From cowan@ccil.org Fri Mar 3 17:19:13 2000 X-Digest-Num: 383 Message-ID: <44114.383.2190.959273826@eGroups.com> Date: Fri, 3 Mar 100 20:57:04 -0500 (EST) From: John Cowan Subject: Re: etc. = mass, apparently Addendum pycyn@aol.com scripsit: > I assume the ethnic slur about Scots has to do with the actually Italian > custom of making (and selling!) cigars made out of the butts of other cigars. Actually, I don't really know. > The answer has to be indefinite, The canonical answer is "Any given number", which is pretty indefinite, indeed. > As for gavagai, until we decide how little is needed to classify as gavagai, > we still have to go with indefinites, but I assume that anywhere from 1 (all > four rabbits clearly qualify as a single manifestation in Malinowski's > description of Trobrianders) [...] I think two things are getting merged here: the Trobriander's Mr. Rabbit, and Quine's gavagai, which is defined as "sundry [logically] detached rabbit parts." These two concepts may have had a common origin, but are now distinct. -- John Cowan cowan@ccil.org I am a member of a civilization. --David Brin