Monthly Archives: February 2012

Aryan nation?

Posted on February 26, 2012 by

If you study historical linguistics, you will run across the term “Aryan” at some point, probably in an older but perfectly harmless book. A group of people living a few thousand years ago in what is now Iran referred to their … Continue reading →

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The King’s Thpeech

Posted on February 13, 2012 by

Have you heard the one about the lisping king? You’ve probably noticed that, while Hispanophones from this hemisphere generally pronounce s, z, and soft c (i.e. before front vowels) identically, Spaniards make a distinction. They say s as we do … Continue reading →

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Is Mitt whistling “The Young and the Restless” at the Midwest?

Posted on February 10, 2012 by

OK, this post is about the presidential election, so if you find that kind of thing boring, just move along. I myself am fascinated by such things, and have been pondering a few questions: First, does Mitt Romney’s erratic performance … Continue reading →

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Is this the party to whom I am speaking?

Posted on February 9, 2012 by

On September 23, 1960, at a gathering in the UW-Madison student union, new grad student Joyce Carol Oates met Ray Smith, an older student about to finish his PhD work on Swift.  He asked her to dinner, and they saw … Continue reading →

Posted in fiction, Uncategorized | Tagged | 6 Comments