h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Well, that seemed to kill things off nicely! 4 Days and no posts, does this mean we have finally tied down the English language? Surely not with only 19 posts to go.....

Above is opposite of Below,
Afore is opposite of Behind,
Aside is same as Beside?

I'm being really stupid - I have a mental block about the word "transmit". Which of the following is correct?

Electricity is transmit along a power line.
Electricity is transmitted along a power line.

Anyone help me with speluncae?
In the book 'The map that changed the world', John Woodward, a 17th cent writer admits his fascination with 'Speluncae, grottoes and wells.'
The nearest I can find is in Chambers 20th cent dic. under 'spelaean' - 'cave dwelling'.
Given the context of the sentence, I've taken it to mean 'caves'.
Any ideas?
I seem to remember Gnomon has a Latinate knack.

Electricity is transmitted.
"I am going to transmit this pulse."
"Have you transmitted that pulse?"

Certainly think me.

Ah! There you are Gnomon - transmitted, I believe.
Although I see your point.
Transmitted is past tense, and transmit is present. HHHmmmm.

Although 'Enabling power stations to transmit' would sidestep the problem entirely

I think what is confusing me is that many verbs ending in "it" don't take the cumbersome "-itted" ending. I hit the ball today. I hit the ball yesterday. The ball is hit. The ball was hit.

Transmission then? As in 'The distance of transmission'

Again, sidestepping the point, which is a rather interesting one. My daughter would clear the ball thing up with 'hitted'.

spelunca - a cave, cavern or den in Latin.

So spelunae is the plural, then. What a shame it's no longer in common use (if it ever was). We could have had 'speluncerous' instead of 'cavernous'.

"As Maria Callas takes the stage in the speluncarous Festival Hall...'

American cave explorers are spelunkers, although in the UK they are speliologists, I think. Where's Potholer when we need him?

Those nutters that disappear down caves are spelunkers aren't they? So that makes them 'cavers' as well as suicidal!

So it is still there in the language

k

Simulpost! I have never heard the word 'speliologist' but then again I have only heard of spelunkers on programs like 999 which are quite americanised - then again the people describing themselves as such were british so I don't know what to make of it!

k

PS Is it Brit Eng that keeps crashing the servers! Perhaps there is some self-destruct built in at 4000 posts and things are getting flaky as we approach it!

Apparently, the term 'spelunker' is avoided in the US by many people who consider themselves as 'serious' cavers these days, and is acquiring a negative connotation.

In the UK, 'speleologist' does still carry some implication of scientific exploration, rather than plain fun, and most members of caving clubs that call themselves 'speleoplogical societies' (because it sounds posher, or makes the initials work out better) still think of themselves as cavers or potholers.

I suppose since the sport only really developed in the last 100 years or so, there wouldn't have been a word like caver or potholer around to be exported to US English in earlier days, so they just invented one of their own

I've always found myself childishly giggling at the term 'spelunker'. It sounds as if it should be rude!

I have a caving friend who insists that it's only the British who call cavers potholers, and that caver is prefered.
Yes it does sound rude. Like a cross between **** and ******.
Only a couple to go...

Potholer is essentially British (one reason it's my favorite username in various places on the net is that Americans don't use it, and so the name is often free, even on sites that have been around a while).

Regarding preferences in the UK, at least in the North, potholer and caver are essentially interchangeable, since most of the worthwhile caves are actually potholes.
I suppose people in other areas which are cave-rich but pothole-poor would usually refer to themselves as cavers.

Typical - the 4000th post and I have nothing to add