User talk:Eric Corbett/Archives/2017/October

A grammar/syntax question to all

To all folks interested in grammar. Puzzled over a .....difference of opinion between me and the OED. In essence, does a statement "[blue] is the colour of the clear sky" imply that all skies are blue, or similarly "[yellow] is the color of ripe lemons and many egg yolks". and "[red] is the color of blood, rubies, and ripe strawberries." - having arguments over all three in leads of the colour articles. All input appreciated and I won't be annoyed if folks feel these statements are ok. Cas Liber (talk · contribs) 01:59, 13 October 2017 (UTC)

This is just as accurate a photograph of the clear sky as any other

I'd call all three grammatically correct, although "blue is the colour of the clear sky" is an awful example to use since it's only true under specific conditions. (As I write this, the sky outside my window is completely cloud-free but is pitch black, it being the middle of the night; when the sun rises in a few hours, the sky will be red; as the day progresses the sky will conceivably become blue, but even if it remains clear is unlikely to be anything bluer than a faint blue-tinged grey. We don't all have the luxury of living in Australia or California where blue is the typical colour of the sky…) It's not as if the world is short of common blue objects to use as a comparator. Indeed, this has been the canonical Wikipedia example of a seemingly-obvious statement that nonetheless isn't necessarily true for over a decade. I can understand that you want to get "blue is traditionally associated with the sea and sky" in the article sooner rather than later given its significance to art history and heraldry/symbolism, but Wikipedia shouldn't be saying that either the sky or the sea is blue without qualification. (The "clear blue skies and deep blue seas" symbolism originated in the Mediterranean basin where such things are generally the case during daytime; had the cradle of Western civilization been in Lancashire, all that wine-dark seas stuff would never have got off the ground.) ‑ Iridescent 20:23, 13 October 2017 (UTC)

Exactly, I object and another editor who has edited the colour articles for the last few years insists on them....anyway look at the history..sigh Cas Liber (talk · contribs) 20:31, 13 October 2017 (UTC)

Books and Bytes - Issue 24

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Issue 24, August-September 2017

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