# Formulae, anyone?



## caringsharingbristolbilly (Nov 26, 2004)

Just a thought, 'cos I'm shockingly bored. 

I've noticed people use "Formulas" these days as the plural of "Formula". I always remember from my Maths A-level days - for those Brits out there - that the plural was "Formulae". Fill in the poll - I'd like to know which you prefer!

I'd like to start a movement to *Reinstate The Forgotten Formulae*! Join me!   

As a point of note, both are fine according to my dictionary. "Formula's", on the other hand, is both hideous and reprehensible.   

CSBBB.


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## Legacy 5624 (Nov 27, 2004)

caringsharingbristolbilly said:
			
		

> "Formula's", on the other hand, is both hideous and reprehensible.



In the same way as " 'cos" is hideous and reprehensible?

(Not to mention "Forgotton".)


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## Todd Bardoni (Nov 27, 2004)

Much in the same way that the apostrophe is hideous and reprehensible.


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## Legacy 5624 (Nov 27, 2004)

...


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## barkley (Nov 28, 2004)

Much in the same way that people who use hideous and reprehensible in the same sentence are abominable and opprobrious(ible).


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## Legacy 5624 (Nov 28, 2004)

Not to mention philippic and contumelious(ible).


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## caringsharingbristolbilly (Nov 29, 2004)

Sorry. I didn't mean to be sesquipedalian.   

 :wink: 

(By the way, thanks for the new words, chaps. I'll make sure I use them all in my meetings today!)


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## The Tamer (Nov 29, 2004)

I like the apostrophe, as long as it's used correctly.  If we're going to do away with the apostrophe, why not get rid of all punctuation? (Sorry, I mean "... all punctuation ")

As for "formulae" It just doesn't sound right to me - though i do use it from time to time. So, seeing as "formulas" is allowed according to the law of the dictionary, then that's what I'll be using from now on.

So there!


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## caringsharingbristolbilly (Nov 29, 2004)

I'm a big fan of the apostrophe. It's one of the very few things in the English language which adheres to hard and fast rules. Yet it's one of the things which seems to baffle many people. 

For example, our work canteen has started selling Tray Bake's and Pannini's. I just looked at a car website which sold Rover's. 

I'm planning on getting some "Apostrophe Catastrophe" stickers printed, and plonking them wherever I see these heinous errors!   

It's not that I'm anally retentive, it's just that I have too much time on my hands!!  :wink:

AND IF WERE TALKING ABOUT GETTING RID OF ALL PUNCTUATION I THINK SOMEONE I USED TO WORK WITH WAS WAY AHEAD OF YOU NOT ONLY DID SHE NOT USE ANY PARAGRAPHS OR PUNCTUATION IN ANY OF HER EMAILS SHE INSISTED ON WRITING EVERYTHING IN BLOCK CAPITALS AND HAVING REALLY BAD SPELLING WICH MADE ME WANT TO BEAT HER TO DEATH WITH MY PC MONETOR HER EMAILS WENT STRATE INTO THE TRASH WITHOUT EVEN BEING RED


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## Cbrine (Nov 29, 2004)

Today, with grammer checkers and spell checkers, your lucky if I can spell my own name.  I remember, when I was in high school, that I was able to spell and able to create a complete sentance.  Now, I don't even remember the rules, except for the verb and noun thing.

 
Cal


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## caringsharingbristolbilly (Nov 29, 2004)

With the surname "Knibb" in real life, I was never very impressed with the suggestion Microsoft Word spell checker came up with...  :wink:


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## Legacy 5624 (Nov 29, 2004)

Very sneaky of you to change "forgotton" to "forgotten" without a word of appreciation for its having been drawn to your attention.


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## Glaswegian (Nov 29, 2004)

Once again another thread that I am unable to join, having been previously described as 'grammatically challenged'.

And W.Pooh's style seems rather familiar....


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## Todd Bardoni (Nov 29, 2004)

caringsharingbristolbilly said:
			
		

> Yet it's one of the things which seems to baffle many people.



If it baffles many people then why keep it?  Do you really have a problem discerning the difference between:-

You're - Youre
Don't - Dont
I'm - Im
You'll - Youll

The only problem one may forsee is:-

It's - Its

But, taking context into consideration one should be able to easily figure it out.

Take for instance Bow.  Same spelling, two different meanings.  However, one can eaily figure out, "He tied a bow around the present" and "He took a bow."

As for getting rid of all puntuation that would just be preposterous.


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## caringsharingbristolbilly (Nov 30, 2004)

The ones that find my goat and get right on it are:

your - you're - "If your going home" If my what is going home?
their - they're - "If their going home"
its - it's (as you say) - "It's policies were very good" It is policies? Uh?

And while they're easy to figure out in isolation, they also make things unnecessarily hard to read... The apostrophe serves a very important purpose in highlighting where letters are missing, or where the possessive is used. In the words of A.E. Housman; "Accuracy is a duty, not a virtue"*. 

I like these from Stephen Fry's autobiography:

*1. A sentence with "and" in it five times in a row:*
A signwriter, John, is training his apprentice, Martin, on how to do a pub sign for the Dog and Duck. Martin is having a go, and seems to be doing fine, until John says:
"You need a bigger space between Dog and And and And and Duck".

Brilliant.

*2. A sentence with 7 prepositions in a row:*
A small boy is awaiting a bedtime story from his mum. She enters the room, bringing a book about Australia. He says:
"Mum, what did you bring a book to read about down under out of up for?"

I love our utterly ridiculous language!!   

Oh, and thanks for pointing out the error, W. Pooh. It was very late on a friday!   

Yours,

Caring Sharing Pompous Git Bristol Billy Bob.  :wink: 

* - http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,1353559,00.html


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## CousinJack (Nov 30, 2004)

I'll join the movement to restore the Formulae.

I'll take some of the Apostrophe Catastrophe stickers

I HATE people who do not know the difference  between there *** and their elbow and epecially between your elbow and you're (an) ***.

But simple bad spelling I must accept, since I am guilty as charged !  Spelling checkers are wonderful things, but are not (unfortunately) infallible.


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## litrelord (Dec 3, 2004)

[Offtopic]
Personally I like having the apostrophe. Yes it's possible to get by without it and still work out the meaning of pretty much any statement but it just seems lazy to me. But each to their own. I completely understand where you're coming from. However if you continue in your apostrophe bashing I may just have to send these guys round > http://www.apostrophe.fsnet.co.uk/
[/Offtopic]

To me formulae seems the more correct although I seem to use formulas more often. So I’m now going to change my ways and use formulae. Or possibly just start saying “more than one formula”.

Nick


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## goldcat (Dec 3, 2004)

Cbrine said:
			
		

> Today, with grammer checkers and spell checkers, your lucky if I can spell my own name.  I remember, when I was in high school, that I was able to spell and able to create a complete sentance.  Now, I don't even remember the rules, except for the verb and noun thing.
> 
> 
> Cal




I cant even remember that  !!!!! ( and boy does it p**s the wife off)


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## killerleaf (Feb 9, 2005)

*yes for apostrophes*

if it were not for an apostrophe, then my father would have been unable to give me the name that everyone knows me by.   Dee'D
It is a contraction, short for Drusilla Don.  So, I have a special affinity for the little 's!


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## tails (Feb 9, 2005)

We need the apostrophe, if we did not have it, there would be a lot of bad spelling in the world.
Like for instance a local take away store near me called robs
ok now it is robs's take away
or it is robss take away
looks kinda stupid dont it
See the apostrophe has a bigger effect than people think
if we didn't have it people would have to think more
for example you have a pet called it
its not with you at this present time, it is at home asleep while your out with mates
'it had a bone in it's mouth'
'it had a bone in its mouth'
'it had a bone in its' mouth
which one is right... ?


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## tails (Feb 9, 2005)

now that you've seen it with an apostrophe what will it be like without it
it had a bone in its mouth
what meaning does it have...? which one of the three?


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## Oaktree (Feb 10, 2005)

Here's an old, but still good one:

Punctuate this so that it makes sense:

John while Jim had had had had had had had had had had had the teachers approval

No google queries allowed


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## caringsharingbristolbilly (Feb 11, 2005)

In response to Tails; good question. 

I once asked my English teacher at school why if you had a dog called "Spot", then substituted with "it", where does the apostrophe go? For example:

"There was a bone in Spot's mouth"
"There was a bone in its mouth".

The way she explained it to me was that you don't put an apostrophe in "my", "his", "her", etc..., so you shouldn't put one in "its". Thing about it as a whole word in its own right... 

I suppose if "It" was the poor mutt's name, that makes it a proper noun, in which case I guess it would be:

"There was a bone in It's mouth". 

...but I think we're being picky. Unless of course you happen to be a Stephen King fan with a penchant for the canine world.

It's a funny one, but that's the English language for you.


IRO the "Had Had" puzzle, I gave up and googled it. Can't say I was anywhere near. My idea was that one of them had the surname "Had-had-had", but I was way off... I won't ruin it for anyone, but it can be done!!


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## The Tamer (Feb 11, 2005)

I'm afraid I'm going to have to lie to you now...

I worked it out without using google.


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## Legacy 1363 (Feb 11, 2005)

I note that T. Bardoni has been going on about the apostrophe again.

Here's some more of it :-

http://www.mrexcel.com/board2/viewtopic.php?t=83523


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## cmart02 (Feb 14, 2005)

*FORMULAE*

*
Formulae ... but of course it all depends on what "criteria" you use. That's another one for thought.



Regards
Robert

http://www.juliobattisti.com.br/forum/


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