A humorist will always find an element of hilarity in even the most ordinary objects or incidents. Computers and Internet are also not beyond his reach. If you have the right disposition and a keen sense of humour, you may observe that even the most ordinary incidents could amuse you or bring an instant laughter.
Sometime back, for instance, there was news about political turmoil and unrest in Egypt when the Government believed that all these unrests were on account of free access of internet to its people. Prompt came the order: ‘Block all internet access’. The response was almost instantaneous. A humorist commented: Let Egypt be renamed ‘gypt.’ Take another example: consequent to a spate of terrorist-attacks, the Government ordered tapping of phones on a random basis so that the terrorist-plans can be known in advance and be thwarted on time. An indignant telephone user remarked: Thanks God! We have now got a Government that listens to us.
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There are many stories relating to computers, but the cake goes to this incident. A teacher while teaching Spanish in a co-ed institution, explained that unlike in English, nouns in Spanish are categorized either masculine or feminine. 'House' for instance, is feminine: 'la casa.''Pencil,' on the other hand, is masculine: 'el lapiz.'
A student asked, 'What gender is 'computer'?'
Instead of giving a direct answer, the teacher split the class into two groups, male and female, and gave them the task to decide for themselves whether "computer" should be a masculine or a feminine noun with at least four reasons to substantiate the finding.
A student asked, 'What gender is 'computer'?'
Instead of giving a direct answer, the teacher split the class into two groups, male and female, and gave them the task to decide for themselves whether "computer" should be a masculine or a feminine noun with at least four reasons to substantiate the finding.
The men's group came to a conclusion that 'computer' should be considered Feminine ('la computadora' ), because (a) none other than its creator understands its internal logic, (b) the language it uses to communicate with other computers is incomprehensible to everyone else, (c) even the smallest mistakes are stored in long-term memory for possible retrieval at a later stage, and (d) soon after you make a commitment to one, you discover spending half of your paycheck on accessories for it.
The women’s group however decided that computers should be Masculine ('el computador') , because (a) in order to do anything with them, you have to turn them on, (b) they contain a lot of data but are unable to think for themselves, (c) while they are supposed to help you solve problems, but half the time, they are the problem, and (d) soon after you commit to one, you realize that if you had waited a little longer, you could have got a better model. The women’s group, quite predictably, won the contest.
Author : Syed Zafar Ahmad
Designation: Executive Editor
Bio: A freelancer with a flair for experimenting with innovative technology and electronic gadgets that could enrich the life of a modern common man, and a consultant in issues touching every-day life of a computer suave professional.
Bio: A freelancer with a flair for experimenting with innovative technology and electronic gadgets that could enrich the life of a modern common man, and a consultant in issues touching every-day life of a computer suave professional.
