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>> Chairperson does serve a purpose. For example, it is better to
>> announce that it is time to elect a new chairperson than to limit the
>> election to one sex or the other.
Karen Kay asks..
>But what purpose does it serve that cannot be better served by 'chair'?
I find "chairperson" to be less ambiguous than "chair". Academic
environments already use "chair" to denote 2 different types of position
- the "chair" of a department and an endowed "chair". If "chair" is
used in lieu of "chairperson", then yet another definition is added.
Whether or not a language should be or even can be gender neutral,
Technical Language must be unambiguous. One must communicate before
one can communicate fairly.
David (The Man) Blyth
Technical Writer
Alsys (San Diego)
dsb -at- alsys -dot- com
Blodo Poa Maximus
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