Newbie question: "Vector' as a verb
mik25
means, and it certainly means something different from its normal meanings.
For instance, look at the subject line "View from Saturday vectors POSH,
TIPS acronyms". Try making sense of that from an outsider's point of view!
Can anyone explain its meaning? (Yes, I've read the FAQ - if it's in there I
missed it)
Even more pertinently, can anyone map the history of its usage? Does it
predate (or exist outside) this NG, or is it a neologism?
Thom White
ho...@therange.com wrote on 11/10/02 1:34 PM:
> The verb "to vector" seems pretty common around here. It's unclear what it
> means, and it certainly means something different from its normal meanings.
Thanks for asking that - I've been mostly lurking for 6 months and I still
haven't worked out what it really means...
Thom
Viv
It's a term adapted from epidemiology, where an epidemiological vector is
the host organism for the nasty infectious micro-organism who passes it onto
another organism. (or something like that)
Epidemiology stole it from physics, of course, and put their own spin on it.
Was it St. Brunvand who put the fake moustache on this word or is some other
folklorist the perpetrator?
So a UL 'vector' is the person infected with the particular UL meme who
passes it onto another person, and 'vectoring' is the verbed noun describing
this action.
Vivienne Smythe
--
Afu is only rule-bound the way a tango is rule-bound; if you just want
to stand there and shake your belly while you twirl your t-shirt above
your head, no one can stop you, but don't be surprised if the other
dancers give you dirty looks. -Ian Munro.
TMOliver
The term has deep in hidden meanings. I picked it up right
away, but then I had spent time in life saying things like...
"Your vector zero four zero, Buster, ascending to angels thirty.
Check you gadget, your bogey should be at 11 o'clock, crossing
left to right.
TM "vectored here by obsession" Oliver
Lon Stowell
Feh. To the vector belong the spoilers.
--
[Please add your own clever saying here]
SOCCERNUMB
There is a lot in AFU which is unclear, and seems unrelated to the world
outside AFU. The term "vector", in biological usage, is something which spreads
things around. For example, a seed dispersal vector gets seeds from one place
to another. This can be the wind, a bird carrying them on its plumage, an
animal which eats fruits containing seeds and later depositing them in another
place after they have passed through a digestive tract.
To use the term in more common parlance, it would be one who spreads something
around. An Urban Legend Vector would, of course, spread urban legends.
Therefore, "vector" as a verb means to act as a vector.
SOCCERNUMB
K. D.
"SOCCERNUMB" <socce...@aol.com> wrote in message or is it a neologism?
>
> To use the term in more common parlance, it would be one who spreads
something
> around. An Urban Legend Vector would, of course, spread urban legends.
> Therefore, "vector" as a verb means to act as a vector.
Just curious - is there any dictionary which actually defines the word
"vector" in this way? Not that *that* should matter in the world of afu,
where rules are made up as they go along, being changed and ignored when and
if need be. All the while calling for "cite" and/or ignoring a call for
"cite" depending on the circumstances.
Anyway, http://www.dictionary.com offers "To guide (a pilot or aircraft,
for example) by means of radio communication according to vectors."
http://www.merriamwebster.com offers these two definitions:
1 : to guide (as an airplane, its pilot, or a missile) in flight by means of
a radioed vector
2 : to change the direction of (the thrust of a jet engine) for steering
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/results.asp?searchword=vector offers only
noun definitions for vector.
-KD
Len Berlind
>Just curious - is there any dictionary which actually defines the word
>"vector" in this way? Not that *that* should matter in the world of afu,
>where rules are made up as they go along, being changed and ignored when and
>if need be. All the while calling for "cite" and/or ignoring a call for
>"cite" depending on the circumstances.
Cite?
L"Just curious."B
R H Draney
news:JOYp9.440$cD4...@newssvr19.news.prodigy.com:
>
> "SOCCERNUMB" <socce...@aol.com> wrote in message or is it a
> neologism?
>>
>> To use the term in more common parlance, it would be one who
>> spreads
> something
>> around. An Urban Legend Vector would, of course, spread urban
>> legends. Therefore, "vector" as a verb means to act as a vector.
>
> Just curious - is there any dictionary which actually defines the
> word "vector" in this way? Not that *that* should matter in the
> world of afu, where rules are made up as they go along, being
> changed and ignored when and if need be. All the while calling
> for "cite" and/or ignoring a call for "cite" depending on the
> circumstances.
>
> http://dictionary.cambridge.org/results.asp?searchword=vector
> offers only noun definitions for vector.
One of which should make the verb meaning clear...here's the OED (when
in doubt, reach for a bigger dic) on the same word:
vector, n.
3. a. Med. and Biol. A person, animal, or plant which carries a
pathogenic agent and acts as a potential source of infection for
members of another species. Also transf. Cf. CARRIER 1l(i).
b. Genetics. A bacteriophage which transfers genetic material from
one bacterium to another; also, a phage or plasmid used to transfer
extraneous DNA into a cell.
Verbing nouns is an established practice...you want better we should
say "Daily Times vects 'kidney-thief'"?...r
David Wnsemius
news:dpidquc0vqb4lro5p...@4ax.com:
> Epidemiology stole it from physics, of course, and put their own spin
> on it.
Just swimming along the afuvial stream and I get hit in the head with this
treble hook. Ouch.
David Winsemius
Chris Clarke
"K. D." <kayem...@spamhotmail.com> wrote:
> "SOCCERNUMB" <socce...@aol.com> wrote in message or is it a neologism?
> >
> > To use the term in more common parlance, it would be one who spreads
> something
> > around. An Urban Legend Vector would, of course, spread urban legends.
> > Therefore, "vector" as a verb means to act as a vector.
>
> Just curious - is there any dictionary which actually defines the word
> "vector" in this way? Not that *that* should matter in the world of afu,
> where rules are made up as they go along, being changed and ignored when and
> if need be. All the while calling for "cite" and/or ignoring a call for
> "cite" depending on the circumstances.
For someone who claims to despise the regulars, you sure do seem to take
pains to morph out of our killfiles fairly often. I sense a deep-seated
need to belong here despite your pathological protestations.
Prescription: Zoloft. No, not for you, for me. How many years and you're
still on that hobby horse? You're even more depressing than H.
But as long as I'm reading this, and before I put you back in my
killfile, let me ask: did you ever provide a cite for your claim of an
Upstate New York cop fired/not hired for being too abundantly eye queued?
--
Chris Clarke | Editor, Faultline Magazine
www.faultline.org | California Environmental News and Information
Louise Bremner
> > To use the term in more common parlance, it would be one who spreads
> > something around. ...
>
> Just curious - is there any dictionary which actually defines the word
> "vector" in this way?
Collins English Dictionary, that being the dictionary to hand at the
moment. Can't be bothered to get up out of my chair to check further.
________________________________________________________________________
Louise HTH Bremner (log at gol dot com)
If you want a reply by e-mail, don't write to my Yahoo address!
Simon Slavin
"mik25" <ho...@therange.com> wrote:
>The verb "to vector" seems pretty common around here. It's unclear what it
>means
To take from one place and carry it to another place.
Think of spreading disease: you get a small group of people
with that disease. Eventually, they've all caught it and
the disease can't do anything but kill them all. But if
one of those people goes off to visit their mother, the
disease has an opportunity to spread and infect another
group of people. The traveller is 'a vector' and he or she
'vectors' the disease.
Charles Wm. Dimmick
>
> The verb "to vector" seems pretty common around here. It's unclear what it
> means, and it certainly means something different from its normal meanings.
> Even more pertinently, can anyone map the history of its usage? Does it
> predate (or exist outside) this NG, or is it a neologism?
Merriam-Webster On-line dictionary
Main Entry: 2vector
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): vec暗ored; vec暗or搏ng /-t(&-)ri[ng]/
Date: 1941
1 : to guide (as an airplane, its pilot, or a missile) in flight
by means of a radioed vector
2 : to change the direction of (the thrust of a jet engine) for
steering
However, originally derived from the Latin verb _vehere_ "to carry".
I think I remember that _veho_ is "I carry", but it has been 46 years
since I took latin.
Ultimately from the Indo-european root _wegh_
CWD
--
"And some rin up hill and down dale, knapping the
chucky stanes to pieces wi' hammers, like sae mony
road-makers run daft -- they say it is to see how
the warld was made!"
Don Middendorf
> Thom White <th...@softhome.net> iterated.....
>
>
>>in article 3da6c5ab$0$23168$afc3...@news.optusnet.com.au,
>>mik25 at ho...@therange.com wrote on 11/10/02 1:34 PM:
>>
>>
>>>The verb "to vector" seems pretty common around here. It's
>>>unclear what it means, and it certainly means something
>>>different from its normal meanings.
>>
>>Thanks for asking that - I've been mostly lurking for 6
>>months and I still haven't worked out what it really
>>means...
>>
>>Thom
>
Verbing weirds language. [1]
Vector: V. To infect others with a meme judged to be a member of the set
of memes known as Urban Legends. The infection can be a deliberate act
of disinformation, a heartfelt retelling of a tragic tale, a plea for
caution or just a recreational storytelling on the part of the Vector
(N: One who Vectors)
Easy enough, non?
Don "." Middendorf
Anticipation of A New Lover's Arrival, The
"Charles Wm. Dimmick" <cdim...@snet.net> writes:
> mik25 wrote:
> >
> > The verb "to vector" seems pretty common around here. It's unclear what it
> > means, and it certainly means something different from its normal meanings.
>
> > Even more pertinently, can anyone map the history of its usage? Does it
> > predate (or exist outside) this NG, or is it a neologism?
>
> Merriam-Webster On-line dictionary
> Main Entry: 2vector
> Function: transitive verb
> Inflected Form(s): vec暗ored; vec暗or搏ng /-t(&-)ri[ng]/
> Date: 1941
> 1 : to guide (as an airplane, its pilot, or a missile) in flight
> by means of a radioed vector
> 2 : to change the direction of (the thrust of a jet engine) for
> steering
>
> However, originally derived from the Latin verb _vehere_ "to carry".
> I think I remember that _veho_ is "I carry", but it has been 46 years
> since I took latin.
> Ultimately from the Indo-european root _wegh_
I've always assumed that the epidemiological analogy applied to urban
legends was the one that gave rise to the use of the term 'vector',
which (being English) can be used as a noun or a verb.
The aviation meaning is not quite appropriate, IMO.
--
Antsy
David Wnsemius
news:3DA8E38A...@mad.scientist.com:
Or clicking "forward" on Outlurk. And you forgot to mention the SK.
Robert Compton
> vector, n.
>
> 3. a. Med. and Biol. A person, animal, or plant which carries a
> pathogenic agent and acts as a potential source of infection for
> members of another species. Also transf. Cf. CARRIER 1l(i).
>
>
The transmission vector is the "door close" button on elevators.
Robert Compton
> I've always assumed that the epidemiological analogy applied to urban
> legends was the one that gave rise to the use of the term 'vector',
> which (being English) can be used as a noun or a verb.
>
> The aviation meaning is not quite appropriate, IMO.
>
suggest a path by which something travels from point A to point B.
Rob
--
悟
David Wnsemius
wrote in news:anticipation_2002...@poetic.com:
> I've always assumed that the epidemiological analogy applied to urban
> legends was the one that gave rise to the use of the term 'vector',
> which (being English) can be used as a noun or a verb.
>
> The aviation meaning is not quite appropriate, IMO.
>
Speaking as an epidemiologist, I cannot vorafie, at least for the USAian
arm of the discipline. In epicircles vector is generally a noun, as in "the
mosquito is a vector of West Nile Virus". The verb usually applied to the
activity is "transmit" or "carry". The noun generally implies a degree of
mobility of the carrying organism. Pigs would not generally be considered
vectors of trichinosis, while lagomorphs might be for tularemia.
When I came upon the afusian vector-verb, low these long months ago, I
assumed the usage was an amalgamation of the epi- and avi- traditions. Lest
I be accused of nearcitedness, let me avere that I have just leafed through
my aging copy of "Diseases Transmitted from Animals to Man", Hubbert et al
eds., and could not find any instances of the verb usage. Others will need
to describe its earliest usage in AFU, I am but a ...
David Weenubius.
Leo G Simonetta
<kayem...@spamhotmail.com> wrote:
>
> "SOCCERNUMB" <socce...@aol.com> wrote in message or is it a neologism?
> >
> > To use the term in more common parlance, it would be one who spreads
> something
> > around. An Urban Legend Vector would, of course, spread urban legends.
> > Therefore, "vector" as a verb means to act as a vector.
>
> Just curious - is there any dictionary which actually defines the word
> "vector" in this way?
According to the CDC (who like afu knows about these kinds of
things):
"VECTOR. An animate intermediary in the indirect transmission of
an agent that carries the agent from a reservoir to a susceptible
host. "
Perhaps we should use vector solely for direct human to human
transmission and use vehicle for newspapers and other inanimate
forms of transmission.
"VEHICLE. An inanimate intermediary in the indirect transmission
of an agent that carries the agent from a reservoir to a
susceptible host. "
http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/drh/epi_gloss2.htm#V
But in a less arcane source we find
vec·tor Pronunciation Key (vktr)
n.
Mathematics.
A quantity, such as velocity, completely specified by a magnitude
and a direction.
A one-dimensional array.
An element of a vector space.
Pathology. An organism, such as a mosquito or tick, that carries
disease-causing microorganisms from one host to another.
Genetics. A bacteriophage, plasmid, or other agent that transfers
genetic material from one cell to another.
A force or influence.
A course or direction, as of an airplane.
tr.v. vec·tored, vec·tor·ing, vec·tors
To guide (a pilot or aircraft, for example) by means of radio
communication according to vectors.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Latin, carrier, from vehere, vect-, to carry. See wegh- in
Indo-European Roots.]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
vec·tori·al (vk-tôr-l, -tr-) adj.
Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English
Language, Fourth Edition
Leo "HTH" Simonetta
--
"Oh, I'm sure all right. Tussling with a bunch of turd-wranglers like there
are around here is so much more fun! BTW my mental skills can open up a
can of whup-ass on yours." Dave Butner shows how to win friends and
influence people on afu.
CH
"Don Middendorf" <midde...@mad.scientist.com> wrote in message
news:3DA8E38A...@mad.scientist.com...
> Verbing weirds language. [1]
>
> Vector: V. To infect others with a meme judged to be a member of the set
> of memes known as Urban Legends. The infection can be a deliberate act
> of disinformation, a heartfelt retelling of a tragic tale, a plea for
> caution or just a recreational storytelling on the part of the Vector
> (N: One who Vectors)
>
> Easy enough, non?
>
> Don "." Middendorf
1) Calvin (and Hobbes)
Your humble servant,
CH
R H Draney
>
>There's supposedly a disease that infects only Type-A personalities.
>The transmission vector is the "door close" button on elevators.
Which usually has arrowheads on it, so it's the other kind of "vector" as
well....
R H "I think he said something about a parallelogram of horses" Draney
Ray Depew
: Just curious - is there any dictionary which actually defines the word
: "vector" in this way? Not that *that* should matter in the world of afu,
: where rules are made up as they go along, being changed and ignored when and
: if need be. All the while calling for "cite" and/or ignoring a call for
: "cite" depending on the circumstances.
Wah, wah, wah. Back into my killfile you go, fiend.
You were doing fine, right up to the moment that you started whining.
--
No R
R
Paul Tomblin
>K. D. (kayem...@spamhotmail.com) wrote:
[snip, nothing important here]
>
>Wah, wah, wah. Back into my killfile you go, fiend.
>
>You were doing fine, right up to the moment that you started whining.
That was about 1998, wasn't it?
--
Paul Tomblin <ptom...@xcski.com>, not speaking for anybody
`And when you've been *plonk*ed by Simon C., you've been *plonked*
by someone who knows when, and why, and how.' - Mike Andrews, asr
Mitch Barrie
(Ray Depew) wrote:
# You were doing fine, right up to the moment that you started whining.
^^^^^^^
Strangest mispledding of "posting" I've ever seen.
Mitch
SOCCERNUMB
>Just curious - is there any dictionary which actually defines the word
>"vector" in this way? Not that *that* should matter in the world of afu,
>where rules are made up as they go along, being changed and ignored when and
>if need be. All the while calling for "cite" and/or ignoring a call for
>"cite" depending on the circumstances.
>
>Anyway, http://www.dictionary.com offers "To guide (a pilot or aircraft,
>for example) by means of radio communication according to vectors."
>
>http://www.merriamwebster.com offers these two definitions:
>
>1 : to guide (as an airplane, its pilot, or a missile) in flight by means of
>a radioed vector
>2 : to change the direction of (the thrust of a jet engine) for steering
>
>http://dictionary.cambridge.org/results.asp?searchword=vector offers only
>noun definitions for vector.
>
>-KD
>
I am not sure that the use of the word as a verb has come into common enough
usage to be included in a dictionary as such. I know I have used "vector" as a
verb with regard to urban legends. I am not sure I have done so when using the
term biologically speaking, which is the usage from where the verb tense comes.
I do bristle a little at its technically incorrect use, but I see the purpose
of it. Perhaps a liguistic change is afoot. It does seem a sensible use.
As to the question of other similar deviations from the norm being selectively
questioned, I don't think I have hidden my views.
SOCCERNUMB
SOCCERNUMB
SOCCERNUMB
>>"K. D."
>> ...offers only noun definitions for vector.
>One of which should make the verb meaning clear...here's the OED (when
>in doubt, reach for a bigger dic) on the same word:
>
>vector, n.
>
> 3. a. Med. and Biol. A person, animal, or plant which carries a
>pathogenic agent and acts as a potential source of infection for
>members of another species. Also transf. Cf. CARRIER 1l(i).
>
> b. Genetics. A bacteriophage which transfers genetic material from
>one bacterium to another; also, a phage or plasmid used to transfer
>extraneous DNA into a cell.
>
>Verbing nouns is an established practice...you want better we should
>say "Daily Times vects 'kidney-thief'"?...r
K.D. did, in fact, say that she had the noun definitions for the word. She
provided a couple, but I don't believe she was suggesting this was a complete
list. It was the "verbing" which she specifically questioned. Has that come
into common enough parlance to be incuded in dictionaries? I'm pretty sure I
have fairly freely used the word "vector" as a verb myself, but with the
understanding that those who were not either involved in biological study to
some degree, or AFU readers would likely be puzzled.
While I do think it is a reasonable use of the word, I am curious as to its
widespread acceptance.
SOCCERNUMB
Lars Eighner
<JOYp9.440$cD4...@newssvr19.news.prodigy.com>,
the lovely and talented K. D.
broadcast on alt.folklore.urban:
> "SOCCERNUMB" <socce...@aol.com> wrote in message or is it a neologism?
>>
>> To use the term in more common parlance, it would be one who spreads
> something
>> around. An Urban Legend Vector would, of course, spread urban legends.
>> Therefore, "vector" as a verb means to act as a vector.
> Just curious - is there any dictionary which actually defines the word
> "vector" in this way?
Ain't no noun that can't be verbed.
--
Lars Eighner -finger for geek code- eig...@io.com http://www.io.com/~eighner/
The sewergator and the jack'lope should be friends. --Ulo Melton
TMOliver
> In our last episode,
> <JOYp9.440$cD4...@newssvr19.news.prodigy.com>,
> the lovely and talented K. D.
> broadcast on alt.folklore.urban:
>
>
>> "SOCCERNUMB" <socce...@aol.com> wrote in message or is it
>> a neologism?
>>>
>>> To use the term in more common parlance, it would be one
>>> who spreads something around. An Urban Legend Vector
>>> would, of course, spread urban legends. Therefore,
>>> "vector" as a verb means to act as a vector.
>
>> Just curious - is there any dictionary which actually
>> defines the word "vector" in this way?
>
> Ain't no noun that can't be verbed.
>
In aviation, military and scientific parlance, "vector" has been
verbed for at least a half century, long enough for acceptance
in dictionaries.
Admittedly, the aviation and military usage may have involved
specific adaption, the thief in the night approach, but it was
firmly in the lexicon by 1963, appearing in lectures and print
at the USNavy's Air Intercept Control School, NAS Glynco,
Brunswick, Georgia (now, the Fed's law enforcement training
center). Radar controlled Interceptor a/c were "vectored"
toward the mock enemy, although the standard verbal instruction
to the pilot was "Steer 090...." Given the nature of the
training and the point in time when the arcane practice emerged,
"vector" as a verb likely dates from the early 1940s and the
application of radar to the air defense role. "Vector" is not
one of the many aviation terms adopted from maritime/naval
usage.
In my time here, I've always sensed a difference in afu usage, a
greater concentration on an older scientific application, as
agent, method or vehicle of portation and distribution, although
we shouldn't overlook the mutation factor which seems inevitable
every time something ULish attaches itself another host, the
"vector in succession" rule.
TM "Squawk Flash" Oliver
K. D.
enough
> usage to be included in a dictionary as such. I know I have used "vector"
as a
> verb with regard to urban legends. I am not sure I have done so when
using the
> term biologically speaking, which is the usage from where the verb tense
comes.
When a word is used and widely understood within a sub-culture, then it
becomes a word for that subculture. Whether or not it is included in a
dictionary is probably irrelevant as long as the word is not to be used
outside of the subculture.
Almost all families and groups have peculiar words / definitions of certain
words / figures of speech that are widely understood within those small
groups but not outside of those groups. For instance, I'm fairly certain
that outside of my immediate family no one would know that when I say
"caulky" I mean "talk to" (as in, "I want to caulky you."). Or numerous
others ("Wet me fink") that largely come from our children's
mispronunciations when they were small. Or what a "fro" (not the hairstyle)
is.
However, a few of you might know what is meant by "Sal Val." (First correct
answer wins a prize.)
Then there are all the peculiar words and pronunciations that derived from
my father's immediate family that we, his children, and even his
grandchildren now use within our families -- everyone in the family
(including the in-laws / out-laws and a few beyond) knows what these words
mean. I imagine this is very typical - more in some families and groups
than others.
Sometimes these words and phrases spread beyond families, close friends,
co-workers, and groups. Maybe someday they will rise to the level of "real"
words. Until then, it is fairly ridiculous for anyone to expect an outsider
to understand and/or adapt a particular word usage / definition unless it is
in his best interest.
> As to the question of other similar deviations from the norm being
selectively
> questioned, I don't think I have hidden my views.
Of course.
-KD
K. D.
She
> provided a couple, but I don't believe she was suggesting this was a
complete
> list. It was the "verbing" which she specifically questioned.
Soccernumb,
Isn't it a great ability to be able to read clearly and carefully and
correctly interpret what people say and mean (and don't say and mean)? I
just wish more people had that ability.
Maybe it's me, but I just can't understand... I (KD) offered noun
definitions of a word from several online sources and noted that I had been
unable to find any online dictionary which defines "vector" as a verb. Then
R. H. Draney offered additional noun definitions which are essentially
variations on my earlier definitions, but offered no verb definitions. And
Draney's post is supposed to prove, disprove, and/or discredit what?
(<sigh> I guess some folks just like to find fault.)
When the "verbifying" or a certain noun becomes popular and/or proper usage
varies with the noun. My experience has been that, when in doubt,
verbifying nouns is generally not considered appropriate in formal usage
and/or for clear communication.
Although the author of the advice quoted below is probably not an authority
on grammar and usage, it's good advice. Actually, the advice is so
incredibly appropriate (and, IMO, humorous) that you would think it was
written with AFU in mind.
***Avoid Veribifying - 3) Shun the "verbification" of nouns and adjectives.
"Remoting an object" sounds pretentious and conveys nothing. Avoid
"tasking" threads, "versioning" software, and "architecting" applications.
Assume a literate, educated audience as the target of your prose and stop
insulting them by pretending that adding "ing" to a noun creates some kind
of super-concept. [http://www.byte.com/documents/s=122/byt19990816s0005/]
***
So far I have not seen any evidence that, outside of AFU and other
specialized groups, the use of the word "vector" as a verb has achieved
common or accepted usage.
To clarify: Noun definitions of "vector" from the OED (or any other
dictionary) do not constitute evidence that the use of "vector" as a verb
has achieved wide or formal acceptance. Verb definitions from any standard
dictionary would constitute evidence.
-KD
John Francis
K. D. <kayem...@spamhotmail.com> wrote:
>
>Soccernumb,
>
>Isn't it a great ability to be able to read clearly and carefully and
>correctly interpret what people say and mean (and don't say and mean)? I
>just wish more people had that ability.
>
>Maybe it's me, but I just can't understand...
How true.
Viv
uttered:
>"SOCCERNUMB" <socce...@aol.com> wrote in message
>>
>> I am not sure that the use of the word as a verb has come into common
>enough usage to be included in a dictionary as such. I know I have used
>"vector" as a verb with regard to urban legends. I am not sure I have
>done so when using the term biologically speaking, which is the usage
>from where the verb tense comes.
>
>When a word is used and widely understood within a sub-culture, then it
>becomes a word for that subculture. Whether or not it is included in a
>dictionary is probably irrelevant as long as the word is not to be used
>outside of the subculture.
>
>Almost all families and groups have peculiar words / definitions of certain
>words / figures of speech that are widely understood within those small
>groups but not outside of those groups.
[snip well-chosen examples]
>Sometimes these words and phrases spread beyond families, close friends,
>co-workers, and groups. Maybe someday they will rise to the level of "real"
>words. Until then, it is fairly ridiculous for anyone to expect an outsider
>to understand and/or adapt a particular word usage / definition unless it is
>in his best interest.
Quite right. That's probably why the original polite and clueful enquiry
received a deluge of good-natured posts explaining the term as used in
ULery.
>> As to the question of other similar deviations from the norm being
>selectively questioned, I don't think I have hidden my views.
>
>Of course.
Verbing nouns appears to be more and more normal. As with other language
changes, eventually those that cling to an earlier era's forms come to sound
pompous. There is a fine line in linguistic playfulness to be trod between
communication so slangy that one is marked as a fashion victim and a
formality so stilted that one appears antediluvian.
Obviously, some verbed nouns are clumsy, ugly and even obfuscatory. I am
hopeful that Darwinian aesthetics will winnow these out as they deserve.
But at other times, verbing a noun is an elegant plug for a descriptive gap.
I suggest verbing 'vector' in epidemiology/laography belongs in the latter
category (although aviation should stick to the pre-existing perfectly
adequate 'steer').
Besides, before a verbed noun enters popular (i.e. crosses the event horizon
of lexicographers) usage and thus the dictionary, some community has to use
the neologism meaningfully, consistently and naturally. What's wrong with
being part of the inventive rather than the receptive community for a
change?
Anyone else for a game of Frisbee?
Vivienne Smythe
--
"Some believe all manner of hearsay evidence; others twist truth
into fiction; and both sorts of error are magnified by time."
[Cornelius Tacitus, _The Annals of Imperial Rome_ c.100CE]
Tales from the Dutch Courage
>So far I have not seen any evidence that, outside of AFU and other
>specialized groups, the use of the word "vector" as a verb has achieved
>common or accepted usage.
"Main Entry: 2vector
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): vec暗ored; vec暗or搏ng /-t(&-)ri[ng]/
Date: 1941
1 : to guide (as an airplane, its pilot, or a missile) in flight by means of a
radioed vector
2 : to change the direction of (the thrust of a jet engine) for steering "
http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary
Guide, steer, spread, carry, convey. Is this really a problem for you?
--
"It would be just as difficult to explain the harmless thrill of a horror story
to Dr. Wertham as it would be to explain the sublimity of love to a frigid old
maid."
David Wnsemius
news:oghlqu4fgpfbem0gq...@enews.newsguy.com:
> Perhaps we should use vector solely for direct human to human
> transmission and use vehicle for newspapers and other inanimate
> forms of transmission.
>
> "VEHICLE. An inanimate intermediary in the indirect transmission
> of an agent that carries the agent from a reservoir to a
> susceptible host. "
Try your searchy powers on "fomite". The CDC is mute on that term but the
web has a plethora of cites.
David Wnsemius
news:aof76...@drn.newsguy.com:
If the mode of transmission is inanimate then it's not a "vector", but
rather a "fomite". Make a verb out of that horse boy.
David "they beat horses don't they?" Winsemius.
Deborah Stevenson,,,
>If the mode of transmission is inanimate then it's not a "vector", but
>rather a "fomite". Make a verb out of that horse boy.
"Some idiot was there, fomiting at the mouth..."
Deborah Stevenson
(stev...@alexia.lis.uiuc.edu)
Ray Depew
: Maybe it's me, but I just can't understand... I (KD) offered noun
: definitions of a word from several online sources and noted that I had been
: unable to find any online dictionary which defines "vector" as a verb. Then
: R. H. Draney offered additional noun definitions which are essentially
: variations on my earlier definitions, but offered no verb definitions. And
: Draney's post is supposed to prove, disprove, and/or discredit what?
Maybe, just maybe, he was offering some support for your position?
Maybe, just maybe, he was offering you some gentle hints so you could figure
it out and say "Oh, *now* I get it"?
Maybe, just maybe, he was trying (with his "vect" suggestion) to inject
some humor into the discussion and you missed it?
I went back and reread Draney's post, and it looked like he was trying to
help you. In return, you stomped on his instep. Good grief. No wonder
you get such a poor reception around here.
: (<sigh> I guess some folks just like to find fault.)
I guess you do.
--
No regards
Ray Depew
"Hey, capacity THIS, scone boy."
- Chris Clarke does his part for international relations
Lee Ayrton
>
> When I came upon the afusian vector-verb, low these long months ago, I
> assumed the usage was an amalgamation of the epi- and avi- traditions. Lest
> I be accused of nearcitedness, let me avere that I have just leafed through
> my aging copy of "Diseases Transmitted from Animals to Man", Hubbert et al
> eds., and could not find any instances of the verb usage. Others will need
> to describe its earliest usage in AFU, I am but a ...
>
> David Weenubius.
According to the particular DejaGoogle server that I hit, "vector" made
its first appearance in AFU on Feb 15, 1991.
http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&selm=53262267%40bfmny0.BFM.COM
In which it is used in this manner: "...we know a propagation vector for
the story." From my reading of the next few posts* forward in time it is
clear to me that "vector" was being used an epidemiological sense by
various people.
Lee "Cow-orking was a different story" Ayrton
* Excluding, of course, those posts in which "vector" was used in a
context that did not involve verbal transmission, such as graphing.
--
"It's the sort of thing that would have stuck in my mind, had I heard
it." Brett Buck on the power of oral tradition in AFU.
Dr H
On 12 Oct 2002, SOCCERNUMB wrote:
}There is a lot in AFU which is unclear, and seems unrelated to the world
}outside AFU. The term "vector", in biological usage, is something which spreads
}things around. For example, a seed dispersal vector gets seeds from one place
}to another. This can be the wind, a bird carrying them on its plumage, an
}animal which eats fruits containing seeds and later depositing them in another
}place after they have passed through a digestive tract.
}
}To use the term in more common parlance, it would be one who spreads something
}around. An Urban Legend Vector would, of course, spread urban legends.
}Therefore, "vector" as a verb means to act as a vector.
And we go merrily on, verbing our nouns, mentoring, partnering,
teachering...
Dr H
Dr H
On Sat, 12 Oct 2002, Chris Clarke wrote:
}Prescription: Zoloft. No, not for you, for me. How many years and you're
}still on that hobby horse? You're even more depressing than H.
Moi? Depressing? Maybe I haven't been smiling enough lately.
Here Chris, this one's for you:
ــــــــــــــــــــ
غغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغ
غغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغ
غغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغ
قغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغ
قغغغغغغغغ غغغغغغغغغغغغ غغغغغغغغ
غغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغ
قغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغف
غغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغ
قغغغغغغـكغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغكــغغغغغ
غغغغغغغغـككغغغغغغغغغغغغككـغغغغغغغف
غغغغغغغغغغـككغغغغغغككـغغغغغغغغغف
غغغغغغغغغغغغـككككـغغغغغغغغغغغف
غغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغف
غغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغغ
كككككككككككككككككك
Have a nice day.[1]
Dr H
[1] Crude, but classic. :-)
Dr H
On Mon, 14 Oct 2002, Leo G Simonetta wrote:
}On Sat, 12 Oct 2002 17:17:29 GMT, "K. D."
}<kayem...@spamhotmail.com> wrote:
}
}>
}> "SOCCERNUMB" <socce...@aol.com> wrote in message or is it a neologism?
}> >
}> > To use the term in more common parlance, it would be one who spreads
}> something
}> > around. An Urban Legend Vector would, of course, spread urban legends.
}> > Therefore, "vector" as a verb means to act as a vector.
}>
}> Just curious - is there any dictionary which actually defines the word
}> "vector" in this way?
}
}According to the CDC (who like afu knows about these kinds of
}things):
}
}"VECTOR. An animate intermediary in the indirect transmission of
}an agent that carries the agent from a reservoir to a susceptible
}host. "
}
}Perhaps we should use vector solely for direct human to human
}transmission and use vehicle for newspapers and other inanimate
}forms of transmission.
}
}"VEHICLE. An inanimate intermediary in the indirect transmission
}of an agent that carries the agent from a reservoir to a
}susceptible host. "
}
Ah, I like that. So a UL would be "vectored" by a person, but
"vehicled" by a newspaper...
Dr H
Dr H
On Wed, 16 Oct 2002, Viv wrote:
}Verbing nouns appears to be more and more normal. As with other language
}changes, eventually those that cling to an earlier era's forms come to sound
}pompous.
Yea, verily.
Dr H
Dr H
On Tue, 15 Oct 2002, K. D. wrote:
}Although the author of the advice quoted below is probably not an authority
}on grammar and usage, it's good advice. Actually, the advice is so
}incredibly appropriate (and, IMO, humorous) that you would think it was
}written with AFU in mind.
}
}***Avoid Veribifying - 3) Shun the "verbification" of nouns and adjectives.
}"Remoting an object" sounds pretentious and conveys nothing. Avoid
}"tasking" threads, "versioning" software, and "architecting" applications.
}Assume a literate, educated audience as the target of your prose and stop
}insulting them by pretending that adding "ing" to a noun creates some kind
}of super-concept. [http://www.byte.com/documents/s=122/byt19990816s0005/]
}***
I am visioning how this might be a good idea.
Dr H
R H Draney
news:Pine.GSU.4.21.021016...@garcia.efn.org:
> And we go merrily on, verbing our nouns, mentoring, partnering,
> teachering...
Leave us not forget "buildering":
http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=7dede1%241dfb%241%40beast.euro.ne
t
R H "and 'builderering': the practice of climbing builderers" Draney
Ben Zimmer
>
> On or about Mon, 14 Oct 2002, David Wnsemius of dwin$emiu$@attbi.com.not wrote:
>
> >
> > When I came upon the afusian vector-verb, low these long months ago, I
> > assumed the usage was an amalgamation of the epi- and avi- traditions. Lest
> > I be accused of nearcitedness, let me avere that I have just leafed through
> > my aging copy of "Diseases Transmitted from Animals to Man", Hubbert et al
> > eds., and could not find any instances of the verb usage. Others will need
> > to describe its earliest usage in AFU, I am but a ...
> >
> > David Weenubius.
>
> According to the particular DejaGoogle server that I hit, "vector" made
> its first appearance in AFU on Feb 15, 1991.
>
> http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&selm=53262267%40bfmny0.BFM.COM
>
> In which it is used in this manner: "...we know a propagation vector for
> the story." From my reading of the next few posts* forward in time it is
> clear to me that "vector" was being used an epidemiological sense by
> various people.
But the verb form doesn't seem to have emerged in AFU for another few
years. The earliest use I found is from 12 May 1994:
http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=1994May11....@Virginia.EDU
"Before my mother (the vector) got into the parenting/vectoring
bidness she was a nurse..."
By the way, epidemiologists seem very comfortable with the verb form,
even if that sense hasn't entered the dictionaries yet. Googling with
keywords "disease" and "vectored" gets you nearly 4,000 cites along the
lines of "Encephalitis is a disease vectored by migratory birds."
I also note a use of the verb in psychology as well:
http://www.colostate.edu/depts/cbrm/references.htm
Shatin, L. (1970). Alteration of mood via music: A study of the
vectoring effect. The Journal of Psychology, 75, 81-85.
No idea what "the vectoring effect" might mean in this context.
Ben "vectoring sure alters *my* mood" Zimmer
John Schmitt
"K. D." <kayem...@spamhotmail.com> writes:
[more than enough]
re*plonk*
John "<sigh>" Schmitt
--
Most of what you read in the papers is lies. And I should know,
because a lot of the lies you see in the papers are mine.
- Max Clifford, publicist
Disclaimers apply
Michael Schmidt
>
> Ah, I like that. So a UL would be "vectored" by a person, but
> "vehicled" by a newspaper...
>
fomited
> Dr H
>
>
Q-switch
"mik25" <ho...@therange.com> skrev i meddelandet
news:3da6c5ab$0$23168$afc3...@news.optusnet.com.au...
> The verb "to vector" seems pretty common around here. It's unclear what
it
> means, and it certainly means something different from its normal
meanings.
>
> For instance, look at the subject line "View from Saturday vectors POSH,
> TIPS acronyms". Try making sense of that from an outsider's point of
view!
>
> Can anyone explain its meaning? (Yes, I've read the FAQ - if it's in there
I
> missed it)
May I add the question: What is a "cool nudie tale"?
Q-switch
mik25
NGs down through the years, but I've never set off anything like this
before.
Thank you for the many replies. I think I get it now.
On a related note, I was also previously unaware of the word "meme", which
does not appear in either of my big dictionaries (one British, one
Australian). I had to go online to Merriam-Webster to find its meaning. In
the case of "meme", the usage in AFU appears to be a standard one. With
"vector" it clearly is not, but I would not be surprised to see it spread.
Ben Zimmer
>
> On a related note, I was also previously unaware of the word "meme", which
> does not appear in either of my big dictionaries (one British, one
> Australian). I had to go online to Merriam-Webster to find its meaning. In
> the case of "meme", the usage in AFU appears to be a standard one. With
> "vector" it clearly is not, but I would not be surprised to see it spread.
Yes, if enough "vector"-vectors vector "vector".
Ben "we have clearance, Clarence" Zimmer
TMOliver
>
> May I add the question: What is a "cool nudie tale"?
>
> Q-switch
>
>
Headline from _Possum Switch Tremulous Herald_:
"NEW DETAILS ON NUDIE TALE
Possum Switch, Oct 17: When questioned, cow orkers at Melinda
Smith-Barraclough's Sunlovers' Bareass Retreat, Tack Shop and
Hydrotherapy Boutique claimed that Ms. Smith was not nude at all
when splattered across the grill of a Freightliner hauling
watermelons and turnips into town for the Annual Veggiefest,
simply that her Woodlands Camo thong was lost in the mess.
TM "Here, an appetite for voracity." Oliver
Thom White
oliv...@calpha.com wrote on 18/10/02 2:13 PM:
> "Q-switch" iterated.....
>
>
> Headline from _Possum Switch Tremulous Herald_:
>
> "NEW DETAILS ON NUDIE TALE
> Possum Switch, Oct 17: When questioned, cow orkers at Melinda
^^^ ^^^^^^
Heh heh
Thom
Geoffrey J Offermann
> Viv <wy...@optusnet.com.au> wrote in
> news:dpidquc0vqb4lro5p...@4ax.com:
>
> > Epidemiology stole it from physics, of course, and put their own spin
> > on it.
>
> Just swimming along the afuvial stream and I get hit in the head with this
> treble hook. Ouch.
>
> David Winsemius
That's pretty funny even though I have no idea what "afuvial" is!
Alice Faber
Barring correction from Dr Winsemius, I'd venture to say that what
"afuvial" is is a neologism, and a very apt one at that
Alice "afuvial fan" Faber
Dr H
On Fri, 18 Oct 2002, mik25 wrote:
}On a related note, I was also previously unaware of the word "meme", which
}does not appear in either of my big dictionaries (one British, one
}Australian).
Well there's your problem: you need to get an *English* dictionary.
;-)
Dr H
David Wnsemius
news:faber-199C33....@reader1.panix.com:
"Afluvial" was the first word to hit my brane, but it was too tempting to
let go the opportunity to twist th emeaning or expression slightly. I had
compose a long screed. but checked the keywords: before posting. Learning
among lower primates perhaps.
DW.
David Wnsemius
news:Xns92AB50F43289...@216.166.71.233:
You forgot to note that the driver had put in on autopilot and gone back
for a beer in the fridge.
DW.
Simon Slavin
"Q-switch" <qsw...@passagen.se.spamhate> wrote:
>May I add the question: What is a "cool nudie tale"?
A cool new detail. Excuse us: we have to make our own fun.
Jon Miller
>Ultimately from the Indo-european root _wegh_
>
Geh weg.
Jon "but read it with a smiley" Miller
Jon Miller
>There is a fine line in linguistic playfulness to be trod between
>communication so slangy that one is marked as a fashion victim and a
>formality so stilted that one appears antediluvian.
>
Not that fine. Thought and care should keep most speakers and writers
of English out of trouble either way.
Admittedly, speaking and usenet posting occur so rapidly as to make
thought and care difficult. Still, it can be done.
Jon Miller