Mega-meanings: Terminology and you

[lpraderio <lpraderi -at- CLIFF -dot- WHOI -dot- EDU>]

Well,

IMHO, one word = mega-meanings is a phenomena that is proliferating in
technology/science/computers/everything else, and probably always has been a
problem in communication.

I encounter mega-meanings all the time in editing science manuscripts (theses
and journal papers) and techical materials were the "peaks in Figure 6(a) agree
closely with the peaks in Table 2.1, which are both representative of and
confirm the peak value that is no longer at its peak because a peak
variable...."

I seem to be always asking authors one question:  So what exactly does "peak"
mean here?  The poor reader whose curiosity WAS PEAKED by the topic probably
ends up being incredibly frustrated and confused.

Even when new words come out, for example, paleoceanography, they don't make it
to dictionaries for years and so looking up these words doesn't help any poor
slob trying to make heads or tails of text.

Well, I for one would like an archie or veronica or WAIS server for words;
search one large Internet database and get a definition; anyone can add a
definition if they feel like it. I would add "technical communicator."

Laura Praderio
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
lpraderio -at- whoi -dot- edu

Here's an issue that we are dealing where I am, and I'm curious who
among you faces the same problems.

Do the terms that your engineers or developers use to describe
phenomena, components, products or processes seem to be proliferating at
your job at an increasing rate?

|Len Olszewski, Technical Writer |"Code in haste, repent at leisure." |
|saslpo -at- unx -dot- sas -dot- com|Cary, NC, USA|  - Software Truism                 |
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| Opinions this ludicrous are mine. Reasonable opinions will cost you.|