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History of English (combined)

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@FiorenzaMella

Confessions of a Graphic Designer: Miss Manners

Confessions of a Graphic Designer: Miss Manners : When it comes to navigating the social maze, it helps to know someone who is omniscient. After college, I had a roommate we affect... @FiorenzaMella

Fiorenza Mella

Fiorenza Mella @FiorenzaMella

Steve Job's quote

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.” — Steve Jobs @FiorenzaMella

What difference is there, if any, between the words "mate" and "friend"?

The OED says that the relevant senses of mate come from "Middle Low German māt comrade", and suggests that we "Compare early modern Dutch maat (1546), maet (1573) friend, partner". The OED traces the English sense "A companion, fellow, comrade, friend; a fellow worker or business partner" back to 1380, and notes that this is "Freq. as the second element in compounds, as bed-, flat-mate, etc. (in which it is generally less colloq. than when standing alone)". @FiorenzaMella

The Secret Language Code

Interesting read. Psychologist James Pennebaker reveals the hidden meaning of pronouns @FiorenzaMella

Signing, Singing, Speaking: How Language Evolved

"The Earth would not be the way it is if humankind didn't have the ability to communicate, to organize itself, to pass knowledge down from generation to generation," says Jeff Elman, a professor of cognitive science at the University of California, San Diego. "We'd be living in troops of very smart baboons," he says. Instead, language has allowed us to cooperate in groups of millions instead of dozens, he says. It also lets us share the complex ideas produced by our brains, and it's flexible in ways you don't find in the communication systems of other species. @FiorenzaMella