Comments on: Glyph http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2008/12/05/1376/ A blog about life, past and future. Written by DISCOVER contributing editor and columnist Carl Zimmer. Sun, 22 Nov 2009 14:08:33 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Alice http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2008/12/05/1376/comment-page-1/#comment-12969 Alice Sun, 21 Dec 2008 16:58:05 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2008/12/05/1376/#comment-12969 Yeah, it's a little pretentious-sounding, but I figured I could either say that or go into a paragraphs-long rant about why I love language, so I figured this was best for now. I think anybody who's studied some linguistics will kind of get what I'm going for, but if you're curious: impossible elegance: refers to how, the more I study language, I find an incredible amount of detail and complication that is somehow resolved in an immediately recognizable system of communication. Crap, that sounded pretentious, too. Like, the stuff that goes on in your brain for you to be able to say, "Where did she go?" is pretty wild. There, that's better, right? intrinsically artificial and cumbersome nature of written language: written language IS an artificial representation of a mental process, and the whole process is of course more cumbersome than speaking. So I could get into it here, but I sort of have a love-hate relationship with writing. The glyph is on my right arm (the arm I write with) to signify that. Hopefully that will give you a better idea of where I'm coming from (I mean, if you're still interested at this point) and show that I'm actually not a pretentious jerk. I just write like I am. -Alice Yeah, it’s a little pretentious-sounding, but I figured I could either say that or go into a paragraphs-long rant about why I love language, so I figured this was best for now. I think anybody who’s studied some linguistics will kind of get what I’m going for, but if you’re curious:

impossible elegance: refers to how, the more I study language, I find an incredible amount of detail and complication that is somehow resolved in an immediately recognizable system of communication. Crap, that sounded pretentious, too. Like, the stuff that goes on in your brain for you to be able to say, “Where did she go?” is pretty wild. There, that’s better, right?

intrinsically artificial and cumbersome nature of written language: written language IS an artificial representation of a mental process, and the whole process is of course more cumbersome than speaking. So I could get into it here, but I sort of have a love-hate relationship with writing. The glyph is on my right arm (the arm I write with) to signify that.

Hopefully that will give you a better idea of where I’m coming from (I mean, if you’re still interested at this point) and show that I’m actually not a pretentious jerk. I just write like I am.

-Alice

]]> By: Joe the Plumber http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2008/12/05/1376/comment-page-1/#comment-12587 Joe the Plumber Fri, 05 Dec 2008 15:25:29 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2008/12/05/1376/#comment-12587 Wow! That's totally Awesome! Couldn't have said it better. Profound Wow! That’s totally Awesome! Couldn’t have said it better. Profound

]]> By: Scott Belyea http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2008/12/05/1376/comment-page-1/#comment-12585 Scott Belyea Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:25:29 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2008/12/05/1376/#comment-12585 "the impossible elegance of spoken language as well as the intrinsically artificial and cumbersome nature of written language.”" Hmmm ... I'm going to have to think about this one. My first reaction was that it was about as silly a statement as I'd seen in quite a while, but it's worth considering. “the impossible elegance of spoken language as well as the intrinsically artificial and cumbersome nature of written language.””

Hmmm … I’m going to have to think about this one. My first reaction was that it was about as silly a statement as I’d seen in quite a while, but it’s worth considering.

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