Newsgroups: alt.uu.lang.misc,sci.lang,alt.language.artificial,soc.culture.europe
Path: cantaloupe.srv.cs.cmu.edu!rochester!cornellcs!newsstand.cit.cornell.edu!portc01.blue.aol.com!portc02.blue.aol.com!howland.erols.net!ix.netcom.com!brg
From: brg@netcom.com (Bruce R. Gilson)
Subject: Re: navigi (was: Re: Free formation of i-gua adjectives)
Message-ID: <brgE5sMA2.I4D@netcom.com>
Organization: Netcom
References: <32e99df3.22394050@nntp.best.com> <33064688.19575931@nntp.best.com> <5e5spj$sh7@acmex.gatech.edu> <5eb6k1$abe$1@harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au>
Date: Tue, 18 Feb 1997 09:56:26 GMT
Lines: 34
Sender: brg@netcom16.netcom.com

In article <5eb6k1$abe$1@harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au>,
Jiri Baum <jirib@molly.cs.monash.edu.au> wrote:
>...
>>    On "akurata", what concerns me is that Dr. Z probably had some inaccurate
>> :-) dictionaries to work with, considering how "accurate" comes from
>...
>> of the Germanic languages as well.  'Tis a pity then that Esperantists don't
>> correct this spontaneously by using this meaning for the term: it's the
>> international meaning.
>...
>
>Since Esperanto already has a word for accurate (the Inglishists will be
>happy to know that it's "preciza"), there is no need to import another
>word for it, especially not one that conflicts with an already-existing
>root.

Well, if in fact, "preciza" means "accurate," then we have TWO false friends.
For in English, "precision" and "accuracy" are two rather different concepts.

When I took physics, it was pointed out that we could have very _precise_
measurements that are not _accurate_ at all. Suppose I measure the same
object with the same ruler, and get 1000 mm (within 1mm) consistently all
the time. But I had not noticed that the ruler was missing a piece at the
beginning, so the 1000 mm mark was actually only 950 mm from the end I used as
the starting point for the measurement. Then the measurement is precise to
within a millimeter, but is still off by 50 mm. It's quite _inaccurate_ but
veery _precise_.


                                Bruce R. Gilson
                                email: brg@netcom.com
                                IRC: EZ-as-pi
                                WWW: http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/3141
                                (for language stuff: add /langpage.html)
