From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Msuck: nntp://news.gmane.io/gmane.science.mathematics.categories/5008 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: "Fred E.J. Linton" Newsgroups: gmane.science.mathematics.categories Subject: Re: Topology on cohomology groups Date: Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:00:49 -0400 Message-ID: Reply-To: "Fred E.J. Linton" NNTP-Posting-Host: lo.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable X-Trace: ger.gmane.org 1245763619 25171 80.91.229.12 (23 Jun 2009 13:26:59 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@ger.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Tue, 23 Jun 2009 13:26:59 +0000 (UTC) To: Original-X-From: categories@mta.ca Tue Jun 23 15:26:56 2009 Return-path: Envelope-to: gsmc-categories@m.gmane.org Original-Received: from mailserv.mta.ca ([138.73.1.1]) by lo.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.50) id 1MJ61X-000276-G9 for gsmc-categories@m.gmane.org; Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:26:55 +0200 Original-Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.61) (envelope-from ) id 1MJ5OY-0005c3-57 for categories-list@mta.ca; Tue, 23 Jun 2009 09:46:38 -0300 Original-Sender: categories@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.science.mathematics.categories:5008 Archived-At: On Mon, 22 Jun 2009 09:17:05 AM EDT, "Prof. Peter Johnstone" = in response to: Andrew Stacey wrote, in part= : > On Fri, 19 Jun 2009, Andrew Stacey wrote: > = > > ... over the finite skeleta. > = > Not really a contribution to the mathematical question, but I'm struck = by > the fact that both Andrew Salch and Andrew Stacey, in their replies to > Steve Vickers, use the plural "skeleta". I used to do that when I was a= > student, as a way of winding-up my teachers, but it isn't justifiable. > = > The English word "skeleton" is indeed derived from a Greek root (the > past participle of the verb "skellein", to wither or dry up), but it > doesn't exist as a noun in Greek. There is therefore no justification > for giving it an imagined Greek plural. Having in my time devoted some > effort to fighting the bogus (but in fact more justifiable) Greek > plural "topoi", I feel bound to protest against this one too. ... The generic-seeming example "phenomenon/phenomena" certainly *suggests* a parallel "skeleton/skeleta" -- but it would also suggest "polygon/polyg= a", which I think we all would agree is nonsense. Peter is merely (justifiabl= y) pointing out that "skeleton/skeleta" is as much nonsense as "polygon/poly= ga", and I'm with him 100% on that score. [As for the plural of "topos", I guess I'm in the mugwump camp that would= *write* it as "topoi" (pace Peter), but *pronounce* it as "toposes" :-) .= English was never very strong at phonetic consistency of pronunciation; witness GBShaw's "phonetic" spelling of FISH: "ghotip".] Cheers, -- Fred PS: "ghotip"? "gh" as in COUGH, "o" as in WOMEN, = "ti" as in NATION, and "p" (silent) as in PNEUMONIA. [For admin and other information see: http://www.mta.ca/~cat-dist/ ]