2 ms·
You're fighting the good fight. I've recently seen the term "exponential" used in the press to mean all sort of things, but mostly as equivalent to "really fast
by Y_Y 6y ago
You're fighting the good fight. I've recently seen the term "exponential" used in the press to mean all sort of things, but mostly as equivalent to "really fast". This kind of thing may be inevitable, but it's a pity that such sharp and descriptive terminology is decaying into just another term for "growing quickly".
- denton-scratch 6y agoI've seen this abuse of the term "exponential" a lot in the press as well (i.e. meaning "really fast"). This is unfortunate in these pandemic times; a new infection does indeed spread through a susceptible population exponentiaally (at least while the susceptible population is much larger than the infectious population). By degrading the language, journalists deprive themselves of the ability to talk clearly about the spread of the pandemic. I think this abuse of "exponential" is supposed to make the writer look erudite, even though they haven't a clue what the word means.
- getlawgdon 6y agoThere are journalists who understand the meaning of "exponential."