Apostrophe crimes

[DRT]

Oh go away.
*stomps off to cellar muttering oaths*

I did warn you.

[DRT]

I have sleuthed, sleuthed and sleuthed some more and can't find the answer.

[djewesbury]

I have sleuthed, sleuthed and sleuthed some more and can't find the answer.

Did you post this in the wrong thread?

[DRT]

Yes.

[LGTrotter]

Well that's really too bad. Somebody should start a thread where this sort of thing can be named and shamed.

[jdaw1]

Photographed in Portree, Skye, on Wednesday 4^th December 2013.

[SCP-DFF]

Gimme a break. That's ridiculous, Cheri.

[DRT]

Gimme a break. That's ridiculous, Cheri.

I disagree. I think JDAW has been very diligent.

[jdaw1]

Gimme a break. That's ridiculous, Cheri.

I disagree. I think JDAW has been very diligent.

Taking a husband’s side against the wife: danger danger bear.

[DRT]

Gimme a break. That's ridiculous, Cheri.

I disagree. I think JDAW has been very diligent.

Taking a husband’s side against the wife: danger danger bear.

T'wasn't me. Someone must have stolen my login details.

[LGTrotter]

Gimme a break. That's ridiculous, Cheri.

I disagree. I think JDAW has been very diligent.

I tried to warn you, a swot and a teacher's pet.

[SCP-DFF]

The problem is that Julian hasn't actually given me a good reason for why it's incorrect.

[jdaw1]

The problem is that Julian hasn't actually given me a good reason for why it's incorrect.

Compare and contrast:
• Fine ales from Isle of Skye
• Fine ales from ‘Isle of Skye’
What is the purpose of the quotation marks in the latter? I could have understood ‟Fine Isle-of-Skye ales”, as a compound adjective, but with the current arrangement of the words, the compounding is wrong.

[jdaw1]

Not an apostrophe crime, but offensive to those who see these things.

"We found that nearly half of the co-educational state-funded schools we looked are actually doing worse than average," explained Clare Thomson, curriculum and diversity manager at the Institute of Physics.

There are at least three things to notice, two of which amusingly clash with what the article is promoting.

[PhilW]

Not an apostrophe crime, but offensive to those who see these things.

"We found that nearly half of the co-educational state-funded schools we looked are actually doing worse than average," explained Clare Thomson, curriculum and diversity manager at the Institute of Physics.

There are at least three things to notice, two of which amusingly clash with what the article is promoting.

That really is an appalling use of statistics. Ignoring the metric itself for a moment, and assuming that the selection of schools is either random or all-encompassing, the the fact that 49% of schools perform at a level below the average is neither surprising nor noteworthy, but simply a feature of statistical spread, however wide or narrow. They then go on to say that everyone doing worse than the average is doing something wrong - which may or may not be the case; there is no reason why the borderline between right vs wrong behaviour should be at the average point. Later on, they mention that "some schools are bucking the trend"; well yes, someone will be at the top of any measurement. I probably haven't covered all your concerns, but there is lots to dislike in this article which while it may have a valid underlying point, contains so many layers of dumbing-down and misuse of statistics, and has almost no information within it which would support the fundamental claim.

[jdaw1]

"We found that nearly half of the co-educational state-funded schools we looked are actually doing worse than average,"

PhilW has nicely explained this failure to understand how distributions work.

explained Clare Thomson

So in an article about women not doing enough maths, in which the complainant doesn’t understand basic maths, is the complainant male or female? They want to show that, to paraphrase, women can do maths, but have produced a woman failing to do simple maths. Oh dear.

curriculum and diversity manager at the Institute of Physics.

They want to show that, to paraphrase, women can do maths. They could have chosen to quote a female particle physicist, a female cosmologist, or perhaps one of the female members or former members of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee. A woman who can do, and does, something numerate. There are many. No, that would have required thinking. Instead the complaint about ‟reinforcing gender stereotypes” is coming from a female ‟diversity manager”. Oh dear.

[djewesbury]

Has an email been sent already?

[jdaw1]

Has an email been sent already?

Not by me. The modern dogma does not allow critical comment on such matters, irrespective or the wisdom or folly of the criticism.

[djewesbury]

Has an email been sent already?

Not by me. The modern dogma does not allow critical comment on such matters, irrespective or the wisdom or folly of the criticism.

Oh dear I'd better stop correcting these essays then.

[jdaw1]

Oh dear I'd better stop correcting these essays then.

Academia should be about making plausible and interesting hypotheses, and testing them against the data. Except that, for Larry Summers, the hypothesis was contrary to the mandatory dogma, and he lost his job.

There is only one correct course.

If you deny the dogma, you lose your job. Therefore, if you look at the data and claim to believe the dogma, some people will think that the belief is driven by a desire not to lose the job. If you look at the data, there are two outcomes: lose job; or be thought a patsy. Hence it is important never to look at the data. Look away. Don’t read the books. Don’t read the papers. Look away. Then, if asked, one can say ‟I haven’t looked at the data.” That is the only job-preserving non-patsy thing course.

[djewesbury]

I want to know more about the job-preserving non-patsy thing course!

[PhilW]

I was to know more about the job-preserving non-patsy thing course!

I'm sure we could run one of those for £1000/head

[djewesbury]

I was to know more about the job-preserving non-patsy thing course!

I'm sure we could run one of those for £1000/head

Excellent. I'll get a PowerPoint together with some meaningless statistics.

[PhilW]

The problem is that Julian hasn't actually given me a good reason for why it's incorrect.

Compare and contrast:
• Fine ales from Isle of Skye
• Fine ales from ‘Isle of Skye’
What is the purpose of the quotation marks in the latter? I could have understood ‟Fine Isle-of-Skye ales”, as a compound adjective, but with the current arrangement of the words, the compounding is wrong.

I thought you were complaining about "Macnabs Inn" (vs "Macnab's Inn")... I assumed that from the "Isle of Skye" being in quotes meant that is was only partially, or not-really, from the Isle of Skye, e.g. because the pub was just off it.

[djewesbury]

The problem is that Julian hasn't actually given me a good reason for why it's incorrect.

Compare and contrast:
• Fine ales from Isle of Skye
• Fine ales from ‘Isle of Skye’
What is the purpose of the quotation marks in the latter? I could have understood ‟Fine Isle-of-Skye ales”, as a compound adjective, but with the current arrangement of the words, the compounding is wrong.

I thought you were complaining about "Macnabs Inn" (vs "Macnab's Inn")... I assumed that from the "Isle of Skye" being in quotes meant that is was only partially, or not-really, from the Isle of Skye, e.g. because the pub was just off it.

Me too.