Re: Debian 5 -- "data" is plural.
On Tue, May 20, 2014 8:00 am, Ken Heard wrote:
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> On 2014-05-19 16:22, Mike McGinn wrote:
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>> I would suggest identifying an backing up the scientific data. I
>> would suggest putting a backuo program in place and auditing the
>> backups to make sure that all the scientific data is backed up.
>> Only then would I think about upgrading.
>
> Please note everybody that the word "data" is plural. The beginning
> of the last line quoted above should consequently read "all the
> scientific data *are* backed up." Other posts in this thread make the
> same error. The singular of data is datum.
>
> Other words in the same family are: medium -> media, criterion ->
> criteria, bacterium -> bacteria. There are several others.
>
This is only currently in the context of scientific literature and even
perhaps dying out in that context, over time, also.
It descends from English language inheritance of Latin language
terminology, and the English language is moving on, as language ever does.
At present, within the context of scientific documentation, this is
correct, but elsewhere, no longer necessary.
Cheers!
Weaver (Technical Communicator)
--
"It is the duty of the patriot to protect his country from its government."
-- Thomas Paine
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