How do you say "fagus"?

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I've had tell that the Latin for Yew has an interesting origin in History. Named in fact for the, these days little known, but in his day the famously loved and popular Roman tax collector Boccatus. Possibly the only loved or even generally liked purveyor of his dastardly trade in the world, ever.

Legend has it that Boccatus was an extraordinary man, so infinitely charismatic and naturally likeable that one day as the Mob of Rome rioted over the latest rises in tax and neared the Senate, burning all in their way, Boccatus rose from his office and in an infinitely beautiful manner halted the mob with one raised hand. In a short speech of just a few moments, such was his personality and wisdom that he had convinced the people of Rome of the wisdom and merit of paying taxes.

As his speech drew to a close, the Romans felt unified and a shared sense of purpose. A deep and meaningful bonding had evidently stirred the once baying mob. Some felt impelled to hug and hold hands. Tears shimmered in the eyes of many.

Boccatus spoke once more. "People of Rome! Are we clear? We need to pay our taxes!"

The crowd, moved to tears spoke back as one. " Ahhh you. Tax us Boccatus!"

Over the millenia, some lingustic differentiations have evolved but thats what happened. Honest.
 
God I HATE plebs who pronounce Fungi as "Funge-eye"...they also tend to witter on about 'a single criteria'...it's a CRITERION!

Sam, edimacated by a rabid classicist...but still no patrician.


P.S. "Funge-ee"

P.P.S. I always wanted to be a bearer of fasces....
 
dickm":u71mfy5g said:
misterfish":u71mfy5g said:
I also pronounce it Fay gus - I was a professional botanist and worked as a plant taxonomist in the herbarium at RGB Kew for 8 years after getting a degree in botany and working as a post-graduate research assistant for a further two years. Fay-gus was certainly the 'normal' pronounciation at the time but these things can and do change over time.
... and anyway, now taxonomists have access to DNA technology, it's probably only a matter of time before F. sylvatica gets moved to some wildly different genus like Taraxacum or something equally bizarre.
I'm sure they just do it to befuddle us elderly agrobotanists.

It always used to be splitters vs lumpers - with the splitters naming new species for the slightest variation they observe, while the lumpers put a whole spectrum of variation in a single species. The definition of a species was always defined by the notion of being decided by a competent taxonomist, but there was never a clear definition of competent!

When I left Kew they were starting to chemically analyse plants (looking for potential useful pharmaceuticals) and also scanning electron microscopy to see morphological differences not visible using light microscopes.

Misterfish
 
misterfish":2i8tf573 said:
When I left Kew they were starting to chemically analyse plants (looking for potential useful pharmaceuticals) and also scanning electron microscopy to see morphological differences not visible using light microscopes.

Misterfish

I hope this implies that in a few years they will have identified some genetic differences proving that I don't belong to te same spesies as the members of the Finnish nazi party............
 
Custard...
You could be right about clamp v cramp, of course. However, I seem to recall, the use of clamp for cramp, is imported nomenclature from the USA. I can't ever remember particular wood-tradesmen over here calling them sash-'clamps'; always 'cramps'. But as time wears on, especially since the internet has grown, and Fora like this one sprouted, it seems either word suits. I have to check these days, that I am calling a cramp a cramp! :lol:

Happy New Year :D

John
 
Misterfish? Quite agree with "lumpers and splitters". When I used multivariate analysis etc etc MANY years ago, it was a question of where you chose a significant diversion (numerically speaking) had occured. I remember 'proving' Cannabis sativa's (then) four varieties were in fact three, only to have my lecturer assessor mildly disagree with my choice of discriminatory value...he gave me a high mark, but the amiable bickering continued, right through coffee break and into the next day...great times.

Sam
 
screwpainting":1ml3zqm7 said:
Fag buttocks

Don't you just hate it when the forum's automated Word Police Algorithm messes up a profound and thoughtful post in such a manner? Most inconsiderate.....

I'm not sure it's a frequently used pronunciation within - say - the hallowed portals of Kew, though. Elsewhere, perhaps.
 
SammyQ":hyg2u94h said:
Misterfish? Quite agree with "lumpers and splitters". When I used multivariate analysis etc etc MANY years ago, it was a question of where you chose a significant diversion (numerically speaking) had occured. I remember 'proving' Cannabis sativa's (then) four varieties were in fact three, only to have my lecturer assessor mildly disagree with my choice of discriminatory value...he gave me a high mark, but the amiable bickering continued, right through coffee break and into the next day...great times.

Sam

Quite! It was great fun trying to weight the various charcteristics of the different fern genera. We started using a Commodore PET to do the maths but it still took ages (overnight) to run complex routines written in BASIC. We dabbled a bit with assembler and ended up with routines that completed in minutes rather than hours. Mind you it was a matter of discussion trying to get definitive results from all the data and analyses. If nothing else it keeps taxonomists busy.

Misterfish
 
I should , but sadly am not, fully up to speed on all this, as we had two, or it may even have been three, lectures in the general area of taxonomy and molecular genetics given to the Friends of the Cruickshank Botanic Garden last year. "Lumpers versus splitters" "phylogenetic trees" "epigenetc change" and lots more.
But as a long retired agronomist, still haven't come to terms with them moving couch grass from Agropyron to Elymus, and that was years back :oops:
 
Dick, you know and I know, the "accepted wisdom" on ANYTHING is only that for ten minutes until the next paper in research arrives. We are part of a dynamic Science. Yay!

Sam
 
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