I miss the typewriter
It’s been just over 25 years since I received my doctorate. I remember it very well. An oath to preserve my integrity as a scholar (in Latin), being told that my name was in the second book where all doctorates were recorded (the first ended in 1930s) or the pro-vice-chancellor (in Polish ‘prorektor’) who was complaining that his gown with fur would make him sweat. But what I remember most, is typing my doctorate. On a typewriter. Continue reading “I miss the typewriter”
A Linguist on ‘suicidality’
Here is a link to an interesting piece on how to refer to a person’s suicidal death. I think it’s great. The authors point to a number of important issues and make some useful suggestions and I agree with them. The problem is that in my view (which I have already expressed here), they don’t go f Continue reading “A Linguist on ‘suicidality’”
Do I have symptoms?
Some time ago I was accompanying a friend to see a doctor. As I was waiting for them, I engaged in a brief conversation with a patient who had just left the surgery. The conversation was inconsequential, yet one thing struck me. The patient said:
‘It does take time to describe all the symptoms I have.’ Continue reading “Do I have symptoms?”
Gender of the handshake
Ever since I was a child, I’ve been aware of the handshake. As a boy, then a youngster and later I always knew that I had to shake my (male) friends’ hands firmly, perhaps even very firmly. My friends and I knew those ‘strange’ boys and men whose handshake offered a hand with no or very little tension. Perhaps to a lesser extent but also my female friends looked at such boys with disapproval. But, to be honest, apart from my tacit and unreflected upon knowledge, I hardly ever really thought about it. Continue reading “Gender of the handshake”