Reddit mentions: The best catalogs & directories

I'm currently reading a really excellent collection of articles by Elizabeth Gordon called Living Language: Exploring Kiwitalk. It's (obviously) heavily focused on New Zealand English, but there's a lot of general English stuff there too (For example, one article outlines all the different countries of origin of different food words).

Letter Perfect is an easy read about the history of the written alphabet.

I'm seconding Mother Tongue already mentioned, though be warned he gets a few things wrong.

In that vein (of people being wrong) , Word Myths is a collection of dubunked language myths (such as "Eskimos have 1000 words for snow") that still persevere through culture.

If you're interested in anything about how language works in development/the mind, I urge you to check out any of Steven Pinker's books on the subject. They are among the most accessible linguistic work I've ever read. (I highly recommend starting with The Language Instinct. The Blank Slate is by far my favourite but quite removed from language proper).

Advanced/Reference/Kinda boring:

The Dictionary of Word Origins is an excellent reference, if not actually something you can just sit down and read.

A Short History of Linguistics is pretty dry, but it sheds some light on why we adopt so many Greek and Latin word forms. I'd call it advanced because you need a pretty firm grasp of grammar. This book is also great for dealing with some of the interesting theory oppositions through history. Technically this is a short history of Western/Germanic linguistics, but still very good.

If you're interested in the how along with the actual histories, I really have to recommend Lyle Campbell's Historical Linguistics, especially the chapters on semantic change (skip the whole part on sound change. It's tedious and unnecessary). His examples are numerous, clear and usually entertaining. But be aware there are a lot of errors in special character printing.

Finally, some Links!!

The Language Log

A walk in the woRds

The Eggcorn database (sound change in action!)


I wish this hadn't been posted when I was in the middle of a move. I went to check my (ridiculous) bookshelf for other titles on the subject only to be greeted by a pile of boxes.

TLDR; I love language

Not sure it's a question for this sub, but here's my standard copy/paste answer anyway:

> LearnGaelic.scot has a lot of good resources including a dictionary with IPA and sound files and a good free beginner's course.
>
> The best learners' books imo are:
>
> Teach Yourself: Complete Gaelic (Conversation / dialogue focused. Get the version with audio.)
> Scottish Gaelic in 12 Weeks (Hopelessly misleading title but very good grammar focused book. Get the version with audio.)
> * Probably the best print dictionary for a beginner is the Essential Gaelic Dictionary
>
> BBC Radio nan Gàidheal do weekly programme for learners called Beag air Bheag which is available on iPlayer or as a podcast from iTunes etc. It might be a little beyond you as an absolutel beginner, however this particular episode is a beginner's special which will be helpful if you're just starting.
>
> Also well worth watching is Speaking Our Language, a dated but still good learner's TV programme (pretty much all episodes on Youtube there).
>
>And if you want to get serious, have a look at An Cùrsa Inntrigidh at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig.

Here are a few I think are good:

Getting Started

On Writing: This book is great. There are a lot of nice principles you can walk away with and a lot of people on this subreddit agree it's a great starting point!

Lots of Fiction: Nothing beats just reading a lot of good fiction, especially in other genres. It helps you explore how the greats do it and maybe pick up a few tricks along the way.

For Editing

Self-Editing For Fiction Writers: there isn't anything in here that will blow your writing away, land you an agent, and secure a NYT bestseller, but it has a lot of good, practical things to keep an eye out for in your writing. It's a good starting place for when you are learning to love writing (which is mostly rewriting)

A Sense of Style by Steve Pinker: I really loved this book! It isn't exclusively about fiction, but it deals with the importance of clarity in anything that is written.

Garner's Modern American Usage: I just got this about a month ago and have wondered what I was doing before. This is my resource now for when I would normally have gone to Google and typed a question about grammar or usage or a word that I wasn't sure I was using correctly. It's a dictionary, but instead of only words, it is filled with essays and entries about everything a serious word-nut could spend the rest of their^1 life reading.

^1 ^Things ^such ^as ^the ^singular ^their ^vs ^his/hers

Publishing

Writer's Market 2016: There are too many different resources a writer can use to get published, but Writer's Market has a listing for Agents, publishers, magazines, journals, and contests. I think it's a good start once you find your work ready and polished.

There are too many books out there that I haven't read and have heard good things about as well. They will probably be mentioned above in this thread.

Another resource I have learned the most from are books I think are terrible. It allows you to read something, see that it doesn't work, and makes you process exactly what the author did wrong. You can find plenty of bad fiction if you look hard enough! I hope some of this helps!

The almighty r/gaidhlig copypasta beckons:

LearnGaelic.scot has a lot of good resources including a dictionary with IPA and sound files and a good free beginner's course.

BBC Radio nan Gàidheal do weekly programme for learners called Beag air Bheag which is available on iPlayer or as a podcast from iTunes etc. A lot of it will be beyond an absolute beginner, however they have compiled four downloadable beginner's specials, linked below:

• Beag air Bheag: Blasad Beag Special 1
  
• Beag air Bheag: Blasad Beag Special 2
  
• Beag air Bheag: Blasad Beag Special 3
  
• Beag air Bheag: Blasad Beag Special 4
  
• All the individual clips with Grammar notes
  
  Also well worth watching is Speaking Our Language, a dated but still good learner's TV programme which is archived on LearnGaelic here with transcriptions.
  
  If you want to spend money, the best learner's books imo are:
  
  
• Teach Yourself: Complete Gaelic (Conversation / dialogue focused. Get the version with audio.)
  
• Scottish Gaelic in 12 Weeks (Hopelessly misleading title but very good grammar focused book. Get the version with audio.)
  
• Probably the best print dictionary for a beginner is the Essential Gaelic Dictionary
  
  And if you want to get serious, have a look at An Cùrsa Inntrigidh at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig.

Lots of good advice here. I also have a VV-IX and love it. Look for the Dog is the go-to book for the victors and victrolas. It has values for all models but in the current economy, you can find most of them cheaper than the quoted values. If you are interested in doing repair or maintenance then you will want a copy of The compleat talking machine. As mentioned above, you will probably at least need to grease the main spring(s). You can find some help videos on youtube on how to do this. I have done it twice and it was not hard.
Finally, if you find a machine you are thinking about purchasing, The Talking Machine Forum is the greatest source of knowledgeable friendly people that I have found.

I don't have DBX, but it's only $410 Amazon.

DBXI is only $441.


Archive.org is great, but in terms of statistics and interesting facts, it pales in comparison to Deadbase. You could geat a break down of each song, first time it was played, last time it was played, how often it appeared in the first set/second set, how many times it was played per year, etc. Iphone / Android would be the perfect platform for that kind of info.

First off well done for finishing. Tioman is a nice place to dive. who did you do the course with?

1. you'll probably find if you dive more you'll be controlling your breathing rate a bit more. adding more weight isn't always the best solution. make sure that BCD is nice and empty. learn to use the dump valves effectively.
   
   
2. http://www.wikihow.com/Use-an-Underwater-Compass remeber to keep it level and that lubber line with the core of your body.
   
   
3. I'd have to see that IRL to give a proper diagnosis. relaxing and being in good trim helps.
   
   
4. there are some great books out there. i recommend these for you:
   
   https://www.amazon.com/Reef-Fish-Identification-Tropical-Pacific/dp/1878348361
   
   https://www.amazon.com/Nudibranch-Slug-Identification-Terrence-Gosliner/dp/1878348590

From The Dictionary of Modern Medicine by J.C. Segen

• Active Flexibility The ability to assume and maintain extended positions using only the tension of the agonist and synergist muscles whilst stretching the antagonist muscles
  Example Hoisting the leg and holding it without external support.
  
  
• mobility [mo-bil´i-te]
  the ability to move in one's environment with ease and without restriction.
  
  But note this is talking about general mobility - In the context of physical fitness, physical mobility is a given...While there was no direct definition of physical mobility, there was a definition for the lack of which works just as well.
  
  
• physical mobility, impaired
  A limitation in independent, purposeful physical movement of the body or of one or more extremities.
  
  So breaking this down - Mobility by itself is a more general term.
  
  When you read the first definition "he ability to assume and maintain extended positions using only the tension of the agonist and synergist muscles whilst stretching the antagonist muscles"
  
  it sounds more complicated and thus different - but what their detailing is called a cocontraction and it happens everytime you move purposely for the most part and thus applies to the definition of physical mobility as well. (note that a muscle can contract while stretched, and in order to maintain a flexy position like the splits, a cocontraction is pretty importiant to ensure stability in said flexy position, despite the stretchy tension on the antagonist)
  
  So basically, when you get past the fact that one definition is worded with more specificity, they really are the same thing.
  
  
  Physical Mobility - The ability to maintain and move your body through increased ranges of motion using only muscular contraction
  
  Active Flexibility - The ability to maintain and move your body through increased ranges of motion flexy positions using only muscular contraction.
  
  
  If there IS a difference, I think it is incredibly small and any sort of significant disagreement would be an exercise in ultimate pedanticism

http://www.amazon.com/Hermans-Publishers-Editors-Literary-Agents/dp/1402243375/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1310381563&sr=8-9

You're best friend.
Find an agent that best represents your genre. What I would do is find other books similar to yours (at least in genre) and find out which agents are representing that author. Once you find out the agent start doing some research on that agent. A lot of agents blog and have websites these days that are a wealth of information.

Write a query letter.
http://queryshark.blogspot.com/
Read EVERY SINGLE POST on this blog.

Once you have a decent query letter mail it away and wait for a response. :)

The standard Ancient Greek lexicon is available in full (and helpfully for beginners, in an abridged form) at the Perseus Project, which also houses many Ancient Greek and Latin materials which are now in the public domain (as well as English translations, albeit slightly dated).

Plato’s Symposium is often suggested as an intermediate text. One book in particular which I found helpful was Eros at the Banquet: Reviewing Greek with Plato’s Symposium, which provides a quick gloss for unfamiliar vocabulary and a review of grammar that may be rusty, along with selections from the Symposium. The book starts with small excerpts and lots of help, then progresses to longer excerpts with less assistance.

Another, online via Creative Commons, option for Plato’s Symposium is available here.


A good grammar, of course, is probably necessary as well.

> So if she finished writing something, to whom should we send the manuscripts to?

Gift her a copy of [Writer's Market 2015] (http://www.amazon.com/2015-Writers-Market-Deluxe-Edition/dp/1599638452) and maybe an accompanying gift basket with some mailing supplies like manila envelopes for manuscripts, copy paper, and stamps - she should be able to find some good venues for her writing in there.

I am a writer and if someone did that for me, I would think it was romantic as fuck. :)

The best resource is Youtube videos, but the problem is remembering what was on the videos when on the water. I carry a cheat sheet, The Fisherman's Ultimate Knot Guide. At $5 for a shirt pocket reminder it is helpful even if some of the knots on it are not. It's a little laminated hinged thing that features reminders on how to tie 10 common fishing knots.

I find 7 of them to be useful, but would not inflict nail knots on anybody. Oddly when I started, nail knots and the ridiculous nail knot tools were popular. They are actually harder to tie than jam knots like the blood knot or double uni, and are one of the only knots that requires a separate tool.

I once had a discussion with a hard core salt guy about which coffee shop coffee stirrers made the best nail knot tools. Not exactly something the average fisher is likely to have out on the water. His attitude was well you can use the capillary tubes off a can of WD-40, which raises all sorts of q's about potential line degradation, access, and wanton disregard for needing that tube next time you need to use the spray product. (Don't cut off a part of a tool to make a knot.)

Or, you could put a nail in your pocket, or buy some overpriced tool. But, there are better jam knots that do the same thing that just require some line twists and strategic tag end placement.

Have you checked the following?

• Basic Arabic: A Grammar and Workbook by Waheed and Leila Samy (Routledge)
  
  
• Basic Arabic Workbook: For Revision and Practice by John Mace (Hippocrene)
  
  
• Intermediate Arabic Workbook by John Mace (Hippocrene)
  
  
• Practice Makes Perfect Arabic Pronouns and Prepositions by Otared Haidar (McGraw-Hill)
  
  
• Practice Makes Perfect Arabic Verb Tenses by Jane Wightwick and Mahmoud Gaafar (McGraw-Hill)
  
  
• Practice Makes Perfect Arabic Vocabulary by Jane Wightwick and Mahmoud Gaafar (McGraw-Hill)
  

I'd also suggest picking up a copy of Writer's Market 2017. It's a great guide to different markets, publications within those markets (including trade journals!), and what each outlet looks for from freelancers.

I'm also a huge fan of The Essential Guide to Freelance Writing, which offers tips for crafting pitches, finding the appropriate outlets, and contacting the right person at each place. It's really approachable, and the author offers some quality "real world" expertise.

It might help to invest in some books if you collect or deal in Carnival Glass a good deal.

These two authors are among the best on the subject.


https://www.amazon.com/Carnival-Glass-Mystery-Glen-Thistlewood/dp/0764329898

https://www.amazon.com/Northwoods-Carnival-Glass-Carl-Burns/dp/0895380609

Tangentially related, there's a fascinating dictionary of American idioms that's worth checking out.

A dictionary of Portuguese idioms-- at least Brazilian Portuguese-- would be super NSFW. And I just realized how much I want an English language dictionary of Portuguese idioms.

There is no “easy” way, but the easiest is to buy a dictionary, and a basic course and work through it until you’re able to follow basic speech. Then follow the BhBC Letter and youtube courses. Then advanced coursework like TAIC or Akerbeltz. Then travel to Nova Scotia or Sabhal Mor Ostaig in Scotland and get immersed.

You could always try and old fashion book. As an undergrad I liked this book. But since you are interested in topology & real analysis you may need a more comprehensive book

There is ALOT of material here https://www.coursera.org/browse/math-and-logic?languages=en however a good amount of it will require prerequisite knowledge. You may be interested in picking up this text as well, https://www.amazon.com/Dictionary-Mathematics-Barrons-Professional-Guides/dp/0764141392 (you can find it cheaper outside of Amazon.)

Guide to Literary Agents 2017: The Most Trusted Guide to Getting Published (Market)

I'm sure you can find a few candidates in there.

Some months back, people recommended Bescherelle. I got one, and am happy with it. This thing is so widely used, it has become a common name for these sorts of things.

This book is supposed to be the absolute final word on getting a literary agent, and it's updated every year:

Guide to Literary Agents 2017: The Most Trusted Guide to Getting Published (Market) https://www.amazon.com/dp/144034776X/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_c_api_wngMyb99CMXD1

I will be using it when I begin looking for an agent as well.

You need to get yourself a copy of the Bescherelle. This is the book that French students use in school, and is the authoritative book on verb conjugation. http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Conjugating-French-English/dp/2218065916/ref=sr_1_sc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452133016&sr=8-1-spell&keywords=french+verb+conguation

The bad news is that French verb conjugation is very difficult. The good news is, once it "clicks" and you get it, you'll really be able to express yourself in the French language. Verb conjugation is in my opinion the primary key to the language.

The Bescherelle helps with this because it breaks verbs down into categories, based on verbs that are conjugated similarly, ir verbs, er verbs, irregular verbs etc. There's a pattern to be recognized, once you see it and get it, then it all falls into place.

So rather than try and address specific questions in your post, I'd recommend getting this and learning to recognize those patterns.

Years ago I taught first year and second year French at University as a grad student, and I broke with department rules and demanded that my students get that book. I was severely scolded for doing so, as my plan broke away from the standard course taught by other teachers, but at the end of my first year teaching, my students did consistently better than all the other classes, and even students that went on to study under other teachers said that they felt they had a better grasp on the patterns of language than other students.

These things were a great buy, it’s also a fold out ruler which is equally as useful as the knot guide

Fisherman's Ultimate Knot Guide https://www.amazon.com/dp/0922273030/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_f97ZCbXRDWKYG

I was considering buying this other one which is 12 knots vs 10 and intended for saltwater specifically, but it doesn’t have the ruler

Saltwater Fishing Knot Cards https://www.amazon.com/dp/0922273235/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_m-7ZCbZA8YFF9

Thanks a lot this was helpful! Is this the kind of book you own? https://www.amazon.com/Writers-Market-2017-Trusted-Published/dp/1440347735

Part of the problem with learning Gaelic verbs is (a) the tenses and usage don't quite line up with English and (b) the commonest verbs are irregular.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Essential-Gaelic-Dictionary-Teach-Yourself/dp/1444103997

This dictionary is good in its own right and even better, has some very handy appendices on verbs, including all the irregular verbs.