|
|
Search the Site
-
Behind the Dictionary
The Bountiful Lexicon of Baseball
Mon Jul 13 00:00:00 EDT 2009
As Major League Baseball heads into the All-Star break, we're taking advantage of the mid-season breather to think about the rich language of baseball. We talked to Paul Dickson, the sport's great lexicographer, about the monumental Dickson Baseball Dictionary. Recently published in its third edition, the dictionary has grown into a thousand-page tome of unprecedented breadth and scope. In the first part of our two-part interview, Dickson explains how his dictionary encompasses the whole history of baseball, from the early days of "protoball" to the latest statistical advances.
-
Backstory
Therese Walsh, Author of "The Last Will of Moira Leahy"
Fri Jul 10 00:00:00 EDT 2009
A Sweet, No-Bake Tale of Success
"You are a lover of words. One day, you will write a book."
That fortune, cracked free of a cookie after eating my favorite Chinese meal of chicken and broccoli (extra spicy), resonated with me. I did love words. I did want to write a book.
-
Word Routes
Sarah Palin, from Pit Bull to Dead Fish?
Thu Jul 09 00:00:00 EDT 2009
When Alaska Governor Sarah Palin burst onto the national scene less than a year ago, she made a memorable impression with an animal-related witticism. In her speech accepting the vice-presidential nomination at the 2008 Republican National Convention, she asked, "You know what the difference is between a hockey mom and a pit bull?" The answer, of course, was "lipstick." Now, as Palin exits the political stage (at least for now), she has again used a metaphor drawn from the animal kingdom.
-
Word Count
Writing Lessons from the Grand Canyon
Wed Jul 08 00:00:00 EDT 2009
Once upon a time, a man who now is a naturalist at the Grand Canyon was a nine-year-old boy. He was fascinated by bugs and rocks but not too interested in sports. His parents, however, had been schooled by his older, athletic brother and therefore insisted that the awkward, recalcitrant boy join the local baseball team.
-
Blog Excerpts
The OED is All a-Twitter
Tue Jul 07 00:00:00 EDT 2009
The lexicographers at the Oxford English Dictionary are plumbing a new source for language use: Twitter. Hear how the OED is making use of ephemeral "tweets" from Editor at Large Jesse Sheidlower, on the public radio program Future Tense.
-
Teachers at Work
Vocabulary At The Center
Mon Jul 06 00:00:00 EDT 2009
We recently spoke to education experts Amy Benjamin and John T. Crow about their new book, Vocabulary at the Center. Amy and John explain the most effective methods for extending the use of new words, so that vocabulary instruction can move beyond rote memorization.
-
Word Routes
The United States Is... Or Are?
Fri Jul 03 00:00:00 EDT 2009
We're coming up on the Fourth of July, when the United States is full of barbecues, fireworks, parades, and competitive hot dog eating. But why do we say "the United States is full of..." instead of "the United States are"? On Independence Day, there's no better time to reflect on how the rise of America's national unity was mirrored by its grammatical unity, as "the United States" turned into a singular noun.
-
Evasive Maneuvers
Hiking the Euphemistic Trail
Thu Jul 02 00:00:00 EDT 2009
Will the Appalachian trail ever be the same?
Environmentally, I think so. Linguistically? Not a chance.
-
Language Lounge
Got a Minute?
Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 EDT 2009
As a remedy for the summer doldrums, the Loungeurs have taken up deep questions this month: space, time, space-time, and language.
-
Blog Excerpts
Michael Jackson's Nonsense Chant
Tue Jun 30 00:00:00 EDT 2009
The world has lost Michael Jackson, but his music stays with us. On the linguistics blog Language Log, Visual Thesaurus editor Ben Zimmer uncovers the origins of Jackson's nonsensical chant, "Ma ma se, ma ma sa, ma ma coo sa," and Mark Liberman follows up with an analysis of the chant's linguistic accents and musical beats.
|
|
226 227 228 229 230
Displaying 2271-2280 of 3488 Results
