Mute Point - 19 March 2012

<p>What do you call it when you roll through a stop sign without ever coming to a complete stop? A California stop, a Michigan stop -- or something else? And if someone calls you a voracious reader, would you be flattered or insulted? Also, Puddin Tame, the outmoded design elements called skeuomorphs, a clever Spanish proverb, moot vs. mute point, and the meaning of the military slang term "go hermantile."<br /><br />FULL DETAILS<br /><br />Why do we make a hand crank motion when asking someone to roll down their window? After all, in most cars these days, that's done with the press of a button. An outmoded gesture like this is similar to a skeuomorph, http://skeuomorphseverywhere.com/post/3242801306/velcro-tap-shoes-with-buckles a design element that still used even though it no longer has a function. For example, iPhones still use images of old handsets or tape recorders to indicate phone and voicemail functions. <br /><br />What's your name? I'm Puddin Tame, ask me again and I'll tell you the same! This and other rhymes, such as "What's your number? Cucumber!" derive from French, English, and American children's folklore that dates to at least as early as the 17th century. Iona and Peter Opie have collected a bundle of these children's sayings. http://books.google.com/books?id=sdWwHbOf4oAC&pg=PA157&lpg=PA157&dq=iona+and+peter+opie+puddin+tane&source=bl&ots=HnFvI-mc4S&sig=6Yr0FO-iplK86ghakn5RXMK-b5s&hl=en&sa=X&ei=vaZbT-rGMMX20gGw69znDA&ved=0CB4Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false<br /><br />What's it called when someone rolls through a stop sign without coming to a complete stop? People across the country have coined terms like California stop, New York stop, and Michigan stop as a way of expressing pride in their local delinquencies. <br /><br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VVlTTqIgdY<br /><br />Like the famous murmuration of starlings, http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/11/starling-flock/ a dole of doves is another beautiful collective noun from the aviary world. http://palomaraudubon.org/collective.html<br /><