Re: Orthography supporting sound changes?


"Seán O'Leathlóbhair" <jwlawler@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:1137096713.664324.278910@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>Neeraj Mathur wrote:
>> At this one, for instance, all undergraduates receive a BA, whether the
>> degree is maths, physics, Classics and Oriental Studies, law, or anything
>> else.
>
>Oxford does that. Is that your "this one"? BA in maths is common
>enough but a BA in physics or chemistry is odd.

Yes, that's my this one. The standard pattern at Oxford is that you get a
BA; some three or four years afterwards (seven years from matriculation) you
come back for a second ceremony and you get an MA (so anybody who writes 'MA
Oxon' or 'MA Cantab' on their CV has only done an undergraduate degree from
Oxford / Cambridge). This used to apply for maths, chemistry, physics and
all the sciences as well, and it technically still does; however, in many of
the scientific subjects, you can stay on after your third year and do a
fourth year somewhat automatically, which fourth year is usually highly
specialised and tends towards being research-based. On the completion of
this fourth year, you get a specialised Master's degree, called things like
MMath, MPhys, MChem, MEng etc. These 'fourth-year Masters' of 'undergraduate
Masters' are classified, like undergraduate degrees; if you leave after the
third year, you get an unclassified BA (that is, without honours). These
Masters set you up for your three-year doctorate immediately; you don't need
to bother with an MSc. I'm not sure if these types of Masters also
'graduate' into MAs, but I think that something does happen - virtually
every successful student at Oxford gets two degree ceremonies! Cambridge has
something similar, only I think that, since they don't separate Physics,
Chemistry, Biology, Biochem etc. as undergraduate degrees, lumping
everything under the single Tripos of 'Natural Sciences', your fourth-year
Masters is called an MSci or something like that.

Classics, some types of Oriental Studies, and those flavours of Modern
Languages and Law that include a year abroad are the only four-year courses
at Oxford where you don't get anything special for it, and just end up a BA
/ MA.

>I have not studied String Theory in depth and not noticed the lack of
>falsifiability. If it is so then the physicists have good reason to
>object. On the other hand, a physicist is unlikely to say that he
>objected to it because it was developed by mathematicians. "Not
>invented here" syndrome seems to be real but people rarely admit to it.

Reminds me of that old joke:

An American man checks into a somewhat posh British hotel, and is waiting
with his bags to go up. A helpful porter comes and presses the call button,
assuring the American that, 'The lift will be here in just a moment, sir.'

The American says, 'The what?'

'The lift, sir. It will be here in a moment.'

'Do you mean the *elevator* will be here in a moment?'

The porter's getting a little annoyed. 'No, sir, I mean the *lift*.'

'Listen, son, I think I should know what they're called - elevators were
invented in America!'

'Well, that may be, sir, but the language was invented here!'

Neeraj Mathur


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