No, it does not refer to the fear of monstrous hippos. Tragically, hippopotomostrosesquipedliophobi refers to the fear of long words.
But why start a blog about science with a quip about vocabulary expansion? Well, while I myself realize that science is a fascinating lens through which to see the world, and an amazing tool for uncovering answers to basically any question you could possibly have, not to mention, pretty fucking cool, I do realize that others might not share my “hard-on for science,” as a friend politely put it.
I can only imagine that this is due, at least in part, to the unique vocabulary that so many professionals build up around their studies. Because a good deal of science involves studying things encountered nowhere else, a good deal of talking about science involves devising new terminology to differentiate between the anatomy of different species, or say, to distinguish planets from asteroids, from… other orbiting things.
The point is, by using terminology that people cannot easily understand, scientists create a barrier between themselves and their audiences. Nobody really wants to hear about the chemical properties of borax. Nor do most people care about the lifecycle of the honeybee, the habitats of extremophiles or the degree that changes in atmospheric density affect sound waves. And they especially don't want to hear about it when you have to learn what amounts to a new language in order to figure out what the fuck people are trying to tell you.
In any case, I promise not to speak in other languages or to scare you off with titles like "Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia" ever again.
But why start a blog about science with a quip about vocabulary expansion? Well, while I myself realize that science is a fascinating lens through which to see the world, and an amazing tool for uncovering answers to basically any question you could possibly have, not to mention, pretty fucking cool, I do realize that others might not share my “hard-on for science,” as a friend politely put it.
I can only imagine that this is due, at least in part, to the unique vocabulary that so many professionals build up around their studies. Because a good deal of science involves studying things encountered nowhere else, a good deal of talking about science involves devising new terminology to differentiate between the anatomy of different species, or say, to distinguish planets from asteroids, from… other orbiting things.
The point is, by using terminology that people cannot easily understand, scientists create a barrier between themselves and their audiences. Nobody really wants to hear about the chemical properties of borax. Nor do most people care about the lifecycle of the honeybee, the habitats of extremophiles or the degree that changes in atmospheric density affect sound waves. And they especially don't want to hear about it when you have to learn what amounts to a new language in order to figure out what the fuck people are trying to tell you.
In any case, I promise not to speak in other languages or to scare you off with titles like "Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia" ever again.
Science for dummies, good idea.
ReplyDeleteIt is true that science terminology can be brain boggling and often times boring. As a person who is not studying science I am anxious to learn things put in plain English. I am pretty sure you study anthropology. If you do what is the difference between homo erectus and homo sapiens?
ReplyDeleteI've also noticed that people don't like words with more than three syllables.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to the the blog. I like the picture too.
EEk what a long word. I love writing and I love words, but I wonder if spell check would even understand you. Science is a lovely topic though.
ReplyDeleteThat is exactly why I keep away from science!
ReplyDelete@Independent Woman: Though I do find it interesting, I do not study anthropology. However, I think I can work your interest into a post. Let me double check my facts and I'll see what I can scrape together for you.
ReplyDeleteIf anyone else has any burning questions feel free to post them wherever you like.
Now I know why I was always afraid of supercalifragilisticexpialidocious! Awesome blog!
ReplyDelete