Harkening back to a thread posted several months ago regarding the habit of one saying that they “gave” such-and-such an exam, I was wondering what your opinion was about folks saying that they have learned “maths” in school instead of “math.”
In the beginning, there were many Maths: Arithmetic, Geometry, Algebra, etc. They were domains of Mathematics, or the Maths. Each one it’s own domain of knowledge, though at times they might trade with be another and share knowledge.
Then, the great empire of the Americas arose, and it was decided that there should be one and only one Mathematic. One Math to rule them all. One Math to find them. One Math to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them.
They’re quite different. Saying “I gave/solved an exam” is probably some sort of literal translation from another language that sounds ridiculous in British or American English
‘maths’ is a British thing, given that its an appreviation of ‘mathetmatics’ it makes more sense than ‘math’ but that’s just my opinion
Right, ok, but I’m just saying, you don’t see people running around saying that they are practicing “medicines” or taking “legals,” or perhaps studying “engineerings,” even though many subfields exist within them which could arguably command a pluralization.
I always felt like we’re being cheated. Like they’re getting more than us.
Re ‘I gave an exam’ it’s most probably our friends from India or some other Asiaan country invented this.
Sounds very funny. I like it together with saying ‘I wroted’ instead of ‘I wrote’.
On the subject: In our Soviet Russia textbooks on the English language it has always been maths, not math
Yeah it irritates me when people say “maths” but I am seething now at the fact you started your post with the word “harkening.” Two people use the word “harkening.” Elves in movies when they tell stories and a-holes.
Does it reverse your judgment of me if I told you that I used that word tongue in cheek, or does the use of the phrase “tongue in cheek” elevate me to super-a-hole?
I havent seen that as much on AF as I have on places like quantnet…where people (mostly indians it seems, nothing against indians, just an observation) are asking “what maths should I take to improve my profile?” It should be “What MATH COURSES should I take…etc” but anyway…back to more annoying words, I dont like when people say they “cleared” a level of the CFA exam instead of “passed” and I also dont like when people say they will “appear” for an exam…similar to the “I will give the exam”.
any views on the pronounciation of aluminium?
The British one sounds gay coming out of an American. I say we both keep our own pronunciations. Americans cannot afford to so sound like pretentious posh c*nts. This doesn’t make us cool or elevate us socially like it does for chafe who learn to speak properly in the UK.
UK: Maths, Sport, potato
US: Math, Sports, potato
QED
Yeah man that whole “cleared” and “appear” bullsh!t sounds so pretentious, like cracking open a bottle of champagne housed in Louis Vuitton luggage boxes trekked through the desert in British Colonial India during the 1920’s or something. Jolly good, old boy!
+1