HEURISTIC

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Dr. Goodword
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HEURISTIC

Postby Dr. Goodword » Tue Oct 11, 2005 11:28 pm

• heuristic •

Pronunciation: hyur-is-tik • Hear it!

Part of Speech: Adjective & Noun

Meaning: 1. Practical, hypothetical, based on an educated guess that serves as a practical guide in the investigation or solution of a larger problem. 2. Related to a "hands on" teaching method that leads students to an understanding of a subject by allowing them to conduct real research on that subject.

Notes: When you write this word, be sure to keep your [e]s and s straight—[e] before . Also be sure to add the empty suffix -al before the -ly to form the adverb, heuristically. The process noun is heuristics but you may also use the adjective itself as a noun: a heuristic is a is a practical device or assumption applied in solving a problem.

In Play: One way to determine how people in your office are doing at their jobs would be to create a heuristic ideal worker, made up of all the qualities you think those on the job should have, and compare everyone to that ideal. (Computers are great at this.) The problem is that the whole system rests on the heuristic assumption that such an ideal is possible. A heuristic mechanism in education would be a hands-on experience that leads to a better understanding of a subject, as participation in a political campaign would deepen someone's understanding of politics (and the circus) more than lectures.

Word History: This Good Word comes to us from Greek heuriskein "to find, discover", the imperfect of which is, Eureka! "I have found (it)". Archimedes once was watching his bath overflow when he suddenly realized that he could apply the principles of water displacement to determining the amount of base metal in gold and hence the purity of gold. Archimedes not only shouted Eureka! "I have found it!", he ran home from the bath in nothing more than his excitement.
Last edited by Dr. Goodword on Wed Oct 12, 2005 11:27 pm, edited 2 times in total.
• The Good Dr. Goodword

Iterman
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Postby Iterman » Wed Oct 12, 2005 6:34 am

This would be, not so much a reply, but more of a comment and finaly a question.
A long time ago, I complained that so many GWofT were so mundane which obviously was taken note of, since most of GWofT recently could be called arcane.
Well, to my surprise today's word also excists in my language (but with a final k) with the same meaning. However, my source had two suggested ways of pronounciation of which one was hevristik. Now, I wonder why many Swedes insert a "v" when an original Greek word contain "eu". It's been said that we are the only ones calling the new currency "Evro" when all(?) the others call it "Yuro". Some people also called our part of the world "Evropa" while today most just go for "Eropa" totally discarding the u.
Beg your pardon for my poor spelling and grammer.

Brazilian dude
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Postby Brazilian dude » Wed Oct 12, 2005 10:26 am

It's been said that we are the only ones calling the new currency "Evro" when all(?) the others call it "Yuro".
No, just to mention two languages, Greek has ευρώ (pronounced evró) and Russian евро (also prononced evró).
2. Related to a "hands on" teaching method that leads students to an understanding of a subject by allowing him or her to conduct real research on that subject.
Ooops.

Brazilian dude
Last edited by Brazilian dude on Mon Oct 24, 2005 2:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Languages rule!

Stargzer
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Postby Stargzer » Wed Oct 12, 2005 12:30 pm

. . .
2. Related to a "hands on" teaching method that leads students to an understanding of a subject by allowing him or her to conduct real research on that subject.
Ooops.

Brazilian dude
Mired again in the quicksand of Politically Correct speech . . . 8)
Regards//Larry

"To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them."
-- Attributed to Richard Henry Lee

M. Henri Day
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Postby M. Henri Day » Wed Oct 12, 2005 2:14 pm

...

Now, I wonder why many Swedes insert a "v" when an original Greek word contain "eu". It's been said that we are the only ones calling the new currency "Evro" when all(?) the others call it "Yuro". Some people also called our part of the world "Evropa" while today most just go for "Eropa" totally discarding the u.
If what the philologists tell us is true, when Archimedes jumped out of that bath and ran home throught the streets of Syrakusa, his «εὕρηκα !» sounded like «hev'rēka !», which, as a consequence, is the way it is written in Swedish. The diphthong «ευ» is in both modern (which is easy to demonstrate) and ancient (which is presumed from indirect evidence) Greek pronounced as «ev». Influenced by the German academic tradition, Swedish has been less cavalier about such things than, say, English, French, or Italian. Thus we call the poet Ὅμηρος «Homeros», whereas in the above-mentioned languages he is known as «Homer», «Homère», and «Omero», respectively. Let us continue with our pedantic tradition !...

Henri

PS : Nice to see you again on the Agora, Iterman ! Many happy returns !...
曾记否,到中流击水,浪遏飞舟?


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