Back to top

ITRiver has moved, and why we all speak Hsilgne (pronounced sil-gon-ee)

Hi all. Big news, ITRiver is now in new premises at Suite R3, 49 Queen St Grafton. For English speakers, thats Grafton, Queen St, 49, Suite R3. Drop in sometime! I bet that last sentence made most people wonder. So here's my random thought for the moment. If you like the world just the way it is, look away now. Anyone who reads past this point may end up dumber after they finish - although probably not, but no warranty is given, OK? It has occured to me, that the English language, (unlike some others) is very backwards about coming forward. By this I mean when we describe things, we tend to start off with the details, before we've even got the basics. We say "a bright red sports car", "Unit 1, 93 Kent St Grafton NSW Australia" and "2nd January, 2004". All these descriptions are, in my humble opinion, backwards. We should start vague, and then get more detailed, rather than starting detailed, and then getting vague - who can remember the details at the end, if they were way back at the start? For example.... Why doesn't my son say "Daddy! Look at that car, red sports!". Of course it sounds like a pretty strange way of speaking, but he's very efficiently pointed my attention in the direction of a CAR first, then descibed which one he means. I know to look in the direction of nearby cars, I don't look for the nearest bright object, then ignore the first one I see because it isnt red, find a red one, ignore it because even a bright red autumn leaf isnt very sporty... and then suddenly realise he means a car. True, all this happens in split seconds, but why shouldnt we speak in the same order we think? When I meet a fellow and he gives me his address, I would like to hear him say "Australia, Queensland, Bundaberg, Hyde St, 75, Unit 6." Once again this would sound very odd, because it goes against what we've been brought up with, but exactly the same principle is at work. I can imagine the globe first, then Australia, zooming in on this man's address in my mind, just like a Google Earth fly-to. Tell me, how can I make any sense of the number of his street, when I don't even know what country I'm in yet? By the time I hear the information I need, Ive already forgotten the information I have been given but didn't need yet. Let's face it, if I want to courier an item I sold on ebay halfway around the world, wouldnt it get sent firstly to the correct country? The international terminal staff would then send it to the correct state or city distribution centre, without even looking at the street address. The courier would then go and find the correct street, then the right building, then the right unit. Why not say it and write it in the order it's required? Most people who read an address have to mentally reverse it! My last example is especially pertinent, because computers, which play an increasingly important role in our lives, already think the way I do about dates. In fact, I think it was my exposure to this in programming which has made me realise we do these things backwards. A computer would store my birthdate (13/07/1980) as 1980/07/13, because this way the dates can be sorted without splitting it into pieces. It makes sense to say it the same way. You see, when the bouncer asks me my birthdate, he can usher me as soon as he hears '1980'. If I say 13th of July 1980, then I've wasted precious seconds and energy giving unnecessary detail, when all he needed was the basics. When he hears 1980, he dismisses everything else I said anyway, and thats if he even remembers it. Now if today it was 1998, he would listen to the remaining detail, to confirm I have had my 18th birthday before letting me in. But for most people he can just open up and let them in. So my newly-declared language uses the same words and meanings as is widely used, it just phrases descriptive sentences in the order of vague first, detail later. Start big, work small. Since my name is Russell English, I've decided to call my new language English. What everyone else speaks is hensforth known as hsilgne (say it sil-gon-ee) - thats a silent 'H' by the way, another weirdness of our great language you don't want to get me started on... For what it's worth, I know many other spoken languages do use my none-too-groundbreaking theory. So I just wonder, why does the world's most internationally recognised language break this internationally recognised, logical and efficient rule? That's my rant for the month, we can only hope. I'm Russell English ;)

Entries

Love that camry
Read this post
This post was a long time coming
Grafton Web Design
Youtube Bwahahah
New website
CeBit done and dusted!
Transferring files with FAST
Hmmmfff
Politics. Climate Change. Who can we trust?
Kids at Jaca
Jaca Float
Exciting times
The honeymoon is over!
Dual screen OK!
New reality show - action and tears aplenty!
Ubuntu 6.10 Compiz with cheap Nvidia card
Malware Burn removal
ITRiver has moved, and why we all speak Hsilgne (pronounced sil-gon-ee)
The Return of the Paparazzi
Finally footage of the mud volcano in Indonesia
Aren't we little rays of sunshine?
New ideas
The Ring
The Saga of the Ring...
The Ring
Great day at the beach, Manta Ray agrees.
Ahhh! No login screen!
Policies & Disclaimer
The world is amazing sometimes. Parents beware.
What's ITRiver?
Aching and lonely. I should write a country song...
Ecko's the Gecko's echo!
Migrating simplePHPblog to WordPress
About Me
About Me
Wedding plans starting to come together... still no ring though :(
Im getting married!
Im going on a time machine!
Big ideas
Back again!
Soccer Gallery
Happy Birthday to me!
Microsoft free zone!
Slack attack, Sorry!
Happy Birthday baby!
Gunners on fire with carnival clean sweep
Dylan's Soccer Draw
Can't talk now, seeing double!
Read slowly please
Nuts, anybody?
She's mine all mine!
Awww, they are SOOOO CUUUTE!
Off to Brissy
Photos
I've been on the wrong planet!
Baby - It's 3am I must be lonely
Quick call-in.
Distracted...
Long time no blog, again
I am SO slack
Sick, tired and internet crawling. Id rather be fishing.
Sooooozies new blog, with cuuute photos!
No more baby sisters! What a relief!
Pic of the day
Picture of the day
Mt Warning. - Take the name literally. I didn't...
Christmas lights cause traffic mayhem, homeowners honked at
Blog is back!
Indy!
Website wants to stay
Thirsty Merc rocked
Long weekend
Parents Poem
So um, can anyone see which way is east?
Happy Birthday, Chrystal!
Pic of the day
What a weekend
Home again
Sideways glances get you lost!
Thought for the day:
Lonely
Trip to Melbourne
He doesnt live near me, he lives in Melbourne
Business trip to Melbourne
Photo of the day
Photo of the day
Quarter Century
Photo of the day
Uncle Bill's Farm
Finally!
Lily Oh Lily Oh Lily!
Im an Auntie!
Bored.
Tis the colour of the sun, my son!
Fine print is fine, if it's there at all...
New car is en route
Ooooh one day when I'm spoiling myself
Another bloody Camry driver?
The question on everyone's lips - answered!
No beemer this time...
My first BMW, maybe
Nice one, QLDers!
Ah, humour comes in all types, bro. Word ta' ya' motha.
Off to Hard and Soft School...
Yes it's a strange idea...
Headed for the unthinkable - Divorce
Music for the emotions...
Dr_Snapid's Blog is on the wire.
ITRiver closed from 1st Sept to 9th Sept