Re: Data are vs Data is

[Jack McKay <j -dot- a -dot- mckay -at- WORLDNET -dot- ATT -dot- NET>]

>The Latin word "data" is unquestionably the plural of "datum." But
>just as people do not observe shall for person 1st-person indicative,
>nor should as the past tense of shall, nor conjugate verbs for the
>subjunctive, they do not observe the distinction between these words.
>Most people's knowledge of grammar is microscopic, so they discard
>these niceties of language.

>As long as you're consistent in the way you use it for a given piece
>of writing, nobody can fault you for using it either way. Be careful,
>however, to choose the correct demonstrative pronoun, adjectivally, as
>in "These data are incorrect, " and "This data is good."

I disagree -- you can be faulted for using the form that is not
conventional for the group you're addressing. In the world of computers,
"data is" has taken over, whatever those of us who know Latin might think.
If you're writing computer manuals, grit your teeth and use "data is", or
you will mark yourself as pretentious.

On the other hand, if you're writing for audiences a bit more sophisticated
-- such as the sciences -- then feel free to use "data are", though even
here (I'm a physicist) that is beginning to sound stilted.

I am reluctant to permit the general public to set grammatical standards. I
will never yield, for example, on "lie" vs. "lay", no matter how many
people confuse the two. But "data are/is" is a battle which has been lost,
at least in the field of computers.

-- Jack McKay


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