The Random Image Thread (keeping it PG-13 at the worst)

[Pariah]

it's definitely a boot. also hooose instead of house and beg instead of bag.

never heard it once in my entire life except from giggling americans

I have heard people speak that way in the UP and extreme Northeastern Wisconsin.

[macaddict4life]

From what I've heard, the Canadian pronunciation of "about" sounds more like "a boat" than it sounds like "a boot".

The feature is called Canadian raising and moves the initial vowel in the dipthong from low to mid position. Americans hear it as "aboot" because we don't have the equivalent vowel sound in our linguistics so we hear the nearest familiar thing. It's like the stereotypical Asian r - l confusion. Certain Asian languages and dialects have less distinction between those two glides so they hear it as the same sound.

Some languages don't have the r/l distinction at all.

Another common one is f/v and p/b. Some languages (Bahasa Indonesia comes to mind) lack one or both of these dissections, making fat and vat sound like the same word and/or making pit and bit sound like the same word.

Actually for Japanese at least--both my parents had this speech "problem"--there is a different phoneme which is kinda-sorta halfway between the Western "r" and "l" phonemes, so when native Japanese speakers try to say "look" it can sound like "rook" to Western ears partially depending on context ("look takes pawn", "rook over there"). It is difficult to "unlearn" the speech habits one develops as an infant.

I can hear and speak all three phonemes. For me nearly all Westerners simply cannot say ”らめん” (ramen) correctly.

all "westeners"?

In Taiwan people use the term "foreigner" a lot, and it took me a little while to get used to it not being intended as offensive. Outside of the big city centers, little kids often lean to their mom or friend and point to me and and say with a look of surprise or curiosity, "wai-guo-ren" (meaning foreigner).

[chikie]

From what I've heard, the Canadian pronunciation of "about" sounds more like "a boat" than it sounds like "a boot".

The feature is called Canadian raising and moves the initial vowel in the dipthong from low to mid position. Americans hear it as "aboot" because we don't have the equivalent vowel sound in our linguistics so we hear the nearest familiar thing. It's like the stereotypical Asian r - l confusion. Certain Asian languages and dialects have less distinction between those two glides so they hear it as the same sound.

Some languages don't have the r/l distinction at all.

Another common one is f/v and p/b. Some languages (Bahasa Indonesia comes to mind) lack one or both of these dissections, making fat and vat sound like the same word and/or making pit and bit sound like the same word.

Actually for Japanese at least--both my parents had this speech "problem"--there is a different phoneme which is kinda-sorta halfway between the Western "r" and "l" phonemes, so when native Japanese speakers try to say "look" it can sound like "rook" to Western ears partially depending on context ("look takes pawn", "rook over there"). It is difficult to "unlearn" the speech habits one develops as an infant.

I can hear and speak all three phonemes. For me nearly all Westerners simply cannot say ”らめん” (ramen) correctly.

all "westeners"?

In Taiwan people use the term "foreigner" a lot, and it took me a little while to get used to it not being intended as offensive. Outside of the big city centers, little kids often lean to their mom or friend and point to me and and say with a look of surprise or curiosity, "wai-guo-ren" (meaning foreigner).

While in Ethiopia, I would have people point all the time shouting "fahrengi!" which means [western] foreigner.

[Geesie]

From what I've heard, the Canadian pronunciation of "about" sounds more like "a boat" than it sounds like "a boot".

The feature is called Canadian raising and moves the initial vowel in the dipthong from low to mid position. Americans hear it as "aboot" because we don't have the equivalent vowel sound in our linguistics so we hear the nearest familiar thing. It's like the stereotypical Asian r - l confusion. Certain Asian languages and dialects have less distinction between those two glides so they hear it as the same sound.

Some languages don't have the r/l distinction at all.

Another common one is f/v and p/b. Some languages (Bahasa Indonesia comes to mind) lack one or both of these dissections, making fat and vat sound like the same word and/or making pit and bit sound like the same word.

Actually for Japanese at least--both my parents had this speech "problem"--there is a different phoneme which is kinda-sorta halfway between the Western "r" and "l" phonemes, so when native Japanese speakers try to say "look" it can sound like "rook" to Western ears partially depending on context ("look takes pawn", "rook over there"). It is difficult to "unlearn" the speech habits one develops as an infant.

I can hear and speak all three phonemes. For me nearly all Westerners simply cannot say ”らめん” (ramen) correctly.

all "westeners"?

In Taiwan people use the term "foreigner" a lot, and it took me a little while to get used to it not being intended as offensive. Outside of the big city centers, little kids often lean to their mom or friend and point to me and and say with a look of surprise or curiosity, "wai-guo-ren" (meaning foreigner).

While in Ethiopia, I would have people point all the time shouting "fahrengi!" which means [western] foreigner.

Maybe it was a comment on your ears.

[justine]

This is a roadsign near my house. The sign is posted at the beginning of HWY50, and shows the end in Ocean City, MD.

roadsign.jpg

A girl I knew from Maryland told me that there is the reverse of the sign, with the distance to Sacramento, on the other end.

I used to live in Maryland, and yes, there is a similar sign just outside of Ocean City, MD

[jkahless]

[Pithecanthropus]

New origin story...

"Tell me, do you bleed... ketchup?"

[obvs]

I was thinking more "Hey kid, do you like hamburgers?"

[maurvir]

[maurvir]

[Alexander Supertramp]

I was thinking more "Hey kid, do you like hamburgers?"

I was thinking more leftover human waste from the budget costume shop.

[DEyncourt]

Margaret Hamilton--LEAD software engineer for Project Apollo--standing next to the collective printout of the code she wrote:

[DEyncourt]

"Empathy Cards For Serious Illness":



The creator on why she made this collection of cards.

[TOS]

[Ribtor]

.

[justine]

I shouldn't laugh, but i couldn't help it!

[maurvir]

[maurvir]

(Link to gallery)

[Metacell]

I hope it's somewhere cold and sunless.

[TOS]

printed out and tucked under windshield wipers at a crowded parking lot

[DEyncourt]

I hope it's somewhere cold and sunless.

Tropical Islands was built inside an old Soviet airship hangar, about 60 km south of Berlin.

[Geesie]

printed out and tucked under windshield wipers at a crowded parking lot

Other than the HPV, that's practically an advertisement!

[DukeofNuke]

I hope it's somewhere cold and sunless.

I hope that's a go-cart track in the center!

[TOS]

i believe it's a former zeppelin hangar

[TOS]

see, if you don't pull out and properly clean your contacts, you get parasites

[TOS]

[TOS]

[ukimalefu]

ok

[obvs]

https://vine.co/v/eBg77BaqIz5

[user]

fun pillows

[ukimalefu]

[ukimalefu]

[ukimalefu]

[Geesie]

[ukimalefu]

[ukimalefu]

[jkahless]

[Geesie]

[sean]

That's awesome.

[TOS]

That's awesome.

i wanna do that too