Wild Slang

Have you recently looked up the average number of text messages you send every day? If you have, have you checked to see in how many of them you used abbreviations, incorrect grammar, slang, or no punctuation? As texting and social media have been on the rise over the past decade everyone has adjusted to simplifying their ideas, with grammatical mistakes, as much as possible. After we continuously make grammatical errors or simplify our thoughts in our posts or texts it becomes a habit. This habit of informal communication has begun to take over the world.

Knowing when to use formal writing and correct punctuation is very important. Using incorrect punctuation can reflect a negative image on a person in certain situations. For example, if you are trying to get a job and you wrote a resume using incorrect punctuation, slang and abbreviations then that could foreshadow on whether you receive the job or not. We should all know to use correct punctuation and proper grammar when dealing with professional topics. If you are writing to your co-workers, bosses or teachers it is important to know the difference between their and there or your and you’re. Writing an email, letter or memo with incorrect wording or improper punctuation can create a different meaning then what the sender is trying to portray. Make sure you proofread every piece of writing that’s supposed to be important and sound professional so you can make it correct.

The interesting thing about slang and informal communication is that it has grown so much during the past decade. Most of these improper writings come from the younger generation in the world. The older generation is better at knowing the correct times to use the correct language. Most of our grandparents and even some parents do not understand what this “slang” means half the time. It is easier for them to use the correct language and punctuation because they grew up using it. The access for electronics, social media, and texting starts at a very young age now-days. Repetitively reading and replying to slang at a very young age creates the bad habit of informal communication during this young age. Everyone should know that doing something over and over from such a young age is hard to change when you get older. We all need to constantly remind ourselves that it is okay to talk and write informally, but we also need to practice formal writing at times.

Any time you have the chance to write formally you should take advantage of it. Writing formally makes you look professional and educated. Correcting as many mistakes as possible in your texts and social media posts will help form the skills of correct writing for appropriate times. Next time you see someone make a mistake point it out and make sure they understand the difference in what they wrote and what they meant. Being corrected might be embarrassing at that point in time, but impressing someone with correct grammar, punctuation and word usage in the long run will bring a great feeling of accomplishment. Language can be confusing, but hey so are the electronic devices you use daily. If you can succeed with figuring out all the new technology then formal communication won’t be too big of a challenge for you to understand.

– Trevor Armel IUPUC Business Finance Major

Can Social Media Get You Fired?

Most people have posted to some sort of social media, whether it is Facebook, Twitter, or some other site.  Thanks to technology, people can upload pictures right after they are taken, update their Facebook status, tweet and add comments to other people’s posts all with the click of a few buttons.  Technology has also made it easier for employers to see what their employees are posting.  This has led to some people losing their jobs due to what they posted on social media.

Here are some examples:

  • In Georgia, Johnny Cook, a bus driver, was fired for sharing a story on his Facebook page about a child who was not allowed to get a school lunch because his lunch account had a 40 cent deficit.  The school requested that Cook take down the post and say that he is sorry or else be fired.  He chose the latter.
  • In Australia, a video was posted of some miners doing “The Harlem Shake.”  After their employer found out, the miners were fired.
  • A woman lost her job after insulting her boss on Facebook.  Her boss was one of her Facebook friends.
  • In 2013, a picture was posted of a Taco Bell employee licking some hard taco shells.  He was fired, along with the employee who took the picture.  Taco Bell stated that the employees were fired for taking the picture and posting it to the Internet, which is against their policies.
  • A high school math teacher from Denver was fired for tweeting about marijuana and posting some risqué photos.
  • A woman from Switzerland was fired from her job just for checking updates on Facebook on the same day she called in sick to work stating “she could not work in front of a computer as she needed to lie in the dark.”
  • A woman was fired from her waitress job after posting insults about the restaurant’s customers on her Facebook page.
  • Celebrities are not safe either.  Gilbert Gottfried was fired by Aflac “less than an hour” after tweeting jokes about the tsunami in Japan.
  • Ex-MLB player Mike Bacsik was fired from a radio show in Texas after tweeting, “Congrats to all the dirty Mexicans in San Antonio” after the Dallas Mavericks lost a playoff game in 2010.

Social media is a good way to keep in touch with family members and friends.  Before you post anything though, you may want to stop and think about who might see it and could there be any negative consequences.  If you are Facebook friends with your boss, definitely do not post derogatory comments about him because more than likely he will see it, and you may be called into his office to discuss it the next day.

Another thing to ask yourself before posting anything is “will this reflect badly on me or my employer?”  If your employer is doing something unethical or illegal, that is one thing, just be prepared for the consequences if you write about it on social media.  But if you are just venting about something that made you angry at work or posting a picture of yourself doing a keg stand, you may want to rethink it and just share it with close friends and family members.

 

By Amanda Smith, Business major – IUPUC

 

http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/06/living/buzzfeed-social-media-fired/index.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/26/fired-over-facebook-posts_n_659170.html

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/employee-fired-from-taco-bell-for-licking-shells/

 

 

 

How Language Changes and New Words Are Created

The evolution of language is an interesting thing. It happens every day in every culture. From Shakespearean language to the abbreviated text message, language is capable of evolving in extraordinary ways. There are new words appearing everyday making it difficult to understand how they change. Now there are programs that are constantly scanning the web for new words and phrases it has become easier for language to be tracked and expanded. With new words appearing everyday it can become difficult to understand how they evolve.

Over time all languages change. In early history, language changed due to migration, colonization, and invasions. As of recently language has been evolving due to new technologies, products, industries and experiences that require new words. When you use a new word you are inspiring change in the way we use language. With each individual using the language in his or her own way it also helps to change how we use language.

The change in language happens in different ways. Meanings of words change as the cultures evolve. When sounds interact it may change the way they originally sounded and were used. Words are then created from different sounds interacting. Those words are then added to sentences to express new or old meanings.

Adding new words to the dictionary takes time. The Oxford Dictionary uses the Oxford English Corpus and the Oxford Reading Programme. The Oxford English Corpus is a collection of texts of written or spoken language presented in electronic form. The Oxford English Corpus tracks and records what new words are being used. It also includes the context in which they are used. This helps to find new trends in usage and spelling. The Oxford mainly searches the World Wide Web (WWW). It scans text from academic journals, novels, newspapers, magazines, blogs, emails and social media.

The Oxford Reading Programme is also a key aspect in adding new words to the dictionary. The Reading Programme is an electronic collection of sentences or short extract taken from a large variety of writing. Anything from scientific journals to music lyrics are collected. While the Reading Programme scans the WWW and collects this data while an international network of readers look for new words and meanings or other language changes.

Over the last five years the Oxford Dictionary had added quite a few new words. It includes:

  • Binge-watch
  • Neckbeard
  • Hot mess
  • YOLO
  • Cray

Although new words are added to the dictionary every year, new definitions of words already in the dictionary are being added as well. A new meaning for brick was recently added to the dictionary in reference to a large smart phone that is typically an earlier model that had limited functionality.

Language is always changing and becoming something new. People are still able to communicate with one another. As technology becomes more advanced so does the language and the ways we use it. Today we are a multimedia society. We abbreviate words and communicate without actually having to make a sound. Maybe in 30 years we wouldn’t even have to do that. With change always happening language must adapt quickly for those who use it.

By: Theresa Hickey, Accounting Major – IUPUC

http://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/linguistics/change.jsp

http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us

Puppies: Being Bad or Sending a Message?

You’re walking down the street window shopping and you pass by a very cute puppy in the pet store window. Instantly, you fall in love with the cute little face and go inside to cuddle with the darling innocent baby. The second you hold and play with the yopetland-janesville-teddybearung pup you know it’s an instant match. You and your new love are soon on your way to starting a new life together and nothing is in your way. Well, until you get home and the puppy starts to destroy the beautifully decorated home. Wait! Don’t take that puppy back to the store yet. Listen to what the fur kid is telling you! Those bad behaviors could be a message to you.
•BARKING: Is the barking keeping you up at night?
You had a long day at work and ready for some relaxation time. Without thinking you go to your room, flip on the TV and then doze to sleep. Then it starts, your young canine friend starts barking, barking and barking. You’re enraged! You want sleep.
STOP! It’s not ALL about you. Like a human baby or young child, the puppy gets hungry, has to go to the bathroom, or is bored from not having enough play time earlier. Just be lucky the puppy gave you a warning before messing in the house.
•BITING OR NIPPING: Your hand hurt after the puppy thinks it is a toy?
Now you are awake and moving again, and your puppy friend is very excited! Now free from the crate, the puppy can’t wait to show you how excited and tugs on your hand. Ouch! Ok, this behavior does need to be stopped while your puppy is very young; however, do be patient. Puppies nip and mouth each other as a form of play and is a common phase and play method with their litter mates. Since this is a natural form of communication, this behavior will take lots of patience and time to overcome.
puppy_advice_image•CHEWING: Missing your favorite shoes yet?
Now you have gone outside and enjoyed a nice late night walk, since you are alert and having a hard time finding the desire to go to bed you start to clean your home. Uh oh! You have now remembered that you left your favorite pair or running shoes right by the front door. Since one is there, you know the other should be right next to it. Surprise! They were your favorite shoes, but before getting too mad at your young friend, remember the teething stage of babies? Oh yes puppies do that too. Chewing helps puppies from having plaque buildup on their teeth, minimizes the pain of teething and build the jaw muscles.
•MESSING IN THE HOUSE: Tired of cleaning up the puddles in the kitchen?
Finally, you have fallen asleep and enjoy the rest of your evening rest. In the morning you wake up, the first spot you stop is to see your cute little puppy because you have forgiven it for the bad behaviors of yesterday. Oh no! The bad behaviors are quickly remembered and you hurry the puppy outside you can clean up the puddle. Potty training can be difficult for many puppies. This process can take several weeks for the puppy to “catch on”. Lucky for you, cleaning the puddles is not puppy-in-a-hole-july-241as messy or smelly as changing diapers.
•DIGGING: You say you have flowers planted out front? How about HAD flowers planted?
Successfully, you have cleaned the kitchen and begun the rest of your day. On your way out the door, you realize the puppy isn’t trying to squeeze between your feet. Rushing to your back door, you look out to find your flowers in a pile of dirt, but not where you planted them. Going outside, you go to find the little puppy sleeping innocently in the small hole. Puppies and dogs have a tendency to dig for a few reasons. Some dogs dig out of boredom or to utilize extra energy. Others dig to bury their precious possessions or to find a comfort such as a nesting spot or to cool off.

-Kayleigh Clear, Business Student-IUPUC

http://www.fidosavvy.com/puppy-behavior.html
http://dogs.about.com/od/dogtraining/tp/behaviorproblems.htm

What should be told to you?

People always wonder if their boss is telling them everything, sometimes it is everything and sometimes it isn’t. Generally employees want to know everything that is going on, but is that really a good thing? It might not always be a good thing to know what the boss is doing and what they are going to do. If an employee is not told certain information there is probably a good reason that information is kept from them. One of the biggest reasons is because the employee does not need to know the information, and it would just cause concern to tell them.

On the other hand it might help out the company if all of the employees knew what was going on. People would stop worrying about the information they were not being given and focus more on what their jobs are. There are benefits and drawbacks from employees having too much knowledge. The employees are not worried about what they are not being told, but also there is some information that executives would rather not be known by the employees.

Most of the information that would be kept from the employees would be the company’s financial status, salaries, and possible mergers with other companies. When it comes down to it that information really does not need to be in the hands of regular employees, and if they do know about it on a regular basis then that can cause worry throughout the company. For some companies it may be possible to tell the employees more, but for most it is a better idea to tell the employees as much as they need to do their jobs.

What should be told to you?

People always wonder if their boss is telling them everything, sometimes it is everything and sometimes it isn’t. Generally employees want to know everything that is going on, but is that really a good thing? It might not always be a good thing to know what the boss is doing and what they are going to do. If an employee is not told certain information there is probably a good reason that information is kept from them. One of the biggest reasons is because the employee does not need to know the information, and it would just cause concern to tell them.

On the other hand it might help out the company if all of the employees knew what was going on. People would stop worrying about the information they were not being given and focus more on what their jobs are. There are benefits and drawbacks from employees having too much knowledge. The employees are not worried about what they are not being told, but also there is some information that executives would rather not be known by the employees.

Most of the information that would be kept from the employees would be the company’s financial status, salaries, and possible mergers with other companies. When it comes down to it that information really does not need to be in the hands of regular employees, and if they do know about it on a regular basis then that can cause worry throughout the company. For some companies it may be possible to tell the employees more, but for most it is a better idea to tell the employees as much as they need to do their jobs.

Is technology affecting hand written everything?

meandleoWhen I was in the second grade, I would get sent home with writing homework. Once I finished my spelling and vocabulary on the newsprint paper with the big green dashed lines, my dad would thoroughly critique it picking everything apart from misspelled words to erase marks that almost burnt holes in the paper. Although it was a royal pain to redo assignments over and over again until it met his expectations, I realized his reasoning as I got older.

Now as the technological age has severely put a footprint on the world, we notice that the almighty pen and pencil are slowly losing its place in the world. The constant use of many types of keyboards, whether it be computers, tablets, cellphones etc…, has definitely affected our hand writing and the things that are normally hand written. For example, while I was in basic training seven years ago, I had someone ask me how to address and envelope. At first I thought he was joking, but then I realized he was completely serious! He told me all he knew was how to write emails and never wrote a hand written letter before.

Not only have the norms started to become endangered the quality of what remains is at an all time low. Now that people use technology in every aspect, it has made our hand writing sloppy and illegible. The most writing people do anymore is sign when they swipe a card and that too involves digital screens! Now in grade schools they are receiving tablets to do homework and there have been talks of not teaching cursive anymore, saying its a dying art form. I understand we evolve as mankind but remembering our roots may be effective in the future.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/26/tech/web/impact-technology-handwriting/

 

 

Comparison and contrast of Newegg and TigerDirect

Today I am comparing and contrasting two consumer electronic business websites. Newegg is an award winning site for being one of the best sites to buy electronics by the web. TigerDirect focuses its success around electronic computer sales, along with retail stores to help with continued revenue. Let’s compare and contrast both companies’ websites. Comparing the site’s design, layout, and who the target audience is they are trying to focus. Also comparing to products both companies have on its websites. Contrasting what both sites do to stay ahead of the competition.

When you go to Newegg’s home page the first thing to catch any customers’ eye is the sale and saving ads playing at the center of the page. It’s a good way to keep the customer interested. Furthermore the next focus it wants the customer on is all the other deals, best sellers, and what other customers have browsed and bought. Not only that, it also had ads of Super Smash Bros on the outer edge of its webpage. Newegg’s current focus towards the consumer market is on college students, gamers, and everyday electronic users. My personal experience with this site is I bought my current computer parts on this site. It was easy to do research on the site alone. My research was easy given other customers’ reviews, along with on-site help finding parts compatible with each other. The parts prices were cheap, they arrived on the scheduled day, and the packaging was in great condition.

TigerDirect’s Home page is more simply for a newer guest to browsing the market for electronics. Having the same set up that draws the eye of attention on the fall saving sales, and deals scrolling across the center for the headline on the site. Its nesting of products is easy to find as well placed under the scrolling deal section. Mouse over this product search section it opens up for more products that draw less attention, such as: cameras, hard drives, smart watches, and surveillance products. TigerDirect keeps its site more simple color and layout wise from Newegg’s high designed layout. Its advertising on its site is on fall deals for every customer, but also on the football fans with football players displayed on TVs, laptops, and tablets. My personal experience with this site is the same with Newegg’s, but a better deal on the processor I was looking for. On time delivery, good condition packaging, but I spent less time on the research since I already knew what processer I was looking for.

Pricing of both sites varies on the products, both them have. Comparing the price of one product that both sites, is the Lenovo Y50 Intel core i7 laptop. TigerDirect lists the product for 1,179.99 from its original price of 1,249.99. TigerDirect advertises all the major details about the product to draw in the customer in, along with the option for warranties and accident protection for a big price. Newegg’s original list price is 1,299.99 but the 70.00 savings have made it 1,229.99 just a bit more than TigerDirect’s. Newegg though offers a free software package of a value of 200.00, along with the customer’s choice of parts in the laptop to make it less or more in price. To conclude Newegg’s price it offers warranties for less money and less timed covered as well.

Furthermore these sites have reasonable prices on products that the other site might have or doesn’t have. Newegg’s site has a lot of advertising, unlike TigerDirect’s site that targets upcoming releases, or hot deals the site is having. TigerDirect keeps its site simple and to the point with the viewer’s focusing on lower prices and customers that want the best electronics for football season. Newegg’s target audience leans toward the younger audience of gamers, and college students. TigerDirect’s target audience more the middle to older aged audience for the football guys out there. As for my personal experience with both sites they both have great qualities of information on the products, along with the pricing and customer support on customer’s needs. This concludes my comparison and contrast of both Newegg and TigerDirect.