Comments on: Cats and vegetation: a tale of two centuries http://jeremycherfas.net/wp/Archive/2009/01/14/cats-and-vegetation-a-tale-of-two-centuries/ I never touched it, honest! Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:35:01 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Jeremy http://jeremycherfas.net/wp/Archive/2009/01/14/cats-and-vegetation-a-tale-of-two-centuries/comment-page-1/#comment-11457 Jeremy Thu, 15 Jan 2009 05:16:43 +0000 http://jeremycherfas.net/wp/Archive/2009/01/14/cats-and-vegetation-a-tale-of-two-centuries/#comment-11457 The science writing they're talking about is the language into which guff like that abstract is translated. We had our own in-house joke where I used to be, that on a Tuesday unchtime, as the paper was about to be put to bed, the only headline one could ever think of was <b>X reveals its secrets</b>. And that one is still going strong. I'm not sure Darwin needs modernising all that much. Perhaps good footnoting is all that is needed. In the quote above, "attended to" might give pause, until one makes the connection with attention, and then all should be well. It is prolix, to be sure, but that actually makes it easier to read. The science writing they’re talking about is the language into which guff like that abstract is translated. We had our own in-house joke where I used to be, that on a Tuesday unchtime, as the paper was about to be put to bed, the only headline one could ever think of was X reveals its secrets. And that one is still going strong.

I’m not sure Darwin needs modernising all that much. Perhaps good footnoting is all that is needed. In the quote above, “attended to” might give pause, until one makes the connection with attention, and then all should be well. It is prolix, to be sure, but that actually makes it easier to read.

]]> By: Luigi http://jeremycherfas.net/wp/Archive/2009/01/14/cats-and-vegetation-a-tale-of-two-centuries/comment-page-1/#comment-11456 Luigi Wed, 14 Jan 2009 21:57:47 +0000 http://jeremycherfas.net/wp/Archive/2009/01/14/cats-and-vegetation-a-tale-of-two-centuries/#comment-11456 There's been some discussion of bad science writing past couple dyas: http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2009/01/14/consider-the-armadillo/ This guy http://scienceblogs.com/bloggingtheorigin/2009/01/chapter_2_variation_under_natu.php suggests modernizing Darwin's language... There’s been some discussion of bad science writing past couple dyas: http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2009/01/14/consider-the-armadillo/

This guy http://scienceblogs.com/bloggingtheorigin/2009/01/chapter_2_variation_under_natu.php suggests modernizing Darwin’s language…

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