nexus "to"

Wilson Gray hwgray at GMAIL.COM
Mon Oct 9 20:59:47 UTC 2006


How about the various uses by of "nexus" and "nexology" in the series
of stories by A. E. van Vogt? These stories were collected and
published in 1950 as the "novel," _The Voyage of the Space Beagle_.

-Wilson

On 10/9/06, Chris F Waigl <chris at lascribe.net> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Chris F Waigl <chris at LASCRIBE.NET>
> Subject:      Re: nexus "to"
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> James Knight wrote:
> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > Poster:       James Knight <jlk at INTERISLAND.NET>
> > Subject:      nexus "to"
> > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >  From the BBC article "9/11 hijackers on US no-fly list"
> >
> >      http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/5413462.stm
> >
> > is this:
> >
> > "They basically did a massive data dump and said: 'Okay, anybody
> > that's got a _nexus to_ terrorism, let's make sure they get on the list.'"
> >
> > Is this in lieu of "connection to"? I don't see this sense in my
> > version of OED. Nothing in ADS-L.
> >
> > There's a hint that this usage goes back a ways (I only have access
> > to one newspaper archive with lousy OCR).
> >
> > "...nexus to terrorism..." comes up a lot in recent news articles.
> >
> > <http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?RQT=318&pmid=7818&TS=1160151940&clientId=20582&VType=PQD&VName=PQD&VInst=PROD>New
> > York Times. (Late Edition (East Coast)). New York, N.Y.:
> > <http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?RQT=572&VType=PQD&VName=PQD&VInst=PROD&pmid=7818&pcid=33324421&SrchMode=3>Sep
> > 4, 2006. pg. A.9
> > "...cases like identity theft or immigration fraud that may have some
> > nexus to terrorism..."
> >
> > <http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?RQT=318&pmid=7559&TS=1160152006&clientId=20582&VType=PQD&VName=PQD&VInst=PROD>The
> > Christian Science Monitor. Boston, Mass.:
> > <http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?RQT=572&VType=PQD&VName=PQD&VInst=PROD&pmid=7559&pcid=33414031&SrchMode=3>Aug
> > 17, 2006. pg. 02
> > "...but there is no nexus to terrorism or a terrorist threat."
> >
> > <http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?RQT=318&pmid=7653&TS=1160152034&clientId=20582&VType=PQD&VName=PQD&VInst=PROD>The
> > Washington Post. Washington, D.C.:
> > <http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?RQT=572&VType=PQD&VName=PQD&VInst=PROD&pmid=7653&pcid=33048921&SrchMode=3>Aug
> > 15, 2006. pg. A.4
> > "...individuals arrested have any direct nexus to terrorism,"
> >
> > Earlier, from July 1988, is an NYT article (from Proquest newspapers
> > http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=960296901&sid=1&Fmt=3&clientId=20582&RQT=309&VName=PQD):
> >
> > "The definition of a related amenity was ''one which addresses a need
> > directly arising from the project, i.e., which has a _nexus to_ the
> > project, and which is identified during the environmental review
> > process; or is otherwise specified by law.'' 'Disincentives to Development' "
> >
> > "nexus to" == "arising from" ??
> >
> De Quincey talks quite a bit about nexuses. First "nexus" in the
> abstract. Then "any nexus between the different parts and successions of
> our whole train of notices" . And in the next bit:
>
> ====
> Indeed, let a man consider merely this one notion of causation; let him
> reflect on its origin; let him remember that, agreeably to this origin,
> it follows that we have no right to view anything in rerum naturâ as
> objectively, or in itself a cause; that when, upon the fullest
> philosophic proof, we call A the cause of B, we do in fact only subsume
> A under the notion of a cause; we invest it with that function under
> that relation, that the whole proceeding is merely with respect to a
> human understanding, and by way of indispensable nexus to the several
> parts of our experience; finally, that there is the greatest reason to
> doubt, whether the idea of causation is at all applicable to any other
> world than this, or any other than a human experience.
>
> The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Uncollected Writings of Thomas de Quincey--Vol. 1, by Thomas de Quincey
>
> http://ftp.it.net.au/gutenberg/1/8/8/6/18862/18862-h/18862-h.htm
> ====
>
> Chris Waigl
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>


--
Everybody says, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange
complaint to come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
-----
Whoever has lived long enough to find out what life is knows how deep
a debt of gratitude we owe to Adam, the first great benefactor of our
race. He brought death into the world.

--Sam Clemens

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org



More information about the Ads-l mailing list