Quote:
Originally Posted by dwnielsen
No offense to the French, but, it could be argued that, when it comes to Golden Age naming at least, they provide plaster standards. After all, our months are named strangely for gods, emperors, and numerals; chemical elements have rather false "-gen" titles; Neptune was Planet La Verrier.
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True, lots of naming conventions that are arbitrary. So, maybe this one could be too, a little. We might follow my own private mantra of "standardization without conformity" and create a base code for the construction of names in a manner similar to what I described above, using sounds that you think are appropriate. Then, the rest of the world can get used to it, if they care enough to think about why the system was setup that way (which the majority of them probably won't).
As for what you and Jens are talking about, with regards to feeling heat, I might offer some insight. IIRC from anatomy class in high school and college, humans detect neither hot nor cold, but delta-T, or a change in temperature. I don't know how fine the resolution is nor what the upper or lower limits are. Moreover, there are other nerve sensations tied into that which are, nevertheless, different sensations and nerves. This might include pain and pressure if the heat or lack of heat causes localized physiological phenomena detectable by those nerves. I suppose that extended hypothermia or hyperthermia can reveal itself more generally via systemic effects as well, perhaps with general malaise if certain nerves at the core, like the vasovagal nerve, are stimulated from those systemic effects.
While I'm on the topic, it might also be interesting to note that other methods of stimulation can result in a sensation of heat, such as certain chemicals (e.g. capsaicin) and pressure. After all, a pinched nerve can also present a burning feeling, which I discovered all too well a few months ago.