Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 24m

Ha. I've just realised my options for No. 1 don't include the one they were probably looking for!

1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 29m

1. some/few/most/many/loads/dozens/three
2. despite/while/whilst

At this point I gave up.

1 1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 1h

Why am I more concerned about the erosion of basic civil liberties and hard-rightward lurch of the British government of the day now than I ever was under the May-Johnson-Truss-Sunak continuum? They were just lame and laughable; this is vicious and creepy.

1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 2h

Because A-levels are exams, and A-level English has "English" in its name, they assume it's a test of English-language proficiency, when in fact its only purpose is to determine whether you can remember whether it was Goneril or Regan who was King Lear's eldest daughter.

3

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 2h

A-level English isn't even a test of language proficiency per se; it's mostly literary criticism, the relevance of which when it comes to gauging a person's ability to make a positive contribution to UK society I'm afraid eludes me.

1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 3h

Ooh, another one for you: Phil Lynott.

1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 3h

Yes, that could work. I still think the main (not always the lead) guitarist tends to be the songwriting/arranging driving force, though, at least from the musical angle if not the lyrics: Richards, Page, Blackmore, Iommi, Townshend, May, Steve van Zandt w/ Springsteen, Johnny Marr, N. Gallagher....

2

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 4h

Good 'un!

1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 4h

It's an attractive idea, but I think there's a good amount of cherry-picking in Adam's selection. It'd be a bit of a stretch to claim that Bill Wyman, John Entwistle, John Paul Jones, Roger Glover, Mike Rutherford or John Deacon were the main creative forces in their respective bands.

1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 4h

Very much my reaction too. Much to admire, and the sound is beautifully crafted, but there's little there to want to go back to and savour.

2

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 4h

OK. Try "there was an harmonium in the corner" or "she drew an horizontal line", which nobody has said or written for at least the last 125 years (see Ngram). It's a long-dead convention, so persisting with it in "an historic(al)/historian" and little else can only be called an affectation.

1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 4h

Right, and Ngram shows that "an horizontal line" has always been less common than "a horizontal line", declining throughout the 19th century and practically disappearing by 1900. I think we can safely call it not only archaic but absolutely obsolete usage.
books.google.com/ngrams/graph...

Google Books Ngram Viewer

Google Ngrams: an horizontal line, a horizontal line, 1800-2022

books.google.com

1 1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 8h

'Owever, none of this is 'elped by the 'abit of most regional varieties of BrE (Cockney, West Country, Midlands, Wales, East Anglia, Lancashire, Yorkshire...) to drop any initial h they can get their 'ands on.

1 1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 8h

And why is it never "drawing an horizontal line", "playing an harmonium", "devising an hierarchical model" or "cooking an Hungarian goulash"? (Answer: because that would be silly.)

1 1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 9h

H-less "herb" is almost certainly a half-hearted imitation of French, like "filet" and "entree", isn't it

1 1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 18h

It was once a rule that the indefinite article before an unstressed syllable beginning with h must be "an", but now it's a twee affectation, only ever applied to "historian" and "historic(al)". Who writes "She had an hysterectomy"? Nobody (I hope).

3 10

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 23h

The Goldfinch has been sitting in my bookcase, its feathers dulled and frayed, hoping that some day I'll release it from its torment and let it fly again by managing to read beyond chapter 3, which I so cruelly failed to do after bringing it into my home all those years ago. Wish on, little birdie.

1 1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 1d

Jonathan Ross seems to be well up for it too, recognising it's a game and there's fun to be had. If he gets an opportunity to throw one of his fellow traitors to the wolves at any point, I think he'll jump at it. (Stephen Fry being very discreet. Has he voiced any suspicions of anybody?)

1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 1d

Perth

1 1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 1d

As a rule, when artists keep recordings hidden away in their vaults for decades, despite only releasing new studio material very sporadically so opening the vaults would fill long gaps for fans craving a fix, there usually a good reason why that stuff is still gathering cobwebs: it's a bit shit.

1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 1d

No. 1 and 3, I'm with you. No. 2 I've managed to avoid. (I'd also add beetroot to my spurned foodstuffs.)

1 1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 1d

radishes

any Merchant-Ivory production

Send In the Clowns

Nick Harkaway @nickharkaway.com · 1d

“Introduce yourself using only one food you refuse to eat, one movie you’ll never watch again, and one song you can’t stand”

sea urchins

that werewolf movie with Gregory Hines

Lady In Red

Roger @rogger.bsky.social · 1d

Ooh fun.

- Hard boiled eggs (can’t explain, just no)
- Children of Men (relentless)
- Sweet Caroline (does not require explaining)

1 2

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 1d

death
dearth

earth
hearth

2 1 3

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 1d

I hate them too. No number plates, no lights, usually wearing no helmet... they're motor vehicles, for God's sake, and should be licensed and, as necessary, sanctioned as such.

1

Archie Valparaiso @archiev.bsky.social · 1d

Also 8/10 (animal and SI unit).

1