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Choosing Values for Robust Tests
3 weeks ago
Monday, January 18, 2010
Phew..I think I
Phew..I think I lost him
der r monstehs in mah bed mom!
Picture by: Mad Margaret Caption by: bluexiii via Advanced Lol Builder
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Submarine Kitteh
Incorrect source or offensive?
Submarine Kitteh sights enemy vessel
Picture by: dunno source Caption by: dunno source via Our LOL Builder
This lolcat or funny picture was posted on Monday, January 11th, 2010 at 2:00 pm.
You have exactly three seconds…
You have exactly three seconds… to explain why you woke me.
Picture by: Mouchois Caption by: medievalpast via Advanced Lol Builder
Marge unwittingly finds the cat “off” button.
Marge unwittingly finds the cat “off” button.
Picture by: dunno source Caption by: kattle32 via Our LOL Builder
did uze orders an earl gray ?
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Irregular Webcomic! #2519
My dictionary provides:
suffer, v.i. 1. to undergo or feel pain or distress. 2. to sustain injury, disadvantage, or loss. 3. to undergo a penalty, esp. of death. 4. to be the object of some action. 5. to endure patiently or bravely. -v.t. 6. to undergo, experience, or be subjected to (pain, distress, injury, loss, or anything unpleasant). 7. to undergo (any action, process, etc.): to suffer change. 8. to tolerate or allow. 9. to allow or permit (to be or do as stated).If you don't know how to read a dictionary, allow me to digress slightly to explain what that v.i. and v.t. mean. "Suffer" is a verb, which is what the v. stands for in each case. The i. stands for intransitive, and the t. stands for transitive.An intransitive verb is one which doesn't need an object. My favourite example verb is intransitive: run. Using it in a sentence: "I run." I don't run something, I just run.
A transitive verb is one which needs an object. A good transitive verb is break. Using it in a sentence: "I break the computer." I can't just break, I have to break something.
Clever readers will no doubt spot that there are also transitive meanings for "run" ("I run the computer.") and, if you change the subject and tense, intransitive meanings for "break" ("The computer broke."). There aren't all that many verbs in English that are exclusively transitive or intransitive - most do double service in different contexts.
Anyway, "suffer" is one of those verbs that can go either way. The more usual version comes first in the definition. In this case, it's intransitive: "I suffer." I don't need to suffer anything specific, I can just suffer (though frankly I'd prefer not to!).
There are also some common transitive uses, in which the object is what I'm suffering. "I suffer pain."
Then there are meanings which aren't in such common use these days, like what our ghost says in the comic. "The dead do not suffer the living to pass." So... "the dead do not suffer the living"... The correct meaning here is number 9: "The dead do not allow the living to pass." So this memorable line from The Return of the King is not about suffering in the sense of suffering pain or anything like that. The ghost is merely saying that he won't let the living dudes go past.
And the response, "You will suffer me!" is now easily interpretable as meaning: "You will allow me!"
Which sort of kills my joke in the comic, but it was worth it for imparting this knowledge to anyone who wasn't aware of it.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Douglas Adams
Quotation Details
Quotation #723 from Michael Moncur's (Cynical) Quotations:
I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by. Douglas Adams
English humorist & science fiction novelist (1952 - 2001)
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Sunday, January 10, 2010
Flying Bridge
The idea, though quite simple, but too surprising, even in our days.
Flying Bridge in Holland.
via frozenly.com
The Grandiose Decay of Abandoned Detroit [Modern Ruins]
The Grandiose Decay of Abandoned Detroit
Nearly a third of Detroit's homes are vacant, and along with the residences, the city's stately hotels and cultural centers have been abandoned as well, falling into dramatic disrepair, their grand ruins still showing the promises of a once-booming city.
Ruins of Detroit [Yves Marchand & Romain Meffre Photography via Twitter]
800x600 | Full Size
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Send an email to Lauren Davis, the author of this post, at lauren@io9.com.
via io9.com
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