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Interesting article about some of the mechanics of DNA and evolution. But I wanted to call out a confusing use of the increasingly ambiguous word “partner” her
by skywhopper 8y ago
Interesting article about some of the mechanics of DNA and evolution.
But I wanted to call out a confusing use of the increasingly ambiguous word “partner” here: “There, she and her partner, Arthur DeVries, studied the notothens”.
What sort of partner? Research partner, clearly. Oh, but with some googling you can find that they are married, so also romantic/life partner.
I appreciate the sentiment behind the takeoff in the use of this phrasing, but it inevitably leads to confusion in communication. Can we come up with a better word that is not so ambiguous? And if not, can we (or at least the editors at places like The Atlantic) try to clarify what sort of partner when the meaning is ambiguous?
- dmckeon 8y agoWhy? This is science reporting, not tabloid journalism. We don’t need to know the marital status, gender preference, dietary restrictions, previous relationships, etc. Good writing about science is plenty. And “spouse” is a fine word if needed.
- flukus 8y ago> We don’t need to know the marital status, gender preference, dietary restrictions, previous relationships, etc. I agree, but a lot of science reporting and especially TV/movie documentaries are going down the path of "telling a story" and focusing more on the process and characters involved rather than facts. This is particularly true from outlets like the Atlantic, so if GP went in with the expectation of that kind of article I can understand how they got confused.
- Simon_says 8y agoI agree with you, but then why bring it up at all?
- Qwertystop 8y agoThey didn't bring it up. > What sort of partner? Research partner, clearly. The fact that the two happen also to be married need not be related to the use of the word.
- hycaria 8y agoI directly understood it as both romantic and work partner.
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]