pneumaculturist

pneumaculturist, 6 months ago

@superheroine @religion @religiousstudies
Thanks for this. Now included under Other media in my blogging on The Powers (https://theography.edublogs.org/cited-and-consulted-reading/). It has a really nice survey of the topic running through Hebrew scriptures and beyond.

pneumaculturist, 6 months ago

@superheroine @religion @religiousstudies
The AI:angel connection. I'm seeing it materially as complex information systems (albeit different substrates). I would say that in both cases, as you say, there is also a 'created to serve' dimension, and also 'subverted for ill' -fallen angels /aingels .
Probably not made sufficiently explicit in that post (I'm taking note for future) is the idea that sometimes 'angel' seems to refer to corporised entities made of humans (see chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation, for example).
Charlie Stross's 'slow ai' remark was really helpful to me in affirming that it wasn't 'just me' seeing it.
I've been thinking that maybe the next post should be to unpack the Revelation 2 & 3 thing a bit...

pneumaculturist, 7 months ago

@LupinoArts @mapto @jk @appassionato @linguistics
But wouldn't the fact that language categorisations might tend to 'prime' perceptions and interactions be the point.?
I don't 'buy' strong linguistic determinism, but the priming effect of language would surely be exactly what you'd expect if a weaker linguistic influence was a reality. The question then becomes what kind of effects and influence ...

pneumaculturist, 8 months ago

@pgcd @linguistics In Yorkshire the 'our' usually indicates it's a family member.

pneumaculturist, 8 months ago

@pgcd @linguistics
I wondered in the past whether it meant that Pratchett was an English Northerner, but it turns out he was a southerner. So is the 'our' thing more widespread or did he just use it to give a particular 'flavour' to the character?

pneumaculturist, 8 months ago

@pgcd @linguistics @anathema_device Hard to prove a negative, of course. I've not come across it being extended beyond family, but in a context where someone might be considered to be 'like family' ... seems possible. And from there it could catch on and the domain could extend. Eg a member of our gang, team ...

pneumaculturist, 8 months ago

@pgcd @linguistics @anathema_device
I don't know Brassic, so can't comment. I initially wondered if the Milanese 'il' or 'la' would be like the French and Spanish usage: a way to give real or sarcastic honour to the person referred to?

pneumaculturist, 8 months ago

@alischinsky @pgcd @linguistics @anathema_device
The Spanish cases I was thinking of, now I think further, are of def.art + surname. Probably the same in French now I come to think of it. So not actually to the point -apologies. Though an interesting side-bar.

pneumaculturist, 8 months ago

@alischinsky @eleder @pgcd @linguistics @anathema_device
It's interesting semantically, too, a proper noun is often understood as already definite and so evades use with a def.art. -or is that a misleading analysis? Is it that, when def.art. is used, the speaker is showing an awareness of other (possible) Nellies or Shanes and making sure we all know it's our acquantance? Ditto with "our" Nellie?

pneumaculturist, 8 months ago

@pgcd @alischinsky @eleder @linguistics @anathema_device
I have an impression that 'la Nf' is more normal in French when it's used that 'le Nm' ... but I'd love to hear from a native speaker on that.

pneumaculturist, 7 months ago

@sgharms @pgcd @linguistics
Interesting, deserves further thought. How would this have been 'transmitted' diachronically?

pneumaculturist, 9 months ago

@DrLinguo @linguistics @linguisticsmemes
just wondering whether this might relate to that phenomenon of words with high unrounded front vowels seeming to be preferred to refer to small objects while back rounded vowels preferred to refer to large objects ...
But at the moment I can't make it work ...