language – Bergheim .dk | .be https://bergheim.dk (Stein) Runar Bergheim on the Internet Wed, 25 Jan 2017 10:49:29 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.1 https://bergheim.dk/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/cropped-snapshot-10-3-32x32.jpg language – Bergheim .dk | .be https://bergheim.dk 32 32 Nynorsk på nett https://bergheim.dk/2006/08/nynorsk-pa-nett/ Sun, 06 Aug 2006 07:00:00 +0000 http://www.bergheim.dk/runar/?p=176 Eg har alltid vore av den formeining at Internett er ein stad der folk burde kommunisere på engelsk. Beklagelegvis syner det seg at dette er eit synspunkt eg er meir eller mindre �leine om i den heimlege omgangskrinsen min. Sjølv om tyngda av dei som vitjar nettstaden er utlendingar som gjev positive tilbakemeldingar har eg no valt å lage ein eigen seksjon på norsk – Nynorsk!

]]> Words I use frequently in order to sound condescending https://bergheim.dk/2005/05/words-i-use-frequently-in-order-to-sound-condescending/ Wed, 04 May 2005 07:00:00 +0000 http://www.bergheim.dk/runar/?p=39 You all know these words we recently heard, were fascinated by and try to put to use as often as possible. We know how to pronounce them, we know how to spell them and we know approximately nothing about what they really mean. Occasionally this proves fatal, when the victim of our superior conversation technique toss the word smugly and knowingly back at us. I am compiling a list of these words and their meaning here. Here are three of them:

Charlatan

The word charlatan paints the picture of someone who make elaborate claims to be someone or something he is not, in terms of skills, knowledge or abilities. Words to the same meaning include fraud and quack. Charlatan is most likely derived from Italian, ciarlatan or cerretano – which is a person from Cerreto, an Italian city with the dubious honour of once having been famous for its multitude of quacks.

Pretentious

For someone to safely be accused of being pretensious he or she should either a) have made claims of some major acchievement that he or she allegedly have not had any part in whatsoever or b) have made an extravagant outward show of some kind in order to put himself in a fortunate position.

Querulant

Allthough often used about people who are fond of prolonging discussions by giving out an endless stream of useless questions a querulant is just someone who likely to throw out accusations and raise suspicion without no immediate proof of him or her taking any pleasure in it.

]]> English skills in Rio de Janeiro https://bergheim.dk/2005/01/english-lanugage-skills-in-rio-de-janeiro/ Wed, 26 Jan 2005 07:00:00 +0000 http://www.bergheim.dk/runar/?p=48 I picked up this brochure at my hotel in Rio. It told me to visit the Belmonte bar, a fine establishment that seems to be packed with people most of the week. I do not doubt their capability of producing wonderful food and serving cold beers. It is this brochure that interest me. The design is professional – or at least semi professional, the layout is not unattractive, but who did the translation.

As you read through this wonderful text you might understand the meaning of most of it. But one of the passages remain a mystery to me: “More the icecream, the most flavorful at last car head of the Belmonte Bar”. I will gladly pay R$ 1 to the anyone who can tell me what this means.

Frontpage of the Belmonte Bar leaflet

Back of the Belmonte Bar leaflet

(click to enlarge)

]]> What does academic phrases really mean? https://bergheim.dk/2004/05/academic-phrases-real-meaning/ Tue, 25 May 2004 07:00:00 +0000 http://www.bergheim.dk/runar/?p=65 There is no shortage of them, but what do scientists really mean when they use academic phrases?

The following list of academic phrases and their definitions might help you understand the mysterious language of scientists (including psychology) and medicine.

These special phrases are also applicable to anyone reading a PhD dissertation or academic paper.

Academic Phrases GALORE

  • “IT HAS LONG BEEN KNOWN” … I didn’t look up the original reference.
  • “A DEFINITE TREND IS EVIDENT” … These data are practically meaningless.
  • “WHILE IT HAS NOT BEEN POSSIBLE TO PROVIDE DEFINITE ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS” … An unsuccessful experiment, but I still hope to get it published.
  • “THREE OF THE SAMPLES WERE CHOSEN FOR DETAILED STUDY” … The other results didn’t make any sense.
  • “TYPICAL RESULTS ARE SHOWN” … This is the prettiest graph.
  • “THESE RESULTS WILL BE IN A SUBSEQUENT REPORT” … I might get around to this sometime, if pushed/funded.
  • “IN MY EXPERIENCE” … Once
  • “IN CASE AFTER CASE” … Twice
  • “IN A SERIES OF CASES” … Thrice
  • “IT IS BELIEVED THAT” … I think.
  • “IT IS GENERALLY BELIEVED THAT” … A couple of others think so, too.
  • “CORRECT WITHIN AN ORDER OF MAGNITUDE” … Wrong.
  • “ACCORDING TO STATISTICAL ANALYSIS” … Rumour has it.
  • “A STATISTICALLY-ORIENTED PROJECTION OF THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THESE FINDINGS” … A wild guess.
  • “A CAREFUL ANALYSIS OF OBTAINABLE DATA” … Three pages of notes were obliterated when I knocked over a glass of beer.
  • “IT IS CLEAR THAT MUCH ADDITIONAL WORK WILL BE REQUIRED BEFORE A COMPLETE UNDERSTANDING OF THIS PHENOMENON OCCURS” … I don’t understand it
  • “AFTER ADDITIONAL STUDY BY MY COLLEAGUES” … They don’t understand it either.
  • “THANKS ARE DUE TO JOE BLOGGS FOR ASSISTANCE WITH THE EXPERIMENT AND TO CINDY ADAMS FOR VALUABLE DISCUSSIONS” … Mr. Bloggs did the work and Ms. Adams explained to me what it meant.
  • “A HIGHLY SIGNIFICANT AREA FOR EXPLORATORY STUDY” … A totally useless topic selected by my committee.
  • “IT IS HOPED THAT THIS STUDY WILL STIMULATE FURTHER INVESTIGATION IN THIS FIELD” … I quit.

(Source: the University of Pennsylvania Humor Pages)

]]>