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Wed 20 Mar, 2013 11:38 pm
Context:
Relationship with DarwinGray and Charles Darwin met at Kew, introduced by Joseph Dalton Hooker. Darwin then wrote to Gray requesting information about the distribution of various species of American flowers, which Gray provided, and which was helpful in providing information for the development of Darwin's theory. This was the beginning of an extensive lifelong correspondence.
Gray, Darwin and Hooker became lifelong friends and colleagues, and Gray and Hooker conducted research on Darwin’s behalf in 1877 on their Rocky Mountain expedition. After Hooker returned to England and reported to Darwin on their adventure, Darwin wrote back to Gray: “I have just...heard prodigies of your strength & activity. That you run up a mountain like a cat!”[3]
@oristarA,
One is as good as the other, and neither is a standard phrase.
@oristarA,
I wouldn't say so. If you've ever seen a big cat in the mountains, or any cat, anywhere really, you would know that they have a distinct silent grace and swiftness that a dog will never have.
@oristarA,
Its ASA Gray. DArwins first revised edition of the "Origin..." was sent to Gray to include names of previous workers who considered modification of species.
Dogs dont run up mountains, thats a silly analogy.
@Ceili,
To echo Ceili's comments, cats (at least here) are associated with grace and agility (while dogs are associated with loyalty and work ethic). Excellent athletic performance will be described as cat-like. Describing it as dog-like might be considered derogatory.
@engineer,
engineer wrote:
To echo Ceili's comments, cats (at least here) are associated with grace and agility (while dogs are associated with loyalty and work ethic). Excellent athletic performance will be described as cat-like. Describing it as dog-like might be considered derogatory.
You could describe their performance as dogged without sounding derogatory.
@izzythepush,
Running doggedly up a mountain gives the impression that it's a chore.
@oristarA,
It's not really a dog's natural habitat up in the treacherous rocky mountains, so the analogy wouldn't make any sense. It might make more sense to say
run up a mountain like a mountain goat. Mountain goats are strong and sure footed as those big cats that hunt them.
@ehBeth,
If an athlete completed a marathon despite suffering an injury you could describe his performance as dogged, but I take your point.
@izzythepush,
but some of the above approaches doggerel.
@Ice Demon,
Wolves and coyotes and several northern breeds, say like Saint Bernards or Huskies or any dog born in Nepal would consider mountainous places as natural habitat... just sayin'.
@Ceili,
Agreed, but agility wise, wolves, coyotes, or dogs, can't scale a large part of the mountain terrain consisting of sheer, almost vertical, slabs of rocks along the mountain sides as gracefully as a cougar, or a leopard, or even a mountain goat.
@Ice Demon,
Thank god for evolution, eh! Dogs just wait out the prey and hope they fall.
@farmerman,
Quote:Dogs dont run up mountains, thats a silly analogy.
They do when they're on the trail of a mountain lion/cougar/puma. But as many have noted, just not with the ease of a cat.
I love oristar's questions
@Finn dAbuzz,
Me too, and if you don't have an answer, you can just pretend you didn't see it.
@roger,
Hi, Finn.
With his admission, Finn can't, Roger. But you're not telling us much about yourself that we din't know already.
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