Agnostic (non-theological)

[Laurence Horn]

At 8:19 PM -0800 2/4/08, Jeff Prucher wrote:
>"Agnostic" in a non-theological sense has been used in the software
>world for at least a few years (from personal experience, anyway --
>I haven't tried to do a deep search on this). In my understanding of
>the term, if a program is hardware agnostic, it should be able to
>run without regard to the hardware it's being run on; i.e, the
>software "doesn't know" what the hardware is. A Google search on
>"agnostic program" yields a slew of relevant results.
>
>Jeff Prucher

By the same token, if a service (such as those within the
Unitarian-Universalist tradition) is intended to be applicable for
believers, skeptics, and non-believers alike, can we call it
"platform-neutral"?

LH

>
>Editor, Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction
>http://www.jeffprucher.com
>
>----- Original Message ----
>From: Scot LaFaive <scotlafaive at GMAIL.COM>
>To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
>Sent: Monday, February 4, 2008 7:04:30 PM
>Subject: Re: Agnostic (non-theological)
>
>
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>Information
>from
>the
>mail
>header
>-----------------------
>Sender:
>
>
>
>American
>Dialect
>Society
><ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>Poster:
>
>
>
>Scot
>LaFaive
><scotlafaive at GMAIL.COM>
>Subject:
>
>
>Re:
>Agnostic
>(non-theological)
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Attributing
>the
>neutral
>characteristic
>Switzerland
>to
>someone
>does
>seem
>more
>readily
>available
>within
>my
>own
>lexicon,
>but
>I've
>never
>considered
>using
>"agnostic"
>in
>non-theological
>ways.
>
>Scot
>
>On
>Feb
>4,
>2008
>8:51
>PM,
>David
>Donnell
><David.Donnell at earthlink.net>
>wrote:
>
>>
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>header
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>Sender:
>
>
>
>American
>Dialect
>Society
><ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>
>Poster:
>
>
>
>David
>Donnell
><David.Donnell at EARTHLINK.NET>
>>
>Subject:
>
>
>Re:
>Agnostic
>(non-theological)
>>
>>
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>
>Similarly,
>I
>recently
>heard
>a
>twentysomething
>South
>African
>woman
>(my
>>
>South
>Af
>wife's
>niece)
>use
>the
>expression
>"I'm
>Switzerland"...
>>
>meaning,
>mas
>o
>menos,
>'I'm
>agnostic'
>on
>a
>>
>certain
>issue.
>>
>>
>I
>had
>never
>heard
>that
>one
>before...
>But
>apparently
>it's
>well-known
>>
>(according
>to
>the
>experts
>at
>Google
>University,
>at
>least).
>>
>>
>DD
>>
>Missourian
>@
>NYC
>>
>>
>>----------------------
>Information
>from
>the
>mail
>header
>>
>>-----------------------
>>
>>Sender:
>
>
>
>American
>Dialect
>Society
><ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>
>>Poster:
>
>
>
>Scot
>LaFaive
><scotlafaive at GMAIL.COM>
>>
>>Subject:
>
>
>Agnostic
>(non-theological)
>>
>>
>>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>
>>
>>Today
>on
>"All
>Things
>Considered"
>(NPR),
>in
>response
>to
>Robert
>Siegel
>>
>saying
>>
>>he
>was
>a
>New
>York
>Giants
>fan,
>Michele
>Norris
>said
>she
>was
>"agnostic
>in
>>
>this
>>
>>case,"
>i.e.
>not
>claiming
>allegiance
>to
>either
>the
>Giants
>or
>the
>Patriots.
>>
>>
>>
>>Scot
>>
>>
>>
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