Despite the humble origins of its name (Anglo Saxon for "the speck at the head of a boil"), the dot has been one of the most versatile players in the history of written communication, to the point that it has become virtually indispensable. Now, in On the Dot, Alexander and Nicholas Humez offer a wide ranging, entertaining account of this much overlooked and minuscule linguistic sign. The Humez brothers shed light on the dot in all its various forms. As a mark of punctuation, they show, it plays many roles--as sentence stopper, a constituent of the colon (a clause stopper), and the ellipsis (dot dot dot). In musical notation, it denotes "and a half." In computerese, it has several different functions (as in dot com, the marker between a file name and its extension, and in some slightly more arcane uses in programming languages). The dot also plays a number of roles in mathematics, including the notation of world currency (such as dollars dot cents), in Morse code (dots and dashes), and in the raised dots of Braille. And as the authors connect all these dots, they take readers on an engaging tour of the highways and byways of language, ranging from the history of the question mark and its lesser known offshoots the point d'ironie and the interrobang, to acronyms and backronyms, power point bullets and asterisks, emoticons and the "at-sign." Playful, wide-ranging, and delightfully informative, On the Dot reveals how thoroughly the dot is embedded in our everyday world of words and ideas, acquiring a power inversely proportional to its diminutive size.

On the Dot: The Speck That Changed the World

Reference

Humez, Alexander

Humez, Nicholas

Words, Language & Grammar

Oxford University Press

Our everyday lives are inevitably touched--and immeasurably enriched--by an extraordinary variety of miniature forms of verbal communication, from classified ads to street signs, and from yesterday's graffito to tomorrow's headline. Celebrating our long history of compact speech, Short Cuts offers a well-researched and vibrantly written account of this unsung corner of the linguistic world, inspiring a new appreciation of the wondrously varied forms of our briefest exchanges. Alexander Humez, Nicholas Humez, and Rob Flynn shed light here on an ever-growing field of minimalist genres, ranging from the bank robbery note to the billboard, from the curse hurled from a car window (or the Senate floor) to the suicide note, and from the ghost-word to the ring tone. The book is divided into ten thematic sections, as varied as "In the Dictionary" (discussing such topics as Sniglets, Mountweazels, and the Wiktionary), "In and Out of Trouble" (error messages, weasel words, the pre-nup), and "On the Lam" (ransom notes, wanted posters, portraits parl�s). The authors look at the comic strip's maladicta balloon and the dinner-interrupter's robocalls, the advice column and the obit, and the many ways your personal appearance tells us who you are, from the message on your gimme cap to the tattoo with your S.O.'s name on your ankle. Uncovering the elegance, the humor, and the unspoken implications in these fleeting communications, this book provides a satisfying thoroughness and an abundance of connections that unravel how the oath became the swearword and the calling card salver turned into the Facebook wall. For readers who love language and enjoy rummaging through the cultural baggage that comes with it, Short Cuts gathers an engaging sampler of the most delightful and cogent--and above all brief--forms of contemporary English.

Short Cuts: A Guide to Oaths, Ring Tones, Ransom Notes, Famous Last Words, and Other Forms of Minimalist Communication

Politics & Social Sciences

Flynn, Rob

Social Sciences

Alexander and Nicholas Humez have fashioned an easy-going and satisfying introduction to the language that is the wellspring of the mother tongue. Their brief history of Classical and Vulgar Latin, explanation of the language's grammatical and sound systems, translation exercises, synopsis of grammar, and glossaries of Latin-English and English-Latin will enhance our understanding of every aspect of literature and the world of ideas. In addition, Latin for People contains two closing chapters, hailed as 'invaluable' by The Classical Outlook: one that translates all the readings in the book and one that suggests further readings.

Latin for people =: Latina pro populo

Little,Brown

Did you ever wonder why a stitch in time saves nine and not, say, four, or why the number seven is considered the luckiest, or what number the word googol refers to? Well, the Humez brothers, along with Joseph Maguire, have answered all of these questions and more. In "Zero to Lazy Eight", they take us on a wacky and enlightening trip up the linguistic number scale from zero to thirteen and back by way of infinity, showing us just what numbers can tell us about our culture's past, present, and future. Whether it be numerical maxims, mathematical theory, or numeric etymology, there is something here for everyone.

Zero to Lazy Eight: The Romance Numbers

Touchstone

A collection of essays blending elements of linguistics and mathematics provides an educational glimpse into the social history and culture of common phrases and colloquial expressions. By the authors of Alpha to Omega.

Zero to Lazy Eight: The Romance of Numbers

Simon&Schuster

A letter-by-letter look at the Greek alphabet portrays diverse aspects of ancient Greek culture and identifies its contribution to modern English

Alpha to Omega: The Life and Times of the Greek Alphabet

Literature & Fiction

Humez, Nicholas D.

History & Criticism

David R Godine Pub

Describes the origins and history of words adopted from Latin and discusses ancient and modern usage.

ABC Et Cetera: The Life & Times of the Roman Alphabet

Foreign Language Study & Reference

David R. Godine, Publisher

Describes the origins and history of words adopted from Latin and discusses ancient and modern usage

The private lives of English words

Explores the etymology of more than four hundred English-language words, discussing their original usage and how their meanings have evolved over time

The Private Lives of English Words

Heller, Louis G.

Dror, Malcah

Wynwood Pr

In the classic abecedarian fashion, ABC Et Cetera takes the reader on a wild and wooly ride through Roman history. Sixty percent of our working vocabulary descends directly from Latinate roots, and here we find not only the words, but also, through clever peregrinations, a generous overview of Roman history. Nothing in Roman culture or Romance is beyond the measure and mischief of the brothers Humez: not unicorns, Vestal Virgins, or maledicta balloons; not Roman nomenclature or dating systems; not Roman religion, education, humor, law, war, slavery, or literature; and not even the ubiquitous ampersand (a ligature of the contradiction et per se).

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Humez, Alexander. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Humez, Alexander

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Humez, Alexander. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

On the Dot: The Speck That Changed the World

Short Cuts: A Guide to Oaths, Ring Tones, Ransom Notes, Famous Last Words, and Other Forms of Minimalist Communication

Latin for people =: Latina pro populo

Zero to Lazy Eight: The Romance Numbers

Zero to Lazy Eight: The Romance of Numbers

Alpha to Omega: The Life and Times of the Greek Alphabet

ABC Et Cetera: The Life & Times of the Roman Alphabet

ABC Et Cetera: The Life & Times of the Roman Alphabet

The Private Lives of English Words

ABC Et Cetera: The Life & Times of the Roman Alphabet