Aelfgyfu

Two quick questions. I've flown British Air and should remember the answer, but I don't:
Do British pilots think and talk of altitude in terms of feet, or meters?

Second: there's an old, overused joke that goes something like this:
The scientist asks, “Why does it work?”
The engineer asks, “How does it work?”
The English major asks, “Would you like fries with that?”

What would the UK equivalent of "Would you like fries with that?" be? Do English people actually ask "Would you like chips with that?", or is there some other standard fast-food question that could stand in, possibly unrelated to fries or chips?

Someone referred me here (can't remember who, I'm afraid), and this post just makes me happy: The Alot is Better Than You at Everything.

(I need a language icon. I tried to make icons out of parts of IPA charts, first vowels and then consonants, but they looked horrible. Anyone have any better ideas?)

For with_apostrophe, based on this post, I bring you the following poll! (Yes, I'm sure with_apostrophe is perfectly capable of writing her own poll, but I have so much fun with them!

First, think about what you call the following punctuation, before you see the poll, so the options don't mess you up:

!

( Now vote! )

You can read a lovely (though poorly titled, as a colleague observed) article on the wonderful Dictionary of Old English here, online at Humanities magazine. The DOE is a thing of beauty and a joy that grows with each letter we receive. Would that it were free so that I could share it with you all! Alas, it is by subscription only.

However, The MIddle English Compendium became free a couple of years ago, to my surprise and delight. One can always dream.

[Poll #1518021]

( My reasons for asking )

I keep catching myself referring to the "hot water heater," which is clearly redundant: who wants a "cold water heater" or a "lukewarm water heater"? So I wondered if I'm alone. ( Brief poll under the cut )

I asked at the end of November about the usage of "blond" and "blonde". ( Here it is at last, probably disappointing )

( Userpics and fandoms )




( Very brief remarks on SGA: 'Identity', with spoilers )