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[No spoilers]
In solving this morning's Wordle puzzle, my assist program - one that eliminates unlikely solutions - suggested 'QUASI' as a word to try.
I've only seen the word used with a dash together with another word e.g. quasi-formal, quasi-linear etc. I have never seen it used as a word by itself. Does it really count as a word? [...]
Le 03/10/2025 |a 07:36, occam a |-crit :
[No spoilers]
In solving this morning's Wordle puzzle, my assist program - one that
eliminates unlikely solutions - suggested 'QUASI' as a word to try.
I've only seen the word used with a dash together with another word e.g.
quasi-formal, quasi-linear etc.-a I have never seen it used as a word by
itself. Does it really count as a word? [...]
Apparently yes, according to the dictionaries, which list it
unhyphenated as an adverb and adjective:
<https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/quasi>
Also the OED (behind a paywall), which has various quotations, e.g. "Men
come quasi armed in Coat of Male, that the Sword of the Word will not
enter" (1686).
On 03/10/2025 09:10, Hibou wrote:
Le 03/10/2025 |a 07:36, occam a |-crit :
[No spoilers]
In solving this morning's Wordle puzzle, my assist program - one that
eliminates unlikely solutions - suggested 'QUASI' as a word to try.
I've only seen the word used with a dash together with another word e.g. >>> quasi-formal, quasi-linear etc.-a I have never seen it used as a word by >>> itself. Does it really count as a word? [...]
Apparently yes, according to the dictionaries, which list it
unhyphenated as an adverb and adjective:
<https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/quasi>
Emm... the definition there says
"Quasi- is used to form adjectives and nouns that describe something as
being in many ways like something else, without actually being that thing. "
'is used to form adjectives...' suggests it is not an adjective by
itself. Furthermore, note the dash following the 'Quasi-'
Also the OED (behind a paywall), which has various quotations, e.g. "Men
come quasi armed in Coat of Male, that the Sword of the Word will not
enter" (1686).
That 'quasi' does not have a dash in the OED quotation could be an
omission rather than the rule. Note that it is quote from a 1686 source
i.e. it is almost irrelevant. 'Quasi-armed' would be perfectly normal
here.
"Quasi- is used to form adjectives and nouns that describe something as
being in many ways like something else, without actually being that thing. "
'is used to form adjectives...' suggests it is not an adjective by
itself. Furthermore, note the dash following the 'Quasi-'
On 03/10/25 18:55, occam wrote:
"Quasi- is used to form adjectives and nouns that describe
something as
being in many ways like something else, without actually being
that thing. "
'is used to form adjectives...' suggests it is not an adjective by
itself. Furthermore, note the dash following the 'Quasi-'
Minor quibble. That's not a dash, it's a hyphen.
On 03/10/2025 09:10, Hibou wrote:
Apparently yes, according to the dictionaries, which list it
unhyphenated as an adverb and adjective:
<https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/quasi>
Emm... the definition there says
"Quasi- is used to form adjectives and nouns that describe something as
being in many ways like something else, without actually being that thing. "
I don't care what anyone says, AI does have its uses. It would have
taken me a very long time to look all that up myself.
I suspect that we may (or may not!) live to regret our dabbling in AI.
For now it's a fascinating and very useful toy, but how long will it be before they weaponise it?
Before I got a mobile witch
skill after the gift. Before I got a mobile witch
On 04/10/2025 04:51, Steve Hayes wrote:
<snip>
I don't care what anyone says, AI does have its uses. It would have
taken me a very long time to look all that up myself.
I don't doubt for a moment that you would have succeeded, but
time is a precious commodity.
Programming is what I do, and I wouldn't /dream/ of letting AI
program anything important, but I now use it to write throwaway
one-off programs because telling it what I need is a damn sight
quicker than typing it myself. The code isn't stellar, but it's
generally good enough for rock n' roll.
I suspect that we may (or may not!) live to regret our dabbling
in AI. For now it's a fascinating and very useful toy, but how
long will it be before they weaponise it?
Den 04.10.2025 kl. 07.31 skrev Bertel Lund Hansen:
skill after the gift. Before I got a mobile witch
Riding on a broom?
As in "quango"?
Interesting that it is an acronym formed from an initialism --
"quasi-NGO". But does it fit the definition -- does a quango resemble
a Non-Governmental Organisation without actually being one? Is is a governmental organisation masquerading as a non-governmental one or
not.
I Duck-Duck went and asked its AI, which said:
"A quango, or quasi-autonomous non-governmental organization, is an organization that operates independently but is funded and appointed
by the government to handle public matters. They can provide services,
give advice, or regulate behavior while maintaining a degree of
autonomy from direct government control. Cambridge University Press Wikipedia"
I don't care what anyone says, AI does have its uses. It would have
taken me a very long time to look all that up myself.
On Fri, 3 Oct 2025 10:55:50 +0200, occam <occam@nowhere.nix> wrote:
On 03/10/2025 09:10, Hibou wrote:
Apparently yes, according to the dictionaries, which list it
unhyphenated as an adverb and adjective:
<https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/quasi>
Emm... the definition there says
"Quasi- is used to form adjectives and nouns that describe something as >>being in many ways like something else, without actually being that thing. "
As in "quango"?
Interesting that it is an acronym formed from an initialism --
"quasi-NGO". But does it fit the definition -- does a quango resemble
a Non-Governmental Organisation without actually being one? Is is a >governmental organisation masquerading as a non-governmental one or
not.
I Duck-Duck went and asked its AI, which said:
"A quango, or quasi-autonomous non-governmental organization, is an >organization that operates independently but is funded and appointed
by the government to handle public matters. They can provide services,
give advice, or regulate behavior while maintaining a degree of
autonomy from direct government control. Cambridge University Press >Wikipedia"
I don't care what anyone says, AI does have its uses. It would have
taken me a very long time to look all that up myself.
On Sat, 4 Oct 2025 08:40:19 +0200
Bertel Lund Hansen <rundtosset@lundhansen.dk> wrote:
Den 04.10.2025 kl. 07.31 skrev Bertel Lund Hansen:Ah, just like the old days, when swan riding wasn't illegal.
skill after the gift. Before I got a mobile witch
Riding on a broom?
On Sat, 04 Oct 2025 05:51:48 +0200, Steve Hayes
<hayesstw@telkomsa.net> wrote:
On Fri, 3 Oct 2025 10:55:50 +0200, occam <occam@nowhere.nix> wrote:
On 03/10/2025 09:10, Hibou wrote:As in "quango"?
Apparently yes, according to the dictionaries, which list it
unhyphenated as an adverb and adjective:
<https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/quasi>
Emm... the definition there says
"Quasi- is used to form adjectives and nouns that describe something as >>>being in many ways like something else, without actually being that thing. " >>
Interesting that it is an acronym formed from an initialism --
"quasi-NGO". But does it fit the definition -- does a quango resemble
a Non-Governmental Organisation without actually being one? Is is a >>governmental organisation masquerading as a non-governmental one or
not.
I Duck-Duck went and asked its AI, which said:
"A quango, or quasi-autonomous non-governmental organization, is an >>organization that operates independently but is funded and appointed
by the government to handle public matters. They can provide services,
give advice, or regulate behavior while maintaining a degree of
autonomy from direct government control. Cambridge University Press >>Wikipedia"
I don't care what anyone says, AI does have its uses. It would have
taken me a very long time to look all that up myself.
I can't find a link to it, but one of the best episodes of "Yes
Minister" included Sir Humphrey's explanation to Jim Hacker of the
definition of a quango.
Steve Hayes hat am 04.10.2025 um 05:51 geschrieben:
As in "quango"?
Interesting that it is an acronym formed from an initialism -- "quasi-NGO". But does it fit the definition -- does a quango resemble
a Non-Governmental Organisation without actually being one? Is is a governmental organisation masquerading as a non-governmental one or
not.
I Duck-Duck went and asked its AI, which said:
"A quango, or quasi-autonomous non-governmental organization, is an organization that operates independently but is funded and appointed
by the government to handle public matters. They can provide services, give advice, or regulate behavior while maintaining a degree of
autonomy from direct government control. Cambridge University Press Wikipedia"
I don't care what anyone says, AI does have its uses. It would have
taken me a very long time to look all that up myself.
So much time as my search for <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quango>?
People more curious than I am can read the Wikipedia article and tell us
if it is better or worse than your AI. One thing is sure: I wasted less electricity.
On 04/10/2025 04:51, Steve Hayes wrote:
<snip>
I don't care what anyone says, AI does have its uses. It would have
taken me a very long time to look all that up myself.
I don't doubt for a moment that you would have succeeded, but
time is a precious commodity.
Programming is what I do, and I wouldn't /dream/ of letting AI
program anything important, but I now use it to write throwaway
one-off programs because telling it what I need is a damn sight
quicker than typing it myself. The code isn't stellar, but it's
generally good enough for rock n' roll.
I suspect that we may (or may not!) live to regret our dabbling
in AI. For now it's a fascinating and very useful toy, but how
long will it be before they weaponise it?
On 04/10/2025 10:35, Kerr-Mudd, John wrote:
On Sat, 4 Oct 2025 08:40:19 +0200
Bertel Lund Hansen <rundtosset@lundhansen.dk> wrote:
Den 04.10.2025 kl. 07.31 skrev Bertel Lund Hansen:Ah, just like the old days, when swan riding wasn't illegal.
skill after the gift. Before I got a mobile witch
Riding on a broom?
What's the legal status of Yorkshire ridings?
On Sat, 04 Oct 2025 05:51:48 +0200, Steve Hayes
"A quango, or quasi-autonomous non-governmental organization, is an
organization that operates independently but is funded and appointed
by the government to handle public matters. They can provide services,
give advice, or regulate behavior while maintaining a degree of
autonomy from direct government control. Cambridge University Press
Wikipedia"
I don't care what anyone says, AI does have its uses. It would have
taken me a very long time to look all that up myself.
I can't find a link to it, but one of the best episodes of "Yes
Minister" included Sir Humphrey's explanation to Jim Hacker of the
definition of a quango.
Wikipedia has its negatives, but given the choice between information from it and information from an AI, I will choose Wikipedia every time.
On 04/10/2025 15:05, Tony Cooper wrote:
On Sat, 04 Oct 2025 05:51:48 +0200, Steve Hayes
<snip>
This site may be of help:
"A quango, or quasi-autonomous non-governmental organization, is an
organization that operates independently but is funded and appointed
by the government to handle public matters. They can provide services,
give advice, or regulate behavior while maintaining a degree of
autonomy from direct government control. Cambridge University Press
Wikipedia"
I don't care what anyone says, AI does have its uses. It would have
taken me a very long time to look all that up myself.
I can't find a link to it, but one of the best episodes of "Yes
Minister" included Sir Humphrey's explanation to Jim Hacker of the
definition of a quango.
https://yes-minister.com/polterms.htm#sectQ
"Quangos are excellently covered in the YM episode Jobs for the Boys,
where Sir Desmond Glazebrook is looking for a quango appointment. Frank Weisel despises the quango practice and tries to change it in that same episode. However he fails and becomes member of a quango"
On 03/10/2025 11:50, Peter Moylan wrote:
On 03/10/25 18:55, occam wrote:
"Quasi- is used to form adjectives and nouns that describe something as
being in many ways like something else, without actually being that
thing. "
'is used to form adjectives...' suggests it is not an adjective by
itself. Furthermore, note the dash following the 'Quasi-'
Minor quibble. That's not a dash, it's a hyphen.
Hyphen it all, man, does it matter?