatheads were taken in by the chatbot hype this winter to flood electronic submission portals with chatbot-written fiction. At last there’s an option for the person who’s too dumb or lazy to read but who thinks they can … Continue reading →

Posted in AI is a misnomer, fantasy, language, plagiarism, sff, words, writing | Comments Off on Invasion of the Stochastic Parrots

Southbound

Posted on February 2, 2023 by JE

Typo of the day is soughtward (for an intended southward). Seems like it ought to mean something—“in the direction of seeking”, maybe. “He never found what he was seeking soughtward; he only found it when he stopped looking.” Or maybe … Continue reading →

Posted in language, Typo of the Day, words | Comments Off on Southbound

Goa, Going, Gone

Posted on January 31, 2023 by JE

I was scrolling through an electronic edition of a venerable Latin dictionary, which is a totally normal thing to do, and I was brought up short by the entry for superstitio: “excessive fear of the goas; unreasonable religious belief.” I … Continue reading →

Posted in fantasy, language, Morlock, Myth & Legend, Rome, sword-and-sorcery, Typo of the Day, words | Tagged | Comments Off on Goa, Going, Gone

To Peeve or Not to Peeve?

Posted on January 16, 2023 by JE

That’s easy. Don’t be a language peever. It generally violates Wheaton’s Law and there’s always the danger of exposing one’s own ignorance of language. Well, easier said than done for some of us. People who write are also frequently in … Continue reading →

Posted in grammar, language, words | Comments Off on To Peeve or Not to Peeve?