English Language FAQ

Top ten most quoted lines of poetry on the Internet?

2012-05-17T12:00:00.003-07:00

A very surprising list compiled by the Inky Fool. He analysed the Google Search result data and came up with the following: 10. Tis better to have loved and lost/Than never to have loved at all 2,400,000 Tennyson 9. Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair 3,080,000 Shelley 8. To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield 3,140,000 Tennyson 7. Tread softly because you tread on my dreams

What is crowdsourcing?

2012-05-12T03:30:00.000-07:00

We figured that consumers would be the best judges for us ... designers submit ideas and then asks customers to vote on them. Only the top vote getters are offered for sale. Crowdsourcing is the marketing equivalent of 'asking the audience' in a radio show. The first use of the term crowdsourcing is usually attributed to a 2006 Wired magazine article "The Rise of Crowdsourcing by Jeff Howe.

What is a MOOC?

2012-05-12T03:17:00.001-07:00

A MOOC is an online course with open enrolment and no fees. MOOCs are now offered by a variety of educational providers including some of the best universities in the world, including Stanford & MIT. MOOC advocates see the movement as offering the chance to give poorer/more remotely located students access to the best available education - see here.

Which countries do not have an official language?

2012-05-11T03:09:00.000-07:00

According to Henry Hitchings new book Language Wars there are only eight nations which do not have an official primary language. These are: the UK, the USA (though 20 states now have one), Pakistan, Ethiopia, Somalia, Eritrea, Costa Rica and Bosnia-Herzegovina. At first glance it appears a fairly random list but there are some key underlying factors as to why these countries have adopted

Which eight nations do not have 'official' language?

2012-05-11T02:48:00.003-07:00

According to Henry Hitchings new book Language Wars there are only eight nations which do not have an official state language. Can you guess what they are? Here's a clue to help: three of the countries are in Africa and two in Europe. Two are very surprising! Answers in the next post

What is cognitive dissonance?

2012-05-10T12:11:00.000-07:00

In psychology cognitive dissonance is describes the tension caused by having two apparently contradictory thought processes simultaneously - wanting to smoke while knowing smoking is bad for you, for example. The phrase was first introduced by Leon Festinger in his 1956 book When Prophecy Fails. He studied the way believers in UFOs dealt with empirical evidence contradicting their deeply

Where does the term brainstorming come from? Does it work?

2012-04-27T06:38:00.000-07:00

The idea behind brainstorming came in a pioneering sef help/businees book 'Your Creative Power' (1948).It was described as “using the brain to storm a creative problem—and doing so in commando fashion, with each stormer attacking the same objective.” The military terminology lent the phrase a glamour absent from a more prosaic description (sitting in a stuffy room with a flip chart and a

Where does the word 'posh' come from?

2012-04-24T04:53:00.001-07:00

Not from the accommodation arrangements on ships to India as is commonly claimed. The story goes that the more well-to-do passengers on ships travelling between England and India used to have POSH written against their bookings, standing for 'Port Out, Starboard Home' (indicating the more desirable cabins, on the shady side of the ship). Unfortunately, this story did not make its

Most quoted lines from films?

2012-04-13T22:31:00.002-07:00

A partial shortlist below: Humphrey Bogart Casablanca (1942) "I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship" Renee Zellweger Jerry Maguire (1996) "You had me at hello" Clarke Gable Gone with the Wind (1939) "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn" Arnold Schwarzenegger Terminator II (1992) "Hasta la vista, baby" Gloria Swanson Sunset Boulevard (1950) "I'm ready for my

What happened to the Mary Celeste?

2012-04-12T23:03:00.000-07:00

The words Mary Celeste have a special resonance in English. Here is a brief summary of what we know about the infamous 'ghost ship'. Related teaching resources & learning activities here.

Phrases associated with the Titanic?

2012-04-11T23:36:00.000-07:00

And the band played on One of the most striking images from the disaster is that of the orchestra playing as the ship sank. Survivors of the ship witnessed one of the greatest acts of selflessness and courage when Wallace Hartley and his string ensemble played music on the upper deck soon after the Titanic struck the iceberg in order to calm the passengers. Though the ensemble did not play

What is Passover?

2012-04-05T11:13:00.000-07:00

Passover is one of the most important holidays of the Jewish faith, an eight-day commemoration that overlaps in date with Easter. It is commonly known that Passover marks the exodus of Hebrew slaves, led by Moses, from ancient Egypt. The Israelites left in such a hurry that they could not wait for their bread to rise and eat only unleavened bread during the holiday for that reason. The name

Which actress has most influenced the English language?

2012-04-04T07:41:00.000-07:00

Quotation reference books lean towards Mae West but in terms of cultural influence there can only be one choice. Not only was she the most successful female Hollywood star in terms of box office but she popularised numerous expressions including; pillow talk, que sera, sera, pillow talk, young at heart (with Frank Sinatra) and of course: Oh, and she could sing a bit, too. Happy Birthday,

How many French words are commonly used in English?

2012-03-31T09:39:00.002-07:00

More than 33% of all English words come directly or indirectly from French. English speakers who have never studied French already know at least 10,000 French words. Why so many? In 1066 the Normans invaded England. They introduced a legal and administrative system with its own vocabulary. Around 10,000 French words came into common usage. Of these around 7,000 (judge and jury, for example

What is a concept album? Who recorded the first one?

2012-03-27T02:25:00.002-07:00

A record in which all the songs are linked by a theme. It is an idea that is generally associated with artists like The Beatles (Sergeant Pepper, Magical Mystery Tour) and later David Bowie (Ziggy Stardust), Pink Floyd (Dark Side of the Moon) and countless others. But the real pioneer was not a 60s hipster but a star from the fuddy-duddy 1940s, Frank Sinatra In 1954 Sinatra began working on a

Why are bilinguals 'smarter'?

2012-03-26T05:28:00.000-07:00

Because they exercise their brains more - at least according to a recent New York Times article: It forces the brain to resolve internal conflict, giving the mind a workout that strengthens its cognitive muscles. Full article Incidentally, in British English 'smarter' usually refers to personal appearance rather than intelligence. .

Why do we say 'flea market'?

2012-03-25T02:51:00.000-07:00

No agreement here - other than you won't find fleas for sale if you go to one. There are two (vaguely) plausible theories: 1. A translation of the March Aux Puces - often used to describe a large outdoor market in Paris that became popular in the 1920s "because there are so many second-hand articles sold of all kinds that they are believed to gather fleas." [E.S. Dougherty, "In Europe," 1922]

What is Liar's Poker?

2012-03-15T23:15:00.001-07:00

Michael Lewis Liar's Poker opens with the description of a famous wager made on a Wall Street trading floor in 1987. The CEO of the (soon to be bankrupt Salomon Brothers approached his star trader with an outlandish challege, 'One hand, one million dollars, no tears'. The 'hand' or game he was referring to was 'liar's poker (aka 'cheat' or 'spoof'in the UK). It involved no playing cards but a

What is fracking?

2012-03-09T09:08:00.000-08:00

What is the longest word in English?

2012-03-07T22:49:00.000-08:00

Depends how you define 'word' but in tribute to the great Robert Sherman my vote goes to the one he invented with his brother. According to some sources, the word has some very fancy linguistic roots: super- "above", cali- "beauty", fragilistic- "delicate", expiali- "to atone", and docious- "educable", with the sum of these parts signifying roughly "Atoning for educability through delicate

What is a social conservative?

2012-03-06T22:17:00.000-08:00

In US politics, social conservatives are what are sometimes described as 'values voters'. They are predominately evangelical Christians (George W. Bush for example) or conservative Catholics (Rick Santorum in the current Primary process. Key issues include abortion (they are Pro-Life or anti abortion) and - in recent electoral cycles - gay marriage. Though in the past they were often found

What is the shortest complete sentence in English?

2012-03-04T09:08:00.000-08:00

Go! It has an active verb and an implied subject. 'I am' is one common suggestion - but I feel this fails the 'complete' test. In any case, two words beats three.

Who was Shashibiya? When did he first arrive in China?

2012-02-27T05:00:00.000-08:00

We can be pretty certain that Shashibiya never visited China. His work, however, has long been venerated by Chinese intellectuals. The first reference to him came in in a translation of Milner’s The History of England in 1857. Can you guess who I am talking about? See here

Where do 'a ghost and a prince meet. And everyone ends in mincemeat'?

2012-02-26T13:35:00.000-08:00

In Hamlet, according to the Hollywood anthem 'Thats Entertainment'. More on the relationship between Tinseltown and the Bard here

What is an oscar? Where does the word come from?

2012-02-24T02:19:00.001-08:00

Winners of Hollywood's Academy Awards receive a gold-plated statuette on a black metal base. It is 13.5 in (34 cm) tall, weighs 8.5 lb (3.85 kg) and depicts a knight rendered in Art Deco style holding a crusader's sword standing on a reel of film with five spokes. The five spokes each represent the original branches of the Academy: Actors, Writers, Directors, Producers, and Technicians.