[lg policy] Twittergraphy

[Harold Schiffman]

 Twittergraphy

<http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/03/opinion/03schott.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all>

 **
By BEN SCHOTT
Published: August 2, 2009

The 140-character limit of Twitter posts was guided by the 160-character
limit established by the developers of SMS. However, there is nothing new
about new technology imposing restrictions on articulation. During the late
19th-century telegraphy boom, some carriers charged extra for words longer
than 15 characters and for messages longer than 10 words. Thus, the cheapest
telegram was often limited to 150 characters†.

Concerns for economy, as well as a desire for secrecy, fueled a boom in
telegraphic code books that reduced both common and complex phrases into
single words. Dozens of different codes were published; many catered to
specific occupations and all promised efficiency. The phrases below are from
the third edition of “The Anglo-American Telegraphic Code,” published in
1891. It can only be hoped that, as Twitter advances, more people will begin
Tweeting in code, thus:

 Ben Schott, the author of Schott’s Miscellany 2009, is a contributing
columnist for The Times. He writes Schott’s Vocab at
twitter.com/schottsvocab.

>>From New York Times, 8/3/09
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Harold F. Schiffman

Professor Emeritus of
Dravidian Linguistics and Culture
Dept. of South Asia Studies
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305

Phone:  (215) 898-7475
Fax:  (215) 573-2138

Email:  haroldfs at gmail.com
http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/
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