tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.comments2024-03-15T03:13:59.380-04:00Montclair SocioBlogJay Livingstonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06652075579940313964noreply@blogger.comBlogger2419125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-26551518078927071132024-01-06T23:32:27.150-05:002024-01-06T23:32:27.150-05:00Google NGrams reads through a ton of books and fin...Google NGrams reads through a ton of books and finds absolutely no instances of "if I'm honest" before 1890 and very very few thereafter until a steep rise in the early 21st century. (You can check it out <a href="https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=If+I%27m+honest&year_start=1800&year_end=2019&corpus=en-US-2019&smoothing=3" rel="nofollow">here</a> .) "To be honest" was a known phrase throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, but it too rises steeply after 2000.<br /><br />I watched Season Two and heard many things that struck me as anachronistic, but I didn't try to check them or even write them down, and now I've forgotten what they were.Jay Livingstonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03797268351984440375noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-73018151189958003472024-01-06T16:09:00.408-05:002024-01-06T16:09:00.408-05:00I feel the same way about language anachronisms. I...I feel the same way about language anachronisms. I came across your post after Googling "Gilded Age if I'm Honest." I've heard that one at least three times and it's driving me crazy. I'm 42, and I'm sure that one started in my adulthood. It used to be "if I'm being honest." And even the older version was probably not used in the late nineteenth century, though I haven't researched it. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-56769153318323620152023-10-25T23:17:43.352-04:002023-10-25T23:17:43.352-04:00Hello mate great bloogHello mate great bloogStephy Macasaethttps://theforeverwillbe.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-33506068104824307982023-09-02T14:19:59.186-04:002023-09-02T14:19:59.186-04:00I concur that it was not likely Douglass's err...I concur that it was not likely Douglass's error.<br /><br />I found this post by searching Google for Douglass, depreciate, deprecate, because I noticed the error in the Wikiquote article. (I don't have the patience to argue it to correct it.)Daniel Nortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07849471136493408979noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-43889241826531537612023-09-02T10:12:16.394-04:002023-09-02T10:12:16.394-04:00Thanks for these historical links. When I did this...Thanks for these historical links. When I did this post, I did not know that original documents were available via Google. The first link (1857) also has "depreciate." I strongly doubt that it was Douglass who used the wrong word. I'd guess that these conflicting editions mean that the confusion that I thought was more recent existed as well 150 years ago, at least among typesetters.<br /><br />BTW, how did you ever find this post from nine years ago? (Email me if that's more convenient.)Jay Livingstonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03797268351984440375noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-8173289298456959642023-09-01T20:33:57.495-04:002023-09-01T20:33:57.495-04:00And yet this one, also from 1857, reads “depreciat...And yet this one, also from 1857, reads “depreciation”:<br /><br />https://www.loc.gov/resource/mss11879.21039/?sp=22&r=-0.243,0.077,1.507,0.805,0Daniel Nortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07849471136493408979noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-89535375770032242502023-09-01T20:20:17.500-04:002023-09-01T20:20:17.500-04:00The earliest online version of the speech I could ...The earliest online version of the speech I could find with a quick search is from 1857, when Douglass was 40, reads “deprecate.”<br /><br />https://www.google.com/books/edition/Two_Speeches_by_Frederick_Douglass/kiVfv4RbYcsC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22depreciate%22&pg=PA22&printsec=frontcover<br /><br />The next one was in 1891, when Douglass was 74. It also reads “deprecate.”<br /><br />https://www.google.com/books/edition/Frederick_Douglass_the_Colored_Orator/Ic3TAAAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22deprecate%22&pg=PA261&printsec=frontcoverDaniel Nortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07849471136493408979noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-28617903798348555982023-08-26T14:26:49.641-04:002023-08-26T14:26:49.641-04:00I think the most beguiling special effect in TV is...I think the most beguiling special effect in TV is to be transported into a past time. “Julia “I looks great, but the script’s many, many anachronisms break the illusion. It’s just lazy, inattentive writing if you ask me. The producers would never dream of putting a character in period-incorrect shoes, but language isn’t on their radar. btw “Julia” and “Mrs. Maisel” are both produced by Daniel Goldfarb. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-67995550008638517582023-08-24T19:40:22.864-04:002023-08-24T19:40:22.864-04:00My wife is watching this and I randomly walked by ...My wife is watching this and I randomly walked by and spotted another: S2 E9, 20mins, in Joel's office. There's a poster for Vertigo on the wall. While Vertigo was released in 1958, it was not considered a classic until years later. Movie posters were replaced by the theaters on a regular basis, and either thrown out or returned to the distributor (that's how we did the theater I worked at years ago). Putting up posters as art developed later, in the 70s and 80s. Before that they were merely advertising ephemera--indeed that's what makes them valuable today, because so few of the originals remain. So no way that nebbish Joel is ahead of the times and got his hands on an original for his office. <br /><br />I basically gave up watching, because of over-the-top vulgarity. My parents were from that generation, and while not from UWS, they were from the Bronx in the Jewish community. Jews in the 1950s did not talk that way. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-14499151111710686272023-06-10T22:52:08.162-04:002023-06-10T22:52:08.162-04:00I associate making nouns into verbs with Joss Whed...I associate making nouns into verbs with Joss Whedon.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-32938728048909281292023-05-29T22:34:20.859-04:002023-05-29T22:34:20.859-04:00In episode 3 she gets an Amaretto sour, which wasn...In episode 3 she gets an Amaretto sour, which wasn't invented until 1974.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-10454067540740285512023-05-12T12:37:00.169-04:002023-05-12T12:37:00.169-04:00David: True, ChatGPT composes its answers via meth...David: True, ChatGPT composes its answers via method that’s very different from that of the doctors. But my point was that the doctors’ responses didn’t take into account how the patients my be feeling about their medical problem. Maybe that’s because the doctors were basing their responses on medical resources while the ChatGPT responses were based on a much broader range of sources for those words that wound up in the message. <br /><br />I’ve had similar experiences when seeing a doctor in person — the same narrow focus on the symptom, its possible causes and the treatment, and apparently no realization that I might be seeing it from a different perspective, one marked by ignorance, uncertainty, and anxiety. No artificial intelligence, but no emotional intelligence either. <br /><br />Just before seeing your comment, I came across <a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2023/05/can-chatgpt-write-a-good-college-admissions-essay.html" rel="nofollow">this article</a> that might interest you on why ChatGPT doesn’t write very good college admissions essays.Jay Livingstonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03797268351984440375noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-90212151425715307582023-05-12T11:13:58.468-04:002023-05-12T11:13:58.468-04:00Interestingly, I far prefer the GP's response....Interestingly, I far prefer the GP's response.<br /><br />At least it's honest.<br /><br />ChatGPT sounds like it's frantically covering its arse.<br /><br />Part of that is that I've already seen way too much of the slish ChatGPT spews out, and part of that is that I know how ChatGPT works (hint: it doesn't do any actual reasoning; it exactly and only randomly recombines stuff (it's "words" are undefined tokens with no connection to physical (or human) reality)) in it's database).<br /><br />As someone with an all-but-thesis in AI (albeit from an earlier century), I've been aghast at what the AI field has been doing of late. It's all lies, from "neural nets" (which are nothing whatsoever like actual neurons) to "machine learning" (statistics done badly) to LLMs, which really are nothing more than stochastic parrots. Sigh. The original definition of the field (1956, John McCarthy) was pretty kewl: use computation (the mathematical abstraction) to think about what the human brain might be doing and use programming to test the resultant ideas. Where it's gone of late is pretty ridiculous. Sigh.<br /><br />Note that there's an interesting common theme to these three areas: an absolute refusal to actually think about how real humans might be doing the kewl things they do, and a naive hope that "intelligence" will somehow magically emerge from doing a large enough number of stupid things fast enough with a large enough amount of data.<br /><br />YMMV, of course. But, really. It looks like BS to me...<br /><br />DJLhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04036156397398405817noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-22073490479171062052023-05-10T15:41:43.584-04:002023-05-10T15:41:43.584-04:00Just began binge-watching Mrs. Maisel and noticed ...Just began binge-watching Mrs. Maisel and noticed right off the bat many of the verbal anachronisms you referred to! I told my husband that I highly doubted 1950s women in general (especially socially upscale Jewish women, comedians or not, cursed profusely.<br /><br />We just watched the episode where the family arrives at the Catskills and the manager points out (and everyone notices) that they changed the "font" on their newsletter. Being a graphic designer and having studied Typography back in the 1970s, I can tell you – with complete confidence – that the word "font" was NOT a household, mainstream word like it is today. Back then when I would say "font", practically anyone who wasn't in the field did not know what I was talking about. So instead I mostly used the word "typeface." It was only after the 1980s or 90s, after personal computers became popular, that the word "font" became a household word for many.Randihttp://randiwolfdesign.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-30843543886647019462023-05-10T15:38:54.249-04:002023-05-10T15:38:54.249-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14784595974455366394noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-59554195006103875482023-04-19T11:33:56.949-04:002023-04-19T11:33:56.949-04:00In this article, we will explore the meaning, usag...In this article, we will explore the meaning, usage, and cultural significance of <a href="https://information-news-hub.blogspot.com/2023/04/mi-amor-really-mean.html" rel="nofollow">mi amor</a>, and examine how it reflects the values and traditions of Hispanic culture.How you managed to take this informative article and turn it into an interesting piece of writing is simply amazing to me.I am very impressed with your writing abilities.<br /><br />Information Techhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02213880277194098887noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-42896521792739774742022-12-19T10:26:46.731-05:002022-12-19T10:26:46.731-05:00Your blog brought back memories of days gone bye.
...Your blog brought back memories of days gone bye.<br /><br />I’ve always been a fan of Tom Lehrer going back to the 1960’s when he was a regular on the NBC TV show “That Was The Week That Was” hosted by David Frost.<br /><br />The satirical TV show was a precursor to “Laugh-In” and “Saturday Night Live.”<br /><br />Among my favorite Lehrer parodies are National Brotherhood Week, The Vatican Rag and Pollution.arniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04151178704652360756noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-33067120095921610492022-11-10T06:25:11.951-05:002022-11-10T06:25:11.951-05:00Maybe nobody was predicting a +12 difference. I ad...Maybe nobody was predicting a +12 difference. I admit I didn’t pay close attention to the pre-election news. But that was because I too thought the Republicans would do well. It wasn’t just on Fox that there was talk of a Red Wavei. The general reaction to the closeness of the election seemed to be surprise. <br /><br />The Marist sample was “over a thousand.” I’d guess it wasn’t very much over. Given the sample and the questions, I would think that the outcome we should look at is the total number of votes won by each party, not the number of seats won, I don’t know what those numbers are. But in any case, there’s a big error in people’s perceptions of others preferences. Jay Livingstonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03797268351984440375noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-43383256751117947292022-11-09T15:40:53.376-05:002022-11-09T15:40:53.376-05:00This is wack cos nobody thought Republicans were +...This is wack cos nobody thought Republicans were +12 or +16. This makes me wonder who those friends and family were. It would be interesting to see a breakdown of these responses given respondent characteristics such as geography, age, and party ID.Andrew Gelmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02715992780769751789noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-4790467749202669352022-11-07T11:46:08.383-05:002022-11-07T11:46:08.383-05:00Anachronisms: micromanage, mindset, I can't un...Anachronisms: micromanage, mindset, I can't unsee that, genetic profiling, what if they pull us over and run our plates, computers powerful enough to synthesize text from voice in 1960.<br />And I'm just up to season 2!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-71382767107352203712022-10-08T11:14:41.622-04:002022-10-08T11:14:41.622-04:00I hope you are well, or at least hanging in there....I hope you are well, or at least hanging in there. (You did say that posting would be more irregular, though, so I can't say I wasn't warned that there'd be radio silence occassionally.)<br /><br />Although more related to your Beatles post than this one, I was listing to an interview with David Bowie, and he argued that the Velvet Underground and Lou Reed were more influential than the Beatles. (Truth in advertising: I think The Velvet Undergroud + Nico is one of the best albums by anyone ever. Imprinting, I guess: I heard them do it live in Boston back in the day.) In thinking about this, it sort of makes sense. At least during the period I was listening to the Beatles (I'm largely missed, and am not fond of, their early work, and only really started listening to louder things after Dylan dragged Mike B. to Newport), they were hyperactively creative; pretty much every song was different/unique/inventive. (Which is your point about early Beatles, that you had to learn what a Beatles song was (in my case, it was Boston area folk/college radio in the late 60s).) But the Velvet Underground and Lou Reed had a sound that people were able to pick up on and run with.<br /><br />So I think your point that looking at the forces that affect popularity/appreciation/rankings and the like are worth looking into.<br /><br />Whatever, hang in there.<br />DJLhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04036156397398405817noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-55040327086347305452022-08-31T16:44:56.704-04:002022-08-31T16:44:56.704-04:00Beyond the mere prolific use of the word “fuck” in...Beyond the mere prolific use of the word “fuck” in a show set c. 1960, there is also inappropriate placement of its use. Can’t remember the exact episode, but there is one scene in which Joel Maisel is in the middle of the street, having a shouting conversation with Midge who is on the sidewalk, and they used variations on the word “fuck” several times, in front of dozens of passersby all acting as though nothing unusual is happening with this two nutjobs cussing in public at the top of their lungs.<br /><br />I live in the year 2022 and I don’t see that happening much today, but when it does, people stop and pay attention. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16430534865100898950noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-44608325362214370412022-07-04T21:00:19.811-04:002022-07-04T21:00:19.811-04:00Corrected. Thanks. No wonder I never won the spell...Corrected. Thanks. No wonder I never won the spelling bee.Jay Livingstonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03797268351984440375noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-23552790083889050032022-07-04T13:42:56.334-04:002022-07-04T13:42:56.334-04:00The correct line from “The Music Man” is “You got ...The correct line from “The Music Man” is “You got trouble, with a capital ‘T’ (not ‘P’) and that rhymes with….”<br /><br />Otherwise, an excellent blog post.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04794220934481998870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35248477.post-45222342989972756842022-05-15T22:52:13.154-04:002022-05-15T22:52:13.154-04:00I too am skeptical about the anachronisms being de...I too am skeptical about the anachronisms being deliberately placed there so that the audience can relate. But as I said in <a href="javascript:void(0);" rel="nofollow">this post </a> about Mrs. Maisel, allowing the audience to relate may nevertheless be a reason for avoiding historically accurate slang. Those words and phrases may have been cool in their day but now would make the characters seem phony. <br /><br />As for the swearing, it’s not just the amount, it’s also the choice of swears, especially “fucking.” The characters in Mrs. Maisel used it frequently, and it often sounded wrong to me. It took me a few moments to remember what word people back then would actually have used — <i>goddam</i>. (I have a post on this as well <a href="javascript:void(0);" rel="nofollow">here</a>.)Jay Livingstonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03797268351984440375noreply@blogger.com