Severely viral14 Feb 2012

Yesterday, Paul Krugman picked up on our "Severely X" post ('Severe Conservative Syndrome", NYT, 2/12/2012): Mitt Romney has a gift for words — self-destructive words. On Friday he did it again, telling the Conservative Political Action Conference ...

"Downton Abbey" anachronisms: beyond nitpickery13 Feb 2012

I've been taking advantage of the rabid interest in "Downton Abbey" lately to report on some verbal anachronisms that have cropped up in the show's second season (originally broadcast on ITV in the UK late last year and now wrapping on PBS in the US)...

Cultural diffusion and the Whorfian hypothesis12 Feb 2012

Geoff Pullum summarizes Keith Chen's view of "The Effect of Language on Economic Behavior" as follows ("Keith Chen, Whorfian economist", 2/9/2012): Chen […] thinks that if your language has clear grammatical future tense marking […], the...

What exactly did Romney win?12 Feb 2012

Today's crash blossom likely involves multiple aborted landings: Romney wins mask lingering questions about his candidacy Since the word wins occurs much more often as a verb than as a noun, you have a good excuse if you needed to take several runs a...

Novel illness name of the week12 Feb 2012

News is leaking out about DSM-5, the new edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the central reference book of mental illnesses for the psychiatric profession, due to be published in May 2013. Journalists who have been d...

Deaf and mute victim uses interpreter to tell jury of horrifying ordeal - Daily Mail14 Feb 2012

Daily MailDeaf and mute victim uses interpreter to tell jury of horrifying ordealDaily MailBy Jaya Narain A deaf and dumb girl trafficked into the UK to act as a 'slave' to an elderly couple for almost a decade yesterday used sign language to tell of her life of horror. Locked in a cellar each night from the age of ten, she was allegedly ...Deaf woman tells court she was raped, beaten and treated as slave for 10 yearsThe GuardianSlavery case girl tells court of abuse by Eccles coupleBBC NewsDeaf girl tells court of beatingsThe Press AssociationChannel 4 News -BigPond Newsall 413 news articles »

Debt crisis and Greek bailout: as it happened February 13, 2012 - Telegraph.co.uk14 Feb 2012

Telegraph.co.ukDebt crisis and Greek bailout: as it happened February 13, 2012Telegraph.co.ukMoody's warns that Britain could lose its AAA rating within a year, as German leader Angela Merkel states that there won't be any changes to Greek rescue measures despite riots in the debt-stricken country. A priest walks past a burned branch of the ...Markets fall as focus shifts to Athen's commitmentReutersTensions remain as Greek rescue plan fine-tunedIrish TimesGreek Bailout Talks Shift to BrusselsWall Street JournalMarketWatch -Reuters India -The Independentall 4,008 news articles »

Abu Qatada freed – but banned from leading prayers - The Independent14 Feb 2012

BBC NewsAbu Qatada freed – but banned from leading prayersThe IndependentTerri Judd is a reporter with The Independent, who writes regularly on defence issues, having repeatedly embedded with British troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. To argue against Harry Redknapp for England is akin to arguing in favour of bankers bonuses.Abu Qatada release from Long Lartin jail sparks furoreBBC NewsOn day hate preacher Abu Qatada is freed, a remarkable confession... Even his ...Daily MailAbu Qatada To Be Released ImminentlySky NewsHerald Sun -Telegraph.co.ukall 884 news articles »