Thursday, May 03, 2007

It's truly amazing what one can learn when one is exposed to new environments.

No i'm not talking about cheesy 'leadership skills' that you supposedly pick up on overseas attachments and the like. I'm talking about leetspeak and it's effect on language. As a gamer I feel I am in a position to elaborate further on this matter.

Specimen #1, The term 'lol' has actually evolved from being a mere appreviation to becoming a sort of damper in sentences. A Device, if I may say so. When inserted correctly it serves to make a sentence seem less threatening than it originally was, minimising the chance for conflict.

Case in point - "Why are you late?" as opposed to "lol why are you late?"

Clearly, this helps to prevent potential misunderstandings that may occur. Not only does this have practical applications, it goes to show that language is constantly evolving, and those that restrict their education to books and curriculum material will be hard pressed to notice this.

Never underestimate what you can learn from any source.

Keep your eyes - and your mind - open.