The new metaphor: The haystack and the 777

[Victor Steinbok]

This is also a common academic law and scientific metaphor. Certainly,
not new. In the early days of the Higgs Boson search, you could
frequently hear the reference for having to "look in the right
haystack". You also hear the same expression frequently in reference to
counter-terrorism intelligence.

http://goo.gl/wiz76L
The Emergence of High Technology Litigation
> The right technology can allow counsel to identify hot documents,
> wherever maintained; preserve privilege claims and/or pierce the
> privilege log; apply the federal and state rules to maximum advantage
> -- in short, bring light into dark places, look in the right haystack
> and find the needle.

http://goo.gl/xdjgrg
> "We may know that high value individuals are in a general area. We
> need to be able to look in the right haystack. We could use ways to
> bring infrared imagery and hyperspectral data into the video."


     VS-)

On 3/25/2014 12:57 AM, ADSGarson O'Toole wrote:
> Joel S. Berson wrote
>> "Australian military official", quoted (in TV text display) by CNN
>> tonight (that is, early Tuesday morning EDT):
>>
>> "We're still trying to find where the haystack is."
>>
>> Longer quote at http://http://uk.inagist.com/ --
>>
>> "We're not searching for a needle in a haystack, we're still trying
>> to find where the haystack is."
>> Aussie vice chief of def staff
> Thanks, Joel. I've heard that extended metaphor in the past. Here is
> an instance with a GB date of 1956. I suspect it is considerably
> older:
>
> Journal Title: The Florida Bar Journal
> Volume 30
> Page 433
> Year 1956
> (Google Books snippet data may be inaccurate)
>
> {Begin extracted text]
> IF YOU ARE going to search for the proverbial needle in a haystack,
> you must first find the haystack. Probably a great many lawyers shun
> tax research because they are uncertain where the haystack is.
> [End extracted text]
>
> Garson

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