tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post1155246122702567907..comments2024-03-28T09:53:38.246-05:00Comments on Althouse: "Real octopi are sea creatures, of course. But the Cartographic Land Octopus - CLO for short - need not worry about being in the right ecosphere."Ann Althousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01630636239933008807noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-9790368049348391612017-10-16T11:24:36.294-05:002017-10-16T11:24:36.294-05:00@robother
*chuckle*
I'm surprised that Alth...@robother<br /><br />*chuckle* <br /><br />I'm surprised that Althouse didn't consider this angle, especially given Kurt Eichenwald's recent self beclowning on Twitter.BJMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04447134335568803085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-19976784267520483132017-10-16T09:24:17.705-05:002017-10-16T09:24:17.705-05:00They should have included the mission patch from t...They should have included the mission patch from the NROL-39 project - that's National Reconnaissance Organization. The patch is notable because it uses the octopus imagery to mean the exact same thing as all that other propaganda, but presents it as a good thing.<br />https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nrol-39.jpg#mw-jump-to-licenseJeremyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14135112906704619414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-62834029510245447162017-10-15T21:46:35.750-05:002017-10-15T21:46:35.750-05:00If you want to be pedantic - and who doesn't? ...If you want to be pedantic - and who doesn't? - <i>octopus</i> is not Classical Latin or Greek (see http://logeion.uchicago.edu) though <i>oktápous</i> (ὀκτάπους) is Greek. That would naturally Latinize as <i>octapus</i> with an A, plural <i>octapodes</i>. I always tell curious Latin students that I prefer 'one octopus, two octopus', like 'one fish, two fish' and 'one deer, two deer', because it sounds better than any of the alternatives to me, though dictionaries tell me I'm wrong.<br /><br />'Octopus' is one of those words that's probably best avoided in the plural. Another such word was in a cartoon I once saw that doesn't seem to be anywhere on the web: African outdoors scene, two scientists, two furry beasts running by, one of the scientists says to the other "Look, there goes a mongoose, and there goes another one!" 'Mongeese' is wrong, 'mongooses' sounds wrong, so just avoid the plural if you can.Dr Weevilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10059306888033890029noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-3083255065373867262017-10-15T19:24:21.356-05:002017-10-15T19:24:21.356-05:00Am I the only one who remembers "Octopussy&qu...<i>Am I the only one who remembers "Octopussy"</i><br /><br />No, but many of us are trying to forget. Grazie molto, il padrino.Quaestorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13688608372863540573noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-29247810812023966832017-10-15T17:01:56.569-05:002017-10-15T17:01:56.569-05:00Am I the only one who remembers "Octopussy&qu...Am I the only one who remembers "Octopussy", co-starring Maud Adams in the eponymous role? Not to be forgotten (safe for work but barely): http://www.anotherindian.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Maud-Adams.jpgThe Godfatherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10575359417766667457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-48646893154278584382017-10-15T16:50:16.314-05:002017-10-15T16:50:16.314-05:00Fernandinande: I think that's a reverse snobbe...Fernandinande: I think that's a reverse snobbery that's just as tedious as the usual forms. English includes a lot of classical plurals: genus/genera, opus/opera, medium/media, matrix/matrices, index/indices (when the word "index" is used in the mathematical sense; when you're talking about a section of a book it's index/indexes), ovum/ova . . . If you tried substituting genuses, opuses, mediums, matrixes, or ovums you would sound (to varying degrees) silly.<br /><br />But, in any case, even if you personally choose to speak English with no classical vocabulary at all, the question of which of two putatively classical forms is correct is still meaningful.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-86150167520840605502017-10-15T16:21:47.328-05:002017-10-15T16:21:47.328-05:00@Fernandinande
If you're speaking English, th...@Fernandinande<br /><br /><i>If you're speaking English, the preferred and most correct plural is "octopuses"</i><br /><br />Actually, if you're trying to speak English, you should avoid "most correct," "more perfect," and the like.jimbinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09684677214800358793noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-39866760371195173452017-10-15T16:13:05.229-05:002017-10-15T16:13:05.229-05:00whswhs said...
The correct classical plural is &qu...<i>whswhs said...<br />The correct classical plural is "octopodes."</i><br /><br />If you're speaking English, the preferred and most correct plural is "octopuses", just like a commoner would say.Fernandinandehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11253225431705407699noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-18369457686265465322017-10-15T16:02:26.979-05:002017-10-15T16:02:26.979-05:00Bart: If we don't choose to be pedantic, then ...Bart: If we don't choose to be pedantic, then why even pretend to use a classical plural? There's a perfectly good English plural, "octopuses." Personally, I don't mind English plurals, and I love classical ones, but it gets up my nose when people try to use classical plurals and get them wrong.<br /><br />Though "octopods" seems like a perfectly good highfalutin English plural.<br /><br />Bad Lieutenant: You may laugh, but when I copy edit academic papers, nearly all journals require me to treat "data" as a plural. Except computer science journals. It's ironic, when you think about it, that computer scientists all treat "data" as a singular, when the natural operation of the computer is to break information up into discrete bits that can be counted. Information, mass noun; datum, data, count noun. What's so hard?<br /><br />Or "datum, datums" if we want an English plural. Instead a lot of academics want to call a datum a "datapoint."<br /><br />It all goes to show that the strongest forces in the evolution of languages are laziness, ignorance, and false analogy, and today's correct usage is the offspring of yesterday's error.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-83716804753877367682017-10-15T15:44:12.521-05:002017-10-15T15:44:12.521-05:00While we're at it, pedophile should be spelled...While we're at it, pedophile should be spelled <i>paedophile</i> and pronounced "pee-do-phile" so as not to confuse such a person with a lover (abuser) of feet, who would be a "ped-o-phile." The Brits tend to get it right.jimbinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09684677214800358793noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-6145810021069882242017-10-15T15:43:27.697-05:002017-10-15T15:43:27.697-05:00At least in fora such as this.
But are you sure t...At least in fora such as this.<br /><br />But are you sure that all the data are in?Bad Lieutenanthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18091901464339059169noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-50289629815490109112017-10-15T15:30:34.645-05:002017-10-15T15:30:34.645-05:00jimbino beat me to it, because "octopus"...jimbino beat me to it, because "octopus" is Greek and should we choose to be pedantic, then "octopodes" it is. At least in fora such as this.Bart Hall (Kansas, USA)https://www.blogger.com/profile/02147750474452837414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-87355569068096185412017-10-15T13:38:56.702-05:002017-10-15T13:38:56.702-05:00Bob Ellison wrote: The salt-water squirrel is more...Bob Ellison wrote: <i>The salt-water squirrel is more dangerous.</i><br /><br />Only if you're nuts.Quaestorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13688608372863540573noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-67383304559256040022017-10-15T13:37:36.347-05:002017-10-15T13:37:36.347-05:00None less than the Great Cthulhu had the head and ...<i>None less than the Great Cthulhu had the head and torso of an octopus.</i><br /><br />The torso of an octopus? That's pushing the definition of torso a bit, is it not? (Who am I kidding? That's like tying an anvil to its neck and throwing it from a cliff.)<br /><br />Lovecraft's description of Cthulu: "A monster of vaguely anthropoid outline, but with an octopus-like head whose face was a mass of feelers, a scaly, rubbery-looking body, prodigious claws on hind and fore feet, and long, narrow wings behind."<br /><br /><a href="https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/Cthulhu_sketch_by_Lovecraft.jpg&imgrefurl=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cthulhu&h=702&w=568&tbnid=2Y8vmLITE2FWZM:&tbnh=160&tbnw=129&usg=__qmFRSU8oZb_OZhisHJCjXCmPU8o=&vet=10ahUKEwjvtfbjofPWAhUDySYKHbt9BicQ9QEILDAA..i&docid=6iD-y4iZ84hu-M&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjvtfbjofPWAhUDySYKHbt9BicQ9QEILDAA" rel="nofollow">Lovecraft's sketch of the alien "god".</a> If anything Cthulu's torso is humanoid.Quaestorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13688608372863540573noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-72034441536797863652017-10-15T13:12:16.826-05:002017-10-15T13:12:16.826-05:00None less than the Great Cthulhu had the head and ...None less than the Great Cthulhu had the head and torso of an octopus.Josephbleauhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12407587570806062403noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-82782410014060360592017-10-15T12:33:26.649-05:002017-10-15T12:33:26.649-05:00I linked this one in your Russian tentacles post a...<a href="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51mHzZdqe8L.jpg" rel="nofollow">I linked this one</a> in your Russian tentacles post a few days ago.Earnest Prolehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07784404737843553158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-52649657992378557962017-10-15T12:15:14.495-05:002017-10-15T12:15:14.495-05:00My favorite was a cartoon for the Sherman Anti-Tru...My favorite was a cartoon for the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. The artist put some real work into it. Alas, it is less cartographic and more movie monster in vibe.<br /><br /><a href="http://lsaushistory13.wikispaces.com/file/view/octopus-monopoly600.jpg/415480850/480x295/octopus-monopoly600.jpg" rel="nofollow">Behold! The Trust Octopus!</a>Static Pinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17083787604745437979noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-75088768317508040422017-10-15T12:05:45.363-05:002017-10-15T12:05:45.363-05:00The correct classical plural is "octopodes.&q...The correct classical plural is "octopodes." It's not octop-us, octop-i but octo-pous, octo-podes, "eight-foot/feet". (Yes, it's an irregular plural in Greek too!) Or for a more assimilated form, "octopods." What do they teach in the schools these days?<br /><br />Thank you, jimbino, for getting there first.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-78053674165024592712017-10-15T12:03:44.949-05:002017-10-15T12:03:44.949-05:00It's also the essence of unfairness. You see 8...It's also the essence of unfairness. You see 8 long arms for the evil octopuss and only 2 short arms for mere people on the map. Freud called that Arm Envy.traditionalguyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05706120413005530014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-21116605779740440402017-10-15T11:53:59.014-05:002017-10-15T11:53:59.014-05:00Kurz should be an example for the GOPe. He took th...Kurz should be an example for the GOPe. He took the euroskeptic and tough on immigration rhetoric from the Freedom Party. He coopted their message and brought his party back from disaster to be the new Chancellor of Austria.<br /><br />He also didn't shun the Freedom Party. So it is expected that 58-60% of the votes will be for center-right and hard right. <br /><br />The far left has collapsed. The Greens are expected to lose so many votes they aren't expected to in Parliament. The center-left <br />Is expected to lose a few seats.Bill, Republic of Texashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06205704962575861378noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-54975628602320773472017-10-15T11:39:19.188-05:002017-10-15T11:39:19.188-05:00Whatever you do, don't look the octopus in the...Whatever you do, don't look the octopus in the eyes. There is something disarming about its wide-eyed innocent look in both of Ann's illustrations that make it easy to understand how a fisherman's wife or the European continent could fall for the octopus.robotherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04158315485808195005noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-38860194051051046532017-10-15T11:16:14.203-05:002017-10-15T11:16:14.203-05:00The plural of octopus is octopodes, not octopi.The plural of octopus is <i>octopodes</i>, not octopi.jimbinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09684677214800358793noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-13746682799869359992017-10-15T11:14:19.076-05:002017-10-15T11:14:19.076-05:00The other big winner in today's Austrian elect...The other big winner in today's Austrian elections appears to be the FPO (Free Party of Austria). Strache is their leader. Strache campaigned, like Kurz, for sharp immigration restrictions, but also advocated the viewpoint that Austria should be (and really was) in a coalition with Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and The Czech Republic, the "Visegrad" states, in their focus on restricting immigration and a focus on national interests. MaxedOutMamahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08011469804162511617noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-78095299277216722792017-10-15T11:08:25.948-05:002017-10-15T11:08:25.948-05:00Isn't that octopus backwards?
Reverse octopus...<i>Isn't that octopus backwards?</i><br /><br />Reverse octopus. Don't knock it till you try it.Bill, Republic of Texashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06205704962575861378noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-77541703570343567522017-10-15T11:01:01.986-05:002017-10-15T11:01:01.986-05:00Were you aware when you published this that today ...Were you aware when you published this that today Austria is voting out their government and substituting a conservative, anti-immigration coalition? <br /><br />Kurz has won the chancellorship, although the results are as yet unofficial. Kurz's party is called the Austria People's Party (Oesterreichische Volkspartei). MaxedOutMamahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08011469804162511617noreply@blogger.com