http://www.twainquotes.com/Plagiarism.html
“I know one thing--that a certain amount of pride always goes along with a teaspoonful of brains, and that this pride protects a man from deliberately stealing other people's ideas. That is what a teaspoonful of brains will do for a man--and admirers had often told me I had nearly a basketful--though they were rather reserved as to the size of the basket.” ~ "Unconscious Plagiarism" speech, 1879
“… substantially all ideas are second-hand, consciously and unconsciously drawn from a million outside sources, and daily used by the garnerer with a pride and satisfaction born of the superstition that he originated them; whereas there is not a rag of originality about them anywhere except the little discoloration they get from his mental and moral calibre and his temperament, which is revealed in characteristics of phrasing. . . . It takes a thousand men to invent a telegraph, or a steam engine, or a phonograph, or a photograph, or a telephone, or any other Important thing-- and the last man gets the credit and we forget the others. He added his little mite--that is all he did. In 1868 I read Dr. Holmes's poems, in the Sandwich Islands. A year and a half later I stole his dedication, without knowing it, and used it to dedicate my "Innocents Abroad" with. Ten years afterward I was talking with Dr. Holmes about it. He was not an ignorant ass--no, not he; . . . and so when I said, "I know now where I stole, but who did you steal it from?" he said, "I don't remember; I only know I stole it from somebody, because I have never originated anything altogether myself, nor met anybody who had."” ~ Letter to Anne Macy. Reprinted in Anne Sullivan Macy, The Story Behind Helen Keller (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Doran, and Co., 1933), p.162.
The kernel, the soul-- let us go further and say the substance, the bulk, the actual and valuable material of all human utterances--is plagiarism.... ...a grown person's memory-tablet is as a palimpsest, with hardly a bare space upon which to engrave a phrase. ~ Letter to Helen Keller, St. Patrick's Day, 1903
“Nothing is ours but our language, our phrasing. If a man takes that from me (knowingly, purposely) he is a thief. If he takes it unconsciously--snaking it out of some old secluded corner of his memory, and mistaking it for a new birth instead of a mummy -- he is no thief, and no man has a case against him. Unconscious appropriation is utterly common; it is not plagiarism and is no crime; but conscious appropriation, i. e., plagiarism, is as rare as parricide. Of course there are plagiarists in the world--I am not disputing that--but bless you, they are few and far between. These notions of mine are not guesses; they are the outcome of twenty years of thought and observation upon this subject.” ~ Letter to Robert Burdette, circa April 19, 1890
“… all our phrasings are spiritualized shadows cast multitudinously from our readings...” ~ Mark Twain's Autobiography
“But lemme correct you in one thing -- I mean soothe you with one fact: a considerable part of every book is an unconscious plagiarism of some previous book. There is no sin about it. If there were, and it were of the deadly sort, it would eventually be necessary to restrict hell to authors -- and then enlarge it. ~ letter to editor of Grants Pass Observer dated April 2, 1887. Reprinted in The Morning Oregonian, May 4, 1910, p. 10.
“Solomon, when he said there was nothing new, meant also there were no new literary styles under the sun, either.” ~ quoted in Twenty Years in Europe by Samuel H. M. Byers
Friday, November 13, 2009
Hokkien SMS
2009 Oct 30, Friday, 07:16pm
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I'm basically monolingual. But I do speak a bit of hokkien. Here's an example of how bad my hokkien is.
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My wife & daughter was coming to pick me up from work and since we were heading to Toa Payoh I offered my colleague a lift since she lives there. She declined coz her husband was coming to pick her up early while I had to wait for my wife and daughter. It began to rain heavily. It was very late when my wife and daughter finally arrived.
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After I got in the car. I decided to send this email in hokkien to my colleague.
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"Heng ah le mian tan wo. Wa-eh bo n chabo-kia balu-lai. Lo-hor chin tua." ~ 2009 Oct 30, Friday, 07:16pm
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Ok here's what I was trying to say Chinese Translated English:
"Lucky-ah you no need wait me. My wife and daughter just-come. Rain very big".
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Here it is in hopefully proper English:
"Luckily, you did not have to wait for me. My wife & daughter have just arrived. It's raining cats & dogs."
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An update on 2009 Nov 13, 1500hrs: My collegue said that she understood what I was trying to say ONLY after reading this blog entry. This is the main reason why I claim to be monolingual.
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Ω
.
I'm basically monolingual. But I do speak a bit of hokkien. Here's an example of how bad my hokkien is.
.
My wife & daughter was coming to pick me up from work and since we were heading to Toa Payoh I offered my colleague a lift since she lives there. She declined coz her husband was coming to pick her up early while I had to wait for my wife and daughter. It began to rain heavily. It was very late when my wife and daughter finally arrived.
.
After I got in the car. I decided to send this email in hokkien to my colleague.
.
"Heng ah le mian tan wo. Wa-eh bo n chabo-kia balu-lai. Lo-hor chin tua." ~ 2009 Oct 30, Friday, 07:16pm
.
Ok here's what I was trying to say Chinese Translated English:
"Lucky-ah you no need wait me. My wife and daughter just-come. Rain very big".
.
Here it is in hopefully proper English:
"Luckily, you did not have to wait for me. My wife & daughter have just arrived. It's raining cats & dogs."
.
An update on 2009 Nov 13, 1500hrs: My collegue said that she understood what I was trying to say ONLY after reading this blog entry. This is the main reason why I claim to be monolingual.
.
Ω
Why the Family Need To Be United
by PGA, 2009 Nov 13, 1112hrs
In 1977, a family oriented show called the Brady Bunch had a closing theme song called “United we stand, divided we fall”.
Here are the lyrics for the chorus.
United we stand, divided we fall
And if our backs should ever be against the wall,
We’ll be together, together you and I.
The phrase "United We Stand, Divided We Fall" has been widely used. Basically it means that unless the people are united, it is easy to destroy them. This is the opposite of the other phrase “Divide & Rule”.
We have to find a way to teach our children that whatever we do affects the people around us. When the family is NOT-Together and NOT-United we are open to attacks from the Evil-Outside-Forces because as family members, it is only natural that we think of each other's well being & future and if we are too worried & busy thinking of each other’s future, we’ll be less productive in other aspect of our lives, and this includes our work.
Other people can take advantage of us (even if they don’t know our actual situation) because we’re not in optimal efficiency.
Evil-Outside-Forces may not come as people but as situations that require our effective reaction and presence of mind. An example may be to avoid an impending road accident.
Granted that we all have our difficulties in life and therefore we have to lean on our family members from time to time. But knowing "Why the Family Need To Be United" will hopefully help us get back on track quickly so that we don't have to lean on our family members too long because they might need us too when they face their own difficulties.
Ω
In 1977, a family oriented show called the Brady Bunch had a closing theme song called “United we stand, divided we fall”.
Here are the lyrics for the chorus.
United we stand, divided we fall
And if our backs should ever be against the wall,
We’ll be together, together you and I.
The phrase "United We Stand, Divided We Fall" has been widely used. Basically it means that unless the people are united, it is easy to destroy them. This is the opposite of the other phrase “Divide & Rule”.
We have to find a way to teach our children that whatever we do affects the people around us. When the family is NOT-Together and NOT-United we are open to attacks from the Evil-Outside-Forces because as family members, it is only natural that we think of each other's well being & future and if we are too worried & busy thinking of each other’s future, we’ll be less productive in other aspect of our lives, and this includes our work.
Other people can take advantage of us (even if they don’t know our actual situation) because we’re not in optimal efficiency.
Evil-Outside-Forces may not come as people but as situations that require our effective reaction and presence of mind. An example may be to avoid an impending road accident.
Granted that we all have our difficulties in life and therefore we have to lean on our family members from time to time. But knowing "Why the Family Need To Be United" will hopefully help us get back on track quickly so that we don't have to lean on our family members too long because they might need us too when they face their own difficulties.
Ω
