The way of freely thinking in English

@knaivete,

knaivete wrote:

Quote:
For a scientist, a great man, if there is one, is not for worship; rather, on whose shoulders we can set our feet and thus stand higher.

Perhaps Newton could also be considered one of the greatest plagiarists, to coin a phrase?

Quote:
The metaphor of dwarfs standing on the shoulders of giants (Latin: nanos gigantum humeris insidentes) expresses the meaning of "discovering truth by building on previous discoveries". While it can be traced to at least the 12th century, attributed to Bernard of Chartres, its most familiar expression in English is found a 1676 letter of Isaac Newton:

If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standing_on_the_shoulders_of_giants

Who would like to type out the text in the image? The font is hard to recognize.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Library_of_Congress%2C_Rosenwald_4%2C_Bl._5r.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Library_of_Congress%2C_Rosenwald_4%2C_Bl._5r.jpg

1 Reply

@oristarA,

oristarA wrote:

Who would like to type out the text in the image? The font is hard to recognize.

Good luck finding someone who can read a mixture of 15th century German and Latin. (Would you be able to understand the text anyhow?) The Library Of Congress catalog says "For date and interpretation of the manuscript see the letter by F. Saxl, of April 5th, 1935" but I do not think it is available online.

0 Replies

@oristarA,

Quote:

Better! Dale, thank you. Still I feel there is something that needs to be improved in your rewriting

Doubtless, Ori

0 Replies

@Ragman,

Quote:

...but Dale's version is awkward and far too wordy

Unquestionably, Rag. In my own defense however, I was trying to retain each unit of thought, adding where I felt clarification was called for

….whatever that means. With no offense whatever to Con,

Quote:

For a scientist,

[Two things bother me here. First, very minor, is that two 'for' in the same sentence somehow grates. But the other is, we're not sure whether it means 'because' or 'to'. In the former case of course Con text is critical

Forgive pun

Quote:

a great man or woman, if there is one,

Jars unaccountably, perhaps because lacking in collo. Maybe it'd help if 'is' were italicized

Quote:

not for worship;

What's not clear with this 'for' is whether it's he who is being worshipped or who is worshipping

Quote:

rather, they are someone

Somehow the "they" seems a contradiction of number

Quote:

upon whose shoulders we can set our feet and thus see further.

For some reason the gain in altitude needs emphasis

Yes, no, Con, my version didn't solve all if any of these, yours was indeed every bit as good as mine

2 Replies

@dalehileman,

dalehileman wrote:

Quote:
...but Dale's version is awkward and far too wordy
Unquestionably, Rag. In my own defense however, I was trying to retain each unit of thought

….whatever that means

Yes, the meaning of your version is crystal clear. Yet you've used too much words to express it. We expect a shorter version from you Dale.

1 Reply

@oristarA,

Quote:

Yes, the meaning of your version is crystal clear.

Why thank you Ori

Note subtle change of usu meaning with omission of the comma

Quote:

…..We expect a shorter version from you Dale.

Difficult, without loss of meaning. I'll think about it

For quite a while

Incidentally, re that first "for": If it means "because" might we have a bit of context

0 Replies

@dalehileman,

dalehileman wrote:

….whatever that means. With no offense whatever to Con,

None taken!

Quote:

Quote:
not for worship;
What's not clear with this 'for' is whether it's he who is being worshipped or who is worshipping

Not for worship - should not be worshipped (in the writer or speaker's opinion) this book is not for burning; this display cake is not for eating.

Quote:

Quote:
rather, they are someone

Somehow the "they" seems a contradiction of number

This is the 'singular they', it typically occurs instead of 'he or she'. i.e. with an antecedent of indeterminate gender, as in sentences such as:

Everyone returned to their seats.
Somebody left their umbrella in the office. Would they please collect it.
If a person doesn't want to go on living, they are often very difficult to help.
The patient should be told at the outset how much they will be required to pay.
But a journalist should not be forced to reveal their sources.

One reason for its increased use may be the movement to gender-inclusive language in the twentieth century, but it has been used by respected writers for centuries.

Though singular they has a long history of usage and is common in everyday English, its use has been criticized since the late nineteenth century, and acceptance varies.

1 Reply

@contrex,

Quote:

Though singular they has a long history of usage and is common in everyday English, its use has been criticized since the late nineteenth century, and acceptance varies.

You forgot to mention that it is criticized by those who don't know their ass from a hole in the ground when it comes to the English language.

1 Reply

@JTT,

Quote:

...who don't know their ass from a hole in the ground

In my own defense JTT I did say "seems"

2 Replies

@dalehileman,

Quote:

In my own defense JTT I did say "seems"

Go and sin no more, my son!

0 Replies

@dalehileman,

Did you ever read this thread, Dale?

http://able2know.org/topic/9405-1

0 Replies

The way of freely thinking in English

Related Topics

Quick Links

My Account

able2know