spikepipsqueak
My Brane Hertz
Versus, people. The word is versus.
And you can't "verse" anybody, either.
And you can't "verse" anybody, either.
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Grammar, Spelling and Usage Peeves
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PyramidHead
Contributor
Not grammar, but word usage nonetheless: "subconscious". The correct term is "unconscious", but many seem to think that can't be right, since unconscious usually means asleep. But the psychological concept of impulses that lie below our conscious awareness indeed applies equally to waking and sleeping. It's not like there's the conscious mind, the subconscious mind, and the unconscious mind; the latter two are the same thing. "Subconscious" is a made-up word that probably originated to help viewers understand the idea without confusing them about sleep.
That's exactly why I use it. It's useful to have a different word for "asleep" or "knocked out" to differentiate that from when you want to describe urges and motivations that you're not conscious of while awake and not asleep. I don't see why this is not an efficient and useful way to use these words for the purpose of nuance and accuracy of meaning.
PyramidHead
Contributor
That's exactly why I use it. It's useful to have a different word for "asleep" or "knocked out" to differentiate that from when you want to describe urges and motivations that you're not conscious of while awake and not asleep. I don't see why this is not an efficient and useful way to use these words for the purpose of nuance and accuracy of meaning.
Could you give an example where it would be confusing to say "unconscious"?
Wiploc
Veteran Member
If you said, "I had an unconscious desire," I'd think you wanted something while you were asleep. And I'd think that was weird.
Or I'd think your desire was itself asleep. And, again, I'd think that was weird.
PyramidHead
Contributor
See, I think that makes perfect sense as it is, because the desires that are hidden beneath the surface are often those that are manifested in dreams. I would have said that I unconsciously desired something. In context, not talking about what I did while I was asleep last night, I think it would be obvious what I mean while fitting the accepted terminology.
couch_sloth
Member
I’ve always struggled with grammar and spelling.
Until a few years ago, I didn’t know the word pique existed.
Pique, meaning to irritate or stimulate. I thought people were actually using the word “peak” or “peaked”, in the sense of to raise or lift. e.g. “That will peak (pique) her interest.”
What’s funny is that I must have seen the word in writing for years, and simply ignored it.
Until a few years ago, I didn’t know the word pique existed.
Pique, meaning to irritate or stimulate. I thought people were actually using the word “peak” or “peaked”, in the sense of to raise or lift. e.g. “That will peak (pique) her interest.”
What’s funny is that I must have seen the word in writing for years, and simply ignored it.
Hermit
Cantankerous grump
You are right, except for the last sentence. Sigmund Freud borrowed the word from Pierre Genet and published his concept of the subconscious in 1893. By the turn of the century he became critical of the concept's usefulness,and in 1927 he rejected it outright, concluding an article with "The only trustworthy antithesis is between conscious and unconscious". In popular culture the word "subconscious" persists because the plebs cannot get their heads around the idea that one can be unconscious about something without actually being asleep, anaesthetised, knocked out in a fight or something like that.
Hermit
Cantankerous grump
It irritates me when people write "phased" when they mean "fazed".
bilby
Fair dinkum thinkum
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I'm surprised that you are phased by it.
Manifested in dreams? Really? And the support for that is? What?
Hermit
Cantankerous grump
It's not a phase I'm going through. Unintentional malapropisms always irritate me. Ur obliviously off the hook.
TSwizzle
I am unburdened by what has been.
"I will try and call Jane after lunch" gets on my nerves a bit. It is "try to". But I think I am in a minority on this one.
PyramidHead
Contributor
Okay, so I have a really big pet peeve that came forcefully into my attention at a company-wide meeting this week. For some reason, management-level employees at corporations are unable to say the word "about".
Harry is going to provide some insight around how we plan on meeting Q3 goals...
Jen will show some results that speak to the success of our strategy...
I'm not sure I understand point #3, can you give some more color around that?
Let's regroup offline and do a deep dive into these data...
What's so abhorrent about 'about'?!
Harry is going to provide some insight around how we plan on meeting Q3 goals...
Jen will show some results that speak to the success of our strategy...
I'm not sure I understand point #3, can you give some more color around that?
Let's regroup offline and do a deep dive into these data...
What's so abhorrent about 'about'?!
TSwizzle
I am unburdened by what has been.
I just heard someone on youtube say "literal mind fuck." 
No.
No.
Hermit
Cantankerous grump
Virtual reality
PyramidHead
Contributor
Oh, they looooove the deep dive. Another one is "circle back". Let's circle back offline. No, idiot: let's talk after the meeting.
bilby
Fair dinkum thinkum
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"Offline" is usually code for "never".
"Let's circle back offline" means "I want the people in this room to think I care about your point, but I don't care, so shut the fuck up".