From: John Cowan (cowan@mercury.ccil.org)
Date: Thu Aug 14 2003 - 00:24:43 EDT
Anto'nio Martins-Tuva'lkin scripsit:
> Some habits are indeed language dependant, but some others are just
> tradition (some of it imposed as logic and correct decades ago, like
> compulsive caseless singular for SI units in speech), and should not
> necessarily apply.
"Compulsive caseless singular"? That *is* language dependent. In
English, nothing is grammatical except singular with 1, plural with
any other value. It's true that the *abbreviation* isn't marked for
singular vs. plural, but you said "in speech".
You just can't say "four meter" in English; it has to be "four meters".
> The "$" symbol is used also in Cape Verde and possibly will be used in
> East Timor for local currency, adding to its trivial usage in Australia
> and New Zealand (at least).
Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda,
Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Ecuador, Fiji,
Grenada, Guyana, Hong Kong, Jamaica, Kiribati, Liberia, Micronesia,
Montserrat, Namibia, Nauru, Niue, Norfolk Island, Palau, Panama,
Pitcairn, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & Grenadines,
Singapore, Solomon Islands, Taiwan, Tokelau, Trinidad and Tobago,
Turks and Caicos, Tuvalu.
Not all these countries have their own currencies.
There are surely other countries that use $ as their currency symbol
even though their currency is not called "dollar".
> In Portugal, "cêntimo" (officialy and in practice). It seems that the
> changelessness of this name was less severely enforced than the euro's.
"Lepton" in Greek was accepted from the beginning.
-- And through this revolting graveyard of the universe the muffled, maddening beating of drums, and thin, monotonous whine of blasphemous flutes from inconceivable, unlighted chambers beyond Time; the detestable pounding and piping whereunto dance slowly, awkwardly, and absurdly the gigantic tenebrous ultimate gods -- the blind, voiceless, mindless gargoyles whose soul is Nyarlathotep. (Lovecraft) John Cowan|jcowan@reutershealth.com|ccil.org/~cowan
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