chuq%plaid@Sun.COM (Chuq Von Rospach) (06/19/87)
Date: 18 Jun 87 17:24:33 +1000 (Thu)
From: munnari!astra.necisa.oz!dave@seismo.CSS.GOV (Dave Horsfall)
Someone (I forget who; sorry) gave a classical hypenation blunder.
The real all-time classic is of course the-
rapist.
--
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Chuq Von Rospach chuq@sun.COM Delphi: CHUQ
Now, where did my ex-wife put my Fairy Dust?chuq%plaid@Sun.COM (Chuq Von Rospach) (07/01/87)
From: Robert Stanley <roberts@cognos%math.waterloo.edu> Date: 30 Jun 87 22:46:51 GMT Organization: Cognos Inc., Ottawa, Canada >From: munnari!astra.necisa.oz!dave@seismo.CSS.GOV (Dave Horsfall) >Someone (I forget who; sorry) gave a classical hypenation blunder. >The real all-time classic is of course the- >rapist. This raises the problem of how to hyphenate all those wonderfully misused english words that make up our techno-speak and techno-babble! My favourite remains: completing the project required many many- ears more than originally estimated. I regret that I can no longer remember which formatter's error led to this splendid bloop. However, much of our agglomerated jargon usage lends itself to what the natural language people call 'garden path' constructions, particularly when an inapposite hyphenation lends a hand (to mix a metaphor). This is an area where I think only a true ai-based solution is likely to yield results, and probably one that is capable of learning, given our propensity for making up new words whenever we are not quite sure of what we are saying. After all, what we are really addressing is the question of readability, and as yet this lies in the realms of artistry rather than science. I seem to recall a study published a few years ago that conducted experiments in information assimilation speed and accuracy from printed text. One of the variables was fully justified versus ragged-right text, and memory says that ragged-right resulted in faster and more accurate comprehension. Unfortunately I don't remember the context and don't have the report to hand, but if this is so, then why do we need hyphenation? Perhaps someone out there has some hard data to contribute? Art is any application of science involving more than 3 simultaneous variables. -- Robert Stanley decvax!utzoo!dciem!nrcaer!cognos!roberts Voice: (613) 738-1440 (on EST) Tuesdays only don't ask-----' Cognos Inc., 3755 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, K1G 3N3 CANADA ---------------------------------------- Submissions to: desktop%plaid@sun.com -OR- sun!plaid!desktop Administrivia to: desktop-request%plaid@sun.com -OR- sun!plaid!desktop-request Paths: {ihnp4,decwrl,hplabs,seismo,ucbvax}!sun Chuq Von Rospach chuq@sun.COM Delphi: CHUQ Touch Not the Cat Bot a Glove -- MacIntosh Clan Motto