Texting Spells End of the Apostrophe

[Mack A. Damia]

Texting Spells End of the Apostrophe


The enduring conflict between grammarians and greengrocers over the
correct use of apostrophes has turned in favour of the vegetable
sellers.

A leading linguistics researcher believes that misuse, especially in
electronic communications, is so prevalent that the mark may soon
become redundant.

Nenagh Kemp, of the University of Tasmania, found that even university
students were struggling to grasp the correct way of using
apostrophes.

This decline is in spite of the efforts of The Apostrophe Protection
Society, which fights for the mark from its powerbase in Lincolnshire,
and The Apostrophiser, a self-styled “grammar vigilante” who has
erased or introduced apostrophes on shop signs in Bristol.

Strictly speaking, apostrophes are a matter of punctuation rather than
grammar. Professor Kemp’s research found that literate undergraduates
based in Hobart inserted apostrophes in plural words 13 per cent of
the time.

They were significantly worse at using apostrophes correctly with
singular possessive words, such as “the cup’s handle”, which they got
wrong 47 per cent of the time. For plural possessives, such as “all
the cups’ handles”, they got it wrong 72 per cent of the time.

She told The Times that although there had been studies of poor
apostrophe use by students from as early as 1922 the prevalence of
electronic communication had accelerated the change.

“When much of people’s reading and writing is electronic, it’s no
longer seen as important to write grammatically correctly, as long as
the message gets across,” she said. “One of the biggest ‘victims’ of
this trend is the apostrophe.”

A study she published with Clare Wood and Sam Waldron of Coventry
University found that poor punctuation in text messages was predicted
by lower scores in grammar tests, but there was another explanation.

“People who omit grammatical patterns from their text messages don’t
necessarily not know them,” she said. “They choose not to use them for
the sake of efficiency.”

Devotees of the apostrophe who seek to correct erroneous shop signs
should not give up, Professor Kemp suggested. “When people don’t see
apostrophes used correctly in the print environment, there’s less
incentive for them to try to get them right.”

The Apostrophiser’s correction of signs such as “Amys Nail’s” may
prove to be the punctuation mark’s salvation.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/texting-spells-end-of-the-apostrophe-bzbl6vmw7

[J. P. Gilliver (John)]

In message <229r4dh9qouco7k1o...@4ax.com>, Mack A. Damia

<drstee...@yahoo.com> writes:
>
>Texting Spells End of the Apostrophe
>

I am slightly irritated by the lazy headlining involved here (not at
"Mack", who has just relayed it): the headline suggests imminent total
disappearance, whereas the detail (with the exception of a single
paragraph) makes it clear that continued (mis)use is more of a problem.

>
>The enduring conflict between grammarians and greengrocers over the
>correct use of apostrophes has turned in favour of the vegetable
>sellers.
>
>A leading linguistics researcher believes that misuse, especially in
>electronic communications, is so prevalent that the mark may soon
>become redundant.

Muddled thinking. It's already "redundant" in that in many cases its
presence or absence or misplacement does not conceal/confuse the
intended meaning, just irritates those (including me) who feel (that) it
matters.

>
>Nenagh Kemp, of the University of Tasmania, found that even university
>students were struggling to grasp the correct way of using
>apostrophes.
>
>This decline is in spite of the efforts of The Apostrophe Protection
>Society, which fights for the mark from its powerbase in Lincolnshire,
>and The Apostrophiser, a self-styled “grammar vigilante” who has
>erased or introduced apostrophes on shop signs in Bristol.
>
>Strictly speaking, apostrophes are a matter of punctuation rather than
>grammar. Professor Kemp’s research found that literate undergraduates
>based in Hobart inserted apostrophes in plural words 13 per cent of
>the time.
>
>They were significantly worse at using apostrophes correctly with
>singular possessive words, such as “the cup’s handle”, which they got
>wrong 47 per cent of the time. For plural possessives, such as “all
>the cups’ handles”, they got it wrong 72 per cent of the time.

(I feel that that example, without context, isn't a good one.)

>
>She told The Times that although there had been studies of poor
>apostrophe use by students from as early as 1922 the prevalence of
>electronic communication had accelerated the change.
>
>“When much of people’s reading and writing is electronic, it’s no
>longer seen as important to write grammatically correctly, as long as
>the message gets across,” she said. “One of the biggest ‘victims’ of
>this trend is the apostrophe.”
>
>A study she published with Clare Wood and Sam Waldron of Coventry
>University found that poor punctuation in text messages was predicted
>by lower scores in grammar tests, but there was another explanation.
>
>“People who omit grammatical patterns from their text messages don’t
>necessarily not know them,” she said. “They choose not to use them for
>the sake of efficiency.”

That's the one bit that does support the headline. (Though IMO
misplacement currently far exceeds total omission.)

>
>Devotees of the apostrophe who seek to correct erroneous shop signs
>should not give up, Professor Kemp suggested. “When people don’t see
>apostrophes used correctly in the print environment, there’s less
>incentive for them to try to get them right.”
>
>The Apostrophiser’s correction of signs such as “Amys Nail’s” may
>prove to be the punctuation mark’s salvation.
>
>https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/texting-spells-end-of-the-apostrophe-
>bzbl6vmw7
>

Nice to see any post here, anyway!
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/<1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

I don't see the requirement to upset people. ... There's enough to make fun of
without offending. - Ronnie Corbett, in Radio Times 6-12 August 2011.

[Daniel James]

In article <229r4dh9qouco7k1o...@4ax.com>, Mack A. Damia
wrote:
[quoting an article from The Times]

> “People who omit grammatical patterns from their text messages don’t
> necessarily not know them,” she said. “They choose not to use them for
> the sake of efficiency.”

I often omit apostrophes when thumbing a text message -- but only
because they're tiresome to enter, and I know my phone's predictive text
engine will insert them where necessary (most of the time).

I would have thought that this would lead to people who text a lot
becoming accustomed to mostly-correct punctuation, and might lead to an
increase in the correct use of the apostrophe.

--
Cheers,
Daniel.

[Whiskers]

prps u 8nt cn ow sum ppl txt


--
-- ^^^^^^^^^^
-- Whiskers
-- ~~~~~~~~~~

[Dave W]

"Mack A. Damia" <drstee...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:229r4dh9qouco7k1o...@4ax.com...

>
> Texting Spells End of the Apostrophe

<snip>

> This decline is in spite of the efforts of The Apostrophe Protection
> Society, which fights for the mark from its powerbase in Lincolnshire,
> and The Apostrophiser, a self-styled "grammar vigilante" who has
> erased or introduced apostrophes on shop signs in Bristol.

<snip>>

You made me laugh with "powerbase". Obviously it has no power whatsoever.
--
Dave W

[Daniel James]

In article <slrnp4tb9o.l...@ID-107770.user.individual.net>,

Whiskers wrote:
> prps u 8nt cn ow sum ppl txt

Utter gibberish!

Yes, some people do mangle the language like that when texting, but
even predictive text can't help them then!

I take a particular pride in using full words and correct grammar and
punctuation in SMS messages. Standards must be maintained!

--
Cheers,
Daniel.

[J. P. Gilliver (John)]

In message <VA.00000cc...@me.invalid>, Daniel James

It's not even clear; even if I accepted that form of communication:

1. Does the first "word" mean "perhaps", "I propose [that]", or
something else?
2. How does the third "word" work - does it mean "ain't"? "eightnt"?
3. What do the third and fourth "words" mean?

At a _guess_, it's trying to say something like "perhaps you don't know
how some people text", but if so, it's saying it unclearly and
ambiguously.

--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/<1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

When I went to see Biddy Baxter [Blue Peter's editor] and told her I was
pregnant, her first reaction was 'Oh good, another viewer'. - Janet Ellis, RT
2016/2/27-3/4

[Whiskers]

On 2018-01-10, J. P. Gilliver (John) <G6JP...@255soft.uk> wrote:
> In message <VA.00000cc...@me.invalid>, Daniel James
> <dan...@me.invalid> writes:
>>In article <slrnp4tb9o.l...@ID-107770.user.individual.net>,
>>Whiskers wrote:
>>> prps u 8nt cn ow sum ppl txt
>>
>>Utter gibberish!
>>
>>Yes, some people do mangle the language like that when texting, but
>>even predictive text can't help them then!
>>
>>I take a particular pride in using full words and correct grammar and
>>punctuation in SMS messages. Standards must be maintained!
>>
> It's not even clear; even if I accepted that form of communication:
>
> 1. Does the first "word" mean "perhaps", "I propose [that]", or
> something else?
> 2. How does the third "word" work - does it mean "ain't"? "eightnt"?
> 3. What do the third and fourth "words" mean?
>
> At a _guess_, it's trying to say something like "perhaps you don't know
> how some people text", but if so, it's saying it unclearly and
> ambiguously.

My point exactly.

[Dave W]

"Whiskers" <catwh...@operamail.com> wrote in message
news:slrnp5fbeg.7...@ID-107770.user.individual.net...

"Perhaps you ain't seen how some people text", but the time it took me to
work this out is far longer than it would be if it was written properly in
the first place. The writer is saving his time at the expense of mine.
--
Dave W

[J. P. Gilliver (John)]

In message <p38lr4$1c5p$1...@gioia.aioe.org>, Dave W <dave...@yahoo.co.uk>
writes:

OK, I hadn't worked out "cn". Not helped by their apparent total
reluctance to use capitals at all: had it been "Cn", I might have
spotted it sooner. But I still submit that, even by the conventions of
texting, 8nt for ain't doesn't work at all well. (And surely takes more
keystrokes than "aint" would anyway.)

--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/<1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"I've got this shocking pain right behind the eyes."
"Have you considered amputation?" - Vila & Avon

[Whiskers]

As I understand it, the original motivation for inventing extreme
abbreviations for sending SMS messages, was to get maximum content into
the limited number of characters available per message. That constraint
no longer applies, as current SMS systems are capable of splitting
longer messages into parts that fit the limit and then concatenating
them again in the correct sequence on receipt, but the ability to
obfuscate communications to confuse the uninitiated remains as a motive.

[Athel Cornish-Bowden]

That's exactly my objection to excessive use of abbreviations in
scientific papers.


--
athel