Dear Language Nerd, Why IS it Istanbul (not Constantinople)? -Cameron J. *** Dear Cameron, And whose business is that, really? I mean besides the Turks? Renaming places is generally slightly more complicated than people just liking a city better that way. In fact, it’s all about the power. It happens frequently when new groups replace […]
Dear Biology Nerd, I keep hearing about community MRSA – what is it, and should I be worried? Yours, Ezra Lionels *** Dear Ezra, Don’t worry, it’s really not that exciting. One in three people has staph on their skin — it’s a bacteria that’s everywhere. Usually, the only time people get sick from it […]
Dear Art Nerd, What’s the difference between oil and acrylic and watercolor paint? -Michelle N. *** Well, the names of the paints. There. That’s what’s different. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME YOU’RE A LOVELY AUDIENCE THANK YOU, THANK YOU- Okay, so there’s a bit more to that answer than just the names. Watercolor is cheaper […]
Dear Language Nerd, All right, I’m a little early, but I want enough time to put your words (of wisdom, hopefully) into practice. I’m going to be Cookie Monster for Halloween… I’m in charge of a kid party, not my idea, but I want to do it well, so how do I speak like Cookie […]
Hey Art Nerd, Why is it so hard to draw hands? -Jane H. *** Oh, Christ, hands. Hands are hard to draw because in order to draw them, an artist must sacrifice their firstborn to the ancient God of Art: Pretenciozan. And then, only then, will they achieve true power. Okay, so hands are absolutely […]
Dear Language Nerd, My teacher once told me that the Eskimo have forty-five words for snow, but recently I read that they have over two hundred – a pretty big difference! How many is it really? Sincerely, [name redacted by Language Nerd] *** Dear [redacted], NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I suppose it was bound to […]
Dear Language Nerd, Duplication I get, sure, but what’s up with reduplication? -Carl S., Jr. *** Dear Carl, Reduplication is when sounds or words are said twice in a row. In English, we have a few set words that use reduplication — frou-frou, razzle-dazzle, bye-bye — that sort of thing. We also have the more […]
Dear Language Nerd, I am fascinated by the news that J.K. Rowling wrote a murder mystery, The Cuckoo’s Calling, under the pen name of Robert Galbraith… and got found out! But the news articles I’ve read skip what seem to me to be the most interesting part of the story — what showed that the […]
Dear Language Nerd, So I’m in the kitchen, planning to cut up some beef, holding my kitchen scissors at the ready, and I haven’t done it yet because I’m standing and thinking, why do I call these “a pair of scissors” when there’s only one of them? Please respond before my meat goes bad! Tamar […]
Dear Language Nerd, Merry hurricane season! As I keep a wary eye on Chantal, I’m wondering who names the hurricanes? Dwayne Boston *** Dear Dwayne, You’ve come to the right place, as your humble Language Nerd is a Gulf Coast native. Short answer: the World Meteorological Organization. Long answer: still the World Meteorological Organization, but […]