Down With Numbers

I’ve always wished I knew at least some Latin. There are so many documents I’d love to be able to read in their original Latin, but what with being a science and maths geek most of them are old scientific texts. (Specifically, Newton’s Principia Mathematica, and some of Euler’s 800+ papers; not that you lot really care.)

To that end, I’ve been distracting myself the last couple of days with the imaginitively entitled book “Teach Yourself Latin”. It’s probably a passing interest, but still, it’s fun at the moment. It gives you a sense of power to be able to translate “Primo incolarum amicitiam rogabat.”

Problem is, Latin grammar is unbelievably complicated. What would usually take about three words in English is rolled into one in Latin, altering the ending of the word accordingly. Exempli gratia (”e.g.”, natch), take the word for table, mensa. If you want to say “of the table”, you just say mensae. Want to utter “to the table”? Mensā. “Of the tables”? Mensārum. There are six different cases for a singular noun, each with its own word ending, and the same six for the plural noun.

Not that the endings are the same for every noun. There are FIVE different types of noun. Count ‘em. Five. Each has its own twelve endings for the different cases.

Then there’s word order. The verb almost always goes right at the end of the sentence, but other than that, it’s fairly free. Take the example I gave, “Primo incolarum amicitiam rogabat.” Translating that word-for-word, you get “At first of the inhabitants the friendship he was asking.” If you read it backwards then it makes sense in English.

Cool!

Since the last post, the Lord spake unto me, and divulged the name of the new backend.

And on the first day, he created Scapegoat. And it was good.

Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. May the Lord have mercy on me. These are my sins.

Father, I took the projects section in vain and did not give it the respect it deserves. It is not up to date. Indeed, Father, I am ashamed to say that The Herf is no more a project destined for public consumption.

I then started a new project, having left the old one without any sustainance, for I am a cruel, cold-hearted man, Father. This new project is similar to the deceased Herf, for it is also a website backend, but far superior in nature. I had been worshipping a false idol in the form of The Herf, Father.

This new project was started in December, originally just intended as a new back end to Andrew Weldon’s site, quickly becoming a more general, powerful personal website and portfolio management sytsem. But, Father, I strayed to the path of procrastination in my weak and sinful ways, and it was not until two days ago that I could finally look upon it and declare it to be feature-complete.

Father, I have one further sin. This project, despite being half a year in age, has not been baptised and given a true Christian name. Oh, I had tried, Father, but it is so difficult! My brain only has room for the Lord at most times of the year.

The new backend shall be displayed in public on the site of Andrew Weldon once he populates it with content. I hope this serves at least some consolation toward my sins, Father.