If you've ever heard (or been a part of) an argument on the finer points of english grammar that's stretched on long enough, you've likely heard the words "prescriptivism" and "descriptivism". For those who haven't had the pleasure, these are the two main schools of linguistic thought, which often butt heads when the unsuspecting pedant … Continue reading Rescriptivism: the new school of linguistic thought
A survey of international auxiliary languages
The plan is simple: construct a language that’s easier to learn than any natural one, and get everyone in the world to speak it. The idea dates back at least two centuries. It’s a noble endeavor; a universal second language of humanity would greatly aid international communication and collaboration. So …
Introducing the Danseiji Projections
Update 2024: There is now a new and improved version of these projections called the Elastic projections that I recommend you use instead. See "Introducing the Elastic projections". For centuries, cartographers have wrestled with the challenges of making accurate maps. They were limited by not only the mathematical impossibility of …
Oltilip: an international auxiliary language
Disclaimer: Please do not actually learn this language. I created Oltilip to satisfy my personal desire for a language that I thought was optimal. I publish it such that those who are interested can see my ideas and potentially gain something from them. However, were I to actually push it as a contender for the second language … Continue reading Oltilip: an international auxiliary language
Magnetohydrodynamic simulations in COMSOL Multiphysics
If you don't know what magnetohydrodynamics (henceforce "MHD", because I'm boring) is, this is basically all you need to know. If you don't know what COMSOL is… this. In all seriousness, though, MHD is basically just Euler's equations for fluid flow generalised to a highly conductive fluid where Maxwell's equations also apply. It has a … Continue reading Magnetohydrodynamic simulations in COMSOL Multiphysics
The Sudofannettick Inglish Reform
So, a lot of people know that I'm into orthographies, and conlangs in general. And that I have a lot of ideas for how English could be spelled more phonetically. I've already proposed here several possible ways this could be done. All of those were systems that I came up with from scratch given what … Continue reading The Sudofannettick Inglish Reform
Th’ Fneemk Inglsh Seudoe-Abj(a)d
As ye may recall, I recently invented u nue wey uv rieting Inglish kold thu Funymik Inglish Alfubet, which was designed to simplify English spelling with a basic one-symbol-per-phoneme-one-phoneme-per-symbol system. And in my opinion, this worked decently well. The core assumptions of the Funymik Inglish Alfubet, however, give it inherent unavoidable drawbacks. Specifically, u Funymik … Continue reading Th’ Fneemk Inglsh Seudoe-Abj(a)d
Argentina!
Hello, Olin. I write to you now from The City of Good Airs, the capital of a faraway country in the Southern Annulus called Silverland. My path here has been treacherous, requiring me to cross that impenetrable band of intense solar radiation, the Scorch, or the Equator as some call it. I believe my decades … Continue reading Argentina!
A Defense of the Mercator Projection
Note: This article was originally written for my college's informal school newspaper, Frankly Speaking. I'm republishing it here in a slightly modified form. If you've ever dabbled in cartography, geography, cultural imperialism, or that one scene from The West Wing, you've probably heard of the Mercator projection. If not, you've certainly seen it. The Mercator … Continue reading A Defense of the Mercator Projection
On the frequencies of individual phonemes in the phonetic inventories of costructed languages
Constructed languages, or "conlangs", are languages that are constructed. Language constructors, or "conlangers", construct languages for a variety of reasons. Some conlangs are meant to resemble natural languages, or "natlangs" (these are called "naturalistic artistic languages", or "artlangs"), while others are simplified and regularised for the purposes of international communication …
