LA Times review of new Samuel Johnson biography

'Samuel Johnson: The Struggle' by Jeffrey Meyers. Review by Tim Rutten, December 20, 2008

If you survey the geography of modern letters, three books stand out as signposts marking the beginning of paths that lead decisively away from all that went before. Augustine's "Confessions," the first memoir of an inner life, is one such work. So is Miguel de Cervantes' "Don Quixote," which is the first inarguably modern novel. The third is James Boswell's "The Life of Samuel Johnson," the earliest recognizable modern biography.

To read the rest of the review, visit http://tinyurl.com/7k9nbq.

The Buzzwords of 2008

From The New York Times, December 21, 2008


By MARK LEIBOVICH and GRANT BARRETT (Grant is a DSNA member)
WASHINGTON — Politics without buzzwords is like sports without clichés, math without numbers or Blago without bleeps. Tough to imagine, in other words, especially in such a game-changer of a campaign year in which buzzwords were flying like shoes.

To read the rest of the article, visit http://www.nytimes.com/. You must be a member to read the article, but membership is free.

Winter Break--DSNA office will be closed

The DSNA office will be closed for winter break from Monday, 22 December 2008 through Monday, 19 January 2009.

I will be checking email occasionally but will be out of town and unable to attend to day-to-day business.

LB

Students show teacher the definition of giving

A group of high school students in Port Neches, Texas gave their AP English teacher the 20-volume OED for Christmas. Better than an apple!

For the complete story (major holiday "Aaaaw" vibes), visit http://tinyurl.com/43upxy.

Voting for 2009-2013 DSNA Officers underway

Ballots have been mailed to all current DSNA members. Please vote! We need your response by the end of February. If you do not receive a ballot by the end of the year, please contact the DSNA office.

Lexicography Topics at MLA convention

MLA annual convention, San Francisco, December 2008

Sunday, 28 December

322. Whose Dictionary Is It Anyway?1:45–3:00 p.m., Golden Gate 5, Hilton.
Program arranged by the Discussion Group on Lexicography
Presiding: Jeffery A. Triggs, Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick
1. “Wanting a Name: Anonymity and Johnson’s Dictionary,” Gillian Paku, Harvard Univ.
2. “Authored by God: The Religious Demands on the New England Syllabary,” Michael S. Joseph, Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick
3. “Peirce’s Century,” Jeffery A. Triggs

Madoff unlikely to oust Ponzi in lingo

For the rest of this Reuters article visit http://tinyurl.com/6z3boy.

Words associated with Christianity and British history taken out of children's dictionary

The London Telegraph reports:

Oxford University Press has removed words like "aisle", "bishop", "chapel", "empire" and "monarch" from its Junior Dictionary and replaced them with words like "blog", "broadband" and "celebrity". Dozens of words related to the countryside have also been culled.

For the rest of the article, visit http://tinyurl.com/5hb66a.

LB

Webster's New World® College Dictionary Chooses "Overshare" as the 2008 Word of the Year

For the rest of the press release, visit http://tinyurl.com/65ebv4.

LB

Merriam Webster Word of the Year 2008: BAILOUT

Merriam-Webster Inc., America's leading language reference publisher, has announced the year's top ten words and definitions as culled from its popular Web site Merriam-Webster OnLine ( www.Merriam-Webster.com). For the rest of the article, visit http://tinyurl.com/57kyu8.

LB