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In article ,
wrote: but there wasn't a channel tunnel in 1974, or was there a secret one we didn't know about? There was one in 1874! It wasn't complete - which doesn't stop the government planning how to blow it up if it were ever completed. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
"Tim Challenger" wrote in message news:1104838745.68a636cbd747e5fb5e2516c27b1790a8@t eranews... On Tue, 04 Jan 2005 11:25:36 +0000, Lazarus Cooke wrote: We have a term for it too Tidal Wave. That's the trouble. It was misleading. A tsunami has nothing at all to do with tides, and that's why they changed it. L At least it indicates that it's a wave, whereas the word "tsunami" tells the uninitiated naff-all. What happened to the term "episodic wave"? I haven't heard that one for a while. I don't know if it's technically different to a tsunami or tidal wave or both, but then I don't suppose it makes a lot of difference if you're 30ft under it all of a sudden. Steve |
SNIP The idea of a nuclear explosion was considered but in the end it was decided that a couple of valves to let in sea water would be cheaper and less damaging to much of Kent..... That was in the Telegraph an the Mail and I think the Times. Take your pick. -- Bob flowerdew would do it by siphoning the water from above with a length of old garden hose into the tunnel entrance. That would be my preferred method also. Steve |
In article 1104917378.33e402cc30bfd22cb86573c2e70ae991@teran ews, Tim
Challenger writes On Tue, 4 Jan 2005 18:08:45 -0000, BAC wrote: The point is, a person who doesn't speak Japanese either knows what the term tsunami means, or does not, so no confusion, whereas an English speaker who does not know the accepted definition of 'tidal wave' might be tempted to derive a definition intuitively, hence the possibility of confusion. But they'd be pretty sure to guess it has something to do with a big wave, and let's face, that's what counts. Plus there's more chance that an English peaker would have heard it and actually know what it means. That's an interesting point. Perhaps in these days of international travel, it would be helpful if we all agreed on some internationally understood words for certain key concepts, eg 'fire' 'help' 'ambulance' (in the same way that most of Europe and I think some other countries have agreed on 112 as the phone no for emergency services). In which case, tsunami vs tidal wave comes down to which one is most readily understood by the international community -- Kay "Do not insult the crocodile until you have crossed the river" |
Of course. ;-) I'm still on Siam anyway, where is this Thailand place? I noticed that the BBC correspondent, who had just returned from Miramwhere, referred to it as Burma. Good! -- Tim C. |
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On Wed, 05 Jan 2005 12:44:31 +0100, wrote:
On Wed, 5 Jan 2005 10:34:59 +0100, Tim Challenger wrote: On Tue, 04 Jan 2005 19:58:56 +0100, wrote: On Tue, 4 Jan 2005 17:55:32 -0000, "BAC" wrote: The stuff that provides the motive power is totally free and ubiquitous, i.e. gravity :-) Bisto powered? That's gravy powered, martin. I blame a dirty mark on my flat screen monitor. What do you use to clean them? Coffee and my sleeve at the moment! -- Tim C. |
In article ,
wrote: On 5 Jan 2005 11:51:10 GMT, (Nick Maclaren) wrote: In article , wrote: but there wasn't a channel tunnel in 1974, or was there a secret one we didn't know about? There was one in 1874! It wasn't complete - which doesn't stop the government planning how to blow it up if it were ever completed. It would need a bit of foresight to anticipate a tunnel and the invention of the atom bomb :-) No foresight needed for the first - look up the history of the tunnel - it was first proposed in the 18th century and preliminary work started in the 19th. The atom bomb was also speculated in the 19th century, but I now forget the reference. Anyway, you don't need one to blow up a small construction like the tunnel, nor even modern explosives; ordinary gunpowder will do. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
In article ,
wrote: what about Nyasaland and Tanganyika? Still there, the last time I visited them. I haven't heard that they have been stolen or demolished. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
On Wed, 05 Jan 2005 14:37:20 +0100, wrote:
On Wed, 5 Jan 2005 13:33:42 +0100, Tim Challenger wrote: On Wed, 05 Jan 2005 12:44:31 +0100, wrote: On Wed, 5 Jan 2005 10:34:59 +0100, Tim Challenger wrote: On Tue, 04 Jan 2005 19:58:56 +0100, wrote: On Tue, 4 Jan 2005 17:55:32 -0000, "BAC" wrote: The stuff that provides the motive power is totally free and ubiquitous, i.e. gravity :-) Bisto powered? That's gravy powered, martin. I blame a dirty mark on my flat screen monitor. What do you use to clean them? Coffee and my sleeve at the moment! I take it that you don't own them? Not th escreen anyway... It was a coffee-nose-screen interface situation. :-) -- Tim C. |
On 5/1/05 1:34 pm, in article ,
" wrote: On Wed, 5 Jan 2005 12:18:12 -0000, "shazzbat" wrote: SNIP The idea of a nuclear explosion was considered but in the end it was decided that a couple of valves to let in sea water would be cheaper and less damaging to much of Kent..... That was in the Telegraph an the Mail and I think the Times. Take your pick. -- Bob flowerdew would do it by siphoning the water from above with a length of old garden hose into the tunnel entrance. That would be my preferred method also. Charlie Dimmock would do it by buying some rubber membrane and a load of water feature stuff from a garden centre. Poor Charlie's mother is one of those lost in the tsunami. ;-( -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.co.uk South Devon (remove the weeds to email me) |
"Tim Challenger" wrote in message news:1104917378.33e402cc30bfd22cb86573c2e70ae991@t eranews... On Tue, 4 Jan 2005 18:08:45 -0000, BAC wrote: The point is, a person who doesn't speak Japanese either knows what the term tsunami means, or does not, so no confusion, whereas an English speaker who does not know the accepted definition of 'tidal wave' might be tempted to derive a definition intuitively, hence the possibility of confusion. But they'd be pretty sure to guess it has something to do with a big wave, and let's face, that's what counts. Plus there's more chance that an English peaker would have heard it and actually know what it means. Maybe. Personally, I doubt there are many English speakers who have not heard the term 'tsunami' and learned to associate it with images of destruction caused by 'freak' waves crashing ashore in the Pacific area. Perhaps we should say that 'tsunami' is the common term used for earthquake induced waves in the pacific area, and 'tidal wave' would be the preferred term if/when they occur in English speaking parts of the Atlantic area. After all, cyclones can have different names like hurricane and typhoon depending on where they are encountered, so why not waves? |
In article 1104840072.98438ddeea2045e62f46ffa1c2f70c96@teran ews, Tim
Challenger wrote: I'd have thought that as most English speakers speak English, they might be more likely to know what the work tidalwave means that tsunami. 'Tsunami' now *is* the English word for it, just as 'gong' is the English word for the thing you bang when dinner's ready (from Malay), a 'tycoon' is a big businessman (Japanese), and a tattoo is what your daughter gets against your wishes (Tahitian), and which you may well think is 'taboo' (Tongan). Try asking people under the age of 15 what they'd call a tsunami, and they'll use the new word, not the old. Languages change all the time, and one of the nice things about English is that people are happy to adapt. Remember, 'pork', 'beef' and 'mutton' were all foreign words once. But not any more. I still talk about 'motoring' up to London, listening to the 'wireless', and 'taking luncheon', but I only do it to amuse myself and irritate my children. Lazarus -- Remover the rock from the email address |
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