Subject: Re: [lojban] glork

From: John Cowan <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 19 Aug 2001 15:50:27 -0400 (EDT)

[email-masked] scripsit:

> Does anyone know the history of "glork"?
> It seems to be related both semantically and phonetically to the ancient 
> (well, mid-Heinlein timeline) "grok"; is it also related historically or do 
> we have a case of semophonetic symbolism to gladden the hearts of 
> Cratylus-lovers everywhere?

As far as the public record takes us, the word sprang from the brain
of one David Moser[*] about 1980, as part of the sentence "This gubblick
contains many nonsklarkish English flutzpahs, but the overall pluggandisp
can be glorked from context." The sentence was published in Douglas
Hofstadter's column in the January 1981 _Scientific American_, and later
in his book _Metamagical Themas_.

Some people use "glark" instead, to avoid confusion with the other jargon verb
sense of "glork": to have a sudden interruption in electrical power,
continuity, or sanity.

[*] He of the self-referential story "This is the title of this story ..."
(http://hamp.hampshire.edu/~bpdF93/self-reference.html), which BTW
has been translated into Polish!
http://www.powersystem.com.pl/~mkka/recursiv.html

-- 
John Cowan http://www.ccil.org/~cowan [email-masked]
Please leave your values | Check your assumptions. In fact,
at the front desk. | check your assumptions at the door.
--sign in Paris hotel | --Miles Vorkosigan