In Our Time: The Written Word

31 December 2011

Starting on 2 January 2012, Melvin Bragg’s radio show In Our Time will start a five-part series on the history of writing on BBC 4. The shows will also be available as podcasts.

Part 1: Technology and evolution of writing
Part 2: Invention of the codex (the book)
Part 3: Writing and religion
Part 4: Writing and literature
Part 5: Writing and science

The series is being produced in association with the British Library. You can read more about the manuscripts and books to be discussed on the show here.

In Our Time is one of the better radio shows/podcasts out there. I regularly listen to it. The show covers a wide range of topics relating to how our world came to be what it is, from Plato to quantum mechanics. As a result, it can be somewhat general and cursory, and experts in a particular subject will find fault with the shows, but few programs devote an hour to these topics and In Our Time does a rather good job all things considered. And Bragg is a good host, although he does tend to subscribe to the “great men” school of history and sometimes displays insufferably unreflective British nationalism. (Guests, for instance, should never suggest the industrial revolution was caused by anything other than the cleverness and ingenuity of the British people or Bragg will bring a wrath down upon them.)

Another Language Hater

27 December 2011

Ron Rosenbaum of Slate has joined the crowd of those who take badly aimed pot shots at linguistic ingenuity. He has a list of bad “catchphrases” of 2011. Most of them aren’t catchphrases. (He really should learn what a catchphrase is before writing about them.) Most are much older than 2011. And most aren’t bad. (Evidently the only qualification for “bad” is that Ron Rosenbaum doesn’t like it.)

What bothers me isn’t that people have peeves about language. Everyone does (me included). What bothers me is that the editors of Slate would think one man’s uninformed opinion is of interest to anyone else.

Oh, and repurposing isn’t a Briticism (plus it’s been around since the mid-1980s). If you’re going to print a rant based on one man’s idiosyncratic opinions, at least fact check it.

Slate Afterword: AHD and Future of Print Dictionaries

17 December 2011

Slate has a new podcast, Afterword, that features nonfiction books and their authors. Today’s episode is an interview with Steve Kleinedler, executive editor of the American Heritage Dictionary.

Kleinedler and host June Thomas discuss the new fifth edition of the AHD, including new slang terms like asshat, how words are chosen for deletion to make room for new words, and the future of the print dictionary. Although to be fair, despite the headline announcing the dictionary, the discussion of the future of print lexicons is brief and perfunctory.

"A Way With Words" Fundraiser

13 December 2011

I’ve written about the radio show/podcast A Way With Words before. It’s a fun, informative, and commercial-free hour each week, hosted by word mavens Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett.

At the moment, Grant and Martha are in the midst of a fundraising appeal. If you are so inclined, clicking on the link and making a tax-deductible* contribution this holiday season would help keep this educational resource on the air and on the net.

*At least in the U. S.; I don’t know the tax implications for other countries.