the eye of Nova's mind

Chinese man brings gay conversion therapy lawsuit -- "'According to the law, both sides should sign an agreement before electric shock or hypnosis is carried out, but (the clinic) did not offer,' said Li [Doilong, the man's lawyer]. 'The staff told my client the electric shock felt like "being bit by a mosquito" but it turned out not to be.'"

Seattle cop under investigation for busting too many pot smokers | Seattle cop who issued 80% of marijuana tickets reassigned -- Let's see. That one officer wrote 4/5ths of all such citations. "The police department said 36 percent of the tickets were issued to African-Americans, who make up just eight percent of the city's population." I'd like to see the Venn diagram on that one.

Utah language school blogger writes about homophones, gets fired for 'associating the school with homosexuality'

Scientists Shed Light on Link Between Depression, Dementia

Jameis Winston still under fire for rape allegation

Deputies: Man smothered crying son over video game

Teen suspended for asking Miss America to prom

A Browser Extension That Replaces "Literally" With "Figuratively" -- "Built by a programmer named Mike Walker, it's an extension for Google's Chrome browser that replaces the word 'literally' with
'figuratively' on sites and articles across the Web, with deeply gratifying results."

If He's Sexually Aggressive In Bars, It's Not Because He's Drunk -- "When researchers at the University of Toronto and the University of Washington observed young people's behavior in bars, they found that the man's aggressiveness didn't match his level of intoxication. There was no relationship. Instead, men targeted women who were intoxicated."

College-entrance SAT exam set for major overhaul in 2016

Related: The New SAT: America Treats Its Language Like Garbage

Alzheimer's deaths much more common than realized: study

Gambler sues casino, says he lost $500,000 playing drunk

Colorado man ends up in court with $700 debt after buying $42 worth of Girl Scout cookies

'Today' show apologizes for 'offensive' joke about Mandela memorial sign language interpreter -- This is offensive on so many levels.

Probation for drunk Texas teen driver who killed four sparks backlash | Probation, rehab for DWI deaths seems woefully inadequate -- 10 years probation in exchange for parents shelling out nearly a half million dollars on one of the most expensive rehab facilities I've ever heard of. It apparently "specializes in chef-prepared meals, equine therapy, martial-arts training, yoga and nature hikes."

Beastie Boys file countersuit against GoldieBlox over 'Girls' in viral video

California prostitutes may gain victim compensation -- "California officials are considering whether to change a decades-old anti-crime regulation and allow prostitutes to receive money from a victim compensation fund if they're raped or beaten. Under the current system, those harmed in violent crimes can be paid for medical costs and related expenses, but prostitutes are excluded because their activities are illegal."

Yeah, Alec Baldwin Really Is a Bigot -- This article admittedly is in response to a news item that is now weeks-old, but the message that "'[b]igot' isn't a 'global' judgement of someone's character [but rather] a description of how they choose to act" is a good one.

Coates' own rejoinder to the above article: Bigotry and the English Language

Gay Sex Bans: One of the British Empire's Most Enduring Legacies -- Check out the overlay of maps.

Fox News host Megyn Kelly tells kids: Jesus and Santa are both white guys -- The first time I heard of this news story, I immediately chortled. Jesus (if you believe in a historical Jesus) was Jewish! He was described as having "feet of bronze" & kinky hair. I guess that just goes to show how altered the American perspective on Jewish heritage has shifted in the last fifty years. (I won't even address the ridiculousness of maintaining the racial identity of a fictional character.)

I try to tame my inner grammar Nazi (or, as is more tamely known around LJ parts, "grammar police[person]"). However, when I see, in a published article, a writer use the term "its'", that just gets under my skin without a way out.

I don't understand why others can't get how one version of the sound /itz/ is a contraction for a noun & its verb while the other is a pronoun possessive. Possessives never gain an apostrophe! "His", "hers" & "its", not "his'", "hers'" & "its'" (or even "theirs'").

Come on now.

The Heteronym Homepage

Trayvon Martin and the Irony of American Justice (thanks, supergee)

In Wake of Zimmerman Verdict, Obama Makes Extensive Statement on Race in America (NYT) -- BTW, I'm getting rather annoyed with the New York Times, as it has again assumed a threshold over how many free articles persons can access before being restricted by a paywall. I'll probably lessen my references to NYT as time goes on.

3D-printed gun blueprints pulled from Internet, at request of State Department

Government stops study on stroke prevention

Study Claims Marijuana Tied to Lower Bladder Cancer Risk

English May Have Retained Words From an Ice Age Language

The curious mouse builds up personality, researchers find -- This has far-reaching ramifications. The deprivation of environment translates into poverty, at the human level. Those relegated to poverty are being starved of the opportunity to grow into better, brighter persons, at the neuronal level.

Time-lapse map chronicles decades of global change as seen from space -- This is phenomenal.

Hashimoto's thyroiditis can affect quality of life: Even when thyroid gland function is normal -- "[Researchers] report that women with higher levels of anti-thyroid antibody had a significantly higher number of symptoms, even though their levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH)--a measure of thyroid function--did not differ from TSH levels measured in women with lower antibody levels."

Listening to music is biological -- "[S]everal behavioral features in listening to music are closely related to attachment: lullabies are [sung] to infants to increase their attachment to a parent, and singing or playing music together is based on teamwork and may add group cohesion."

Advancing delirium care through research -- "Delirium is a state of confusion in which the individual has undergone a sudden alteration of mental status. Delirium is not dementia, but individuals with dementia are more susceptible to developing delirium during hospitalization than individuals without dementia. [...] For vulnerable older adults developing a urinary tract infection or taking an over-the-counter drug with anti-cholinergic effects (including many popular brands of sleeping pills) may lead to delirium."

Language Patterns Are Roller-Coaster Ride During Childhood Development -- "Research from North Carolina State University on African-American children presents an unexpected finding: language use can go on a roller-coaster ride during childhood as kids adopt and abandon vernacular language patterns. [...] Vernacular English is defined here as culturally specific speech patterns that are distinct from standard English; in this case, the vernacular is African-American English[.]"

Sarah Palin mangles her mother tongue, compares herself to Shakespeare (thanks, supergee)

etymological origin of 'whore' -- the Proto-Indo-European root qar transformed in other languages into 'lover', 'friend', 'desire'

'prostitute' -- literally means "before" + "to stand, establish"; no original negative connotation

'harlot' -- literally means "vagabond"; had both positive and negative connotations in Chaucer's time

'strumpet' -- hilarious backstory for this mysterious word--not all nouns can verb