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Does spelling matter?
4

Does spelling matter?

Does spelling matter?

(OP)
I've pulled this off of another web forum where it was attributed to an "e-mail from a friend".  Doubtless widely circulated on the web already...

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg The
phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde
Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer inwaht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny
iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset
can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is
bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a
wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas thought slpeling was ipmorantt!

RE: Does spelling matter?

I wouldn't call that bad spelling. All letters are correct - just in a "slight" disorder.

Bad spelling is something else. Like writing rubitt instead of rabbit or hare instead of hair. Or just trying to transcribe what you hear into written words - last jier i culdnt spal insjunier and now i is wun.

Bad spelling and lack of grammar say things about you. And I think that it matters.

RE: Does spelling matter?

Good poast!

RE: Does spelling matter?

Nice Job MnitJelup!

I think that the first, last letter thing fails when considering words that are different but have the first and last letters the same and the inside letters in a different order. I tried to think of an example but couldn't.

Nick
I love materials science!

RE: Does spelling matter?

Illitracy is no joak.

RE: Does spelling matter?

Nxet tmie you go out itno the felid, paslee birng bcak a piar of perad praes.

That being offered, I feel that spelling and grammar have a profound effect on your perceived professionalism.

RE: Does spelling matter?

You guys slay me!!LOL
You only prove, "That a mind is a terrible thing..."

Best Regards

pennpoint

RE: Does spelling matter?

I get tnese when you tsaee me aubot picanlg a tupae colored ttrae on the tblae.

RE: Does spelling matter?

My son's mother (never married, thank the lord) can't spell worth a crap, but man can she zip right through a crossword puzzle!

RE: Does spelling matter?

Copreehenshon is impotent to.

RE: Does spelling matter?

I knew this one already, both in english and french.

Spelling is important when you deal with foreign people....like me

Cyril Guichard
Mechanical Engineer

RE: Does spelling matter?

I hate to be a wet blanket, but according to snopes ( http://www.snopes.com/language/apocryph/cambridge.... )this is an urban legend.  See
http://www.mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk/personal/matt.davis/C...
for an interesting article by the person who would have been the involved if such a study had existed.

David Simpson, PE
MuleShoe Engineering
www.muleshoe-eng.com
Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips Fora.

The Plural of "anecdote" is not "data"

RE: Does spelling matter?

thanks for the link, this is a really good reading.

Cyril Guichard
Mechanical Engineer

RE: Does spelling matter?

NickE:  How about "three" and "there" or "from" and "form".

All: Guys, I'm dyslexic.  I could not make out what most of these "jokes" were saying.  I read (or so the experts tell me) by looking at every letter in a word and then comparing it to a stored pattern in my brain.  I know that if I'm tired, after three letters or so, my mind jumps to a word that "fits" the first letters.  Sometimes the word makes no sense in context and I have to go back and carefully reread what's actually there (for example, I could easily read "example" as "examine" or "police" as "polite.") If the word is spelled wrong, I have a great deal of trouble reading what is there because I'm spending too much time figuring out what is being said. YES, Spelling Matters!!

Patricia Lougheed

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of the Eng-Tips Forums.

RE: Does spelling matter?

vpl:

Have you heard of the Orton-Gillingham method?

"When everyone is thinking alike, no one is thinking very much." --Eckhard Schwarz (1930--2004)
http://www.EsoxRepublic.com

RE: Does spelling matter?

is there some field you know nothing about TheTick? lol

Cyril Guichard
Mechanical Engineer

RE: Does spelling matter?

It just happens that I have friends who are active in a charitable organization that provides free training in Orton-Gillingham reading method for dyslexic children.  Many of these children have had amazing, life-changing success.

As far as knowledge goes, I have a mind that is more like a lint-trap than a steel-trap.

RE: Does spelling matter?

To vpl
My "joke" was to illustrate bad spelling can change not just the nuance of a sentence but even the meaning.
You deserve a star for providing an excellent example why spelling it right is important.

RE: Does spelling matter?

TheTick

I hadn't really heard of it, but, then, 43 years ago when I was learning how to read, it wasn't around.  However, the techniques sound very similar to the things that I (as well as several family members) have learned in order to cope. I've actually found that doing cross-word puzzles helps because I have to pay attention both in reading and spelling.

I wasn't trying to whine, just to point out that something that seems unimportant actually can be very important.  And if someone wouldn't mind "interpreting" CajunCenturian's posts, I'd be grateful ... right now I feel like the new kid being sent for striped paint.

Patricia Lougheed

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of the Eng-Tips Forums.

RE: Does spelling matter?

Quote:

Nxet tmie you go out itno the felid, paslee birng bcak a piar of perad praes

Next time you go out into the field, please bring back a pair of pared pears

Quote:

I get tnese when you tsaee me aubot picanlg a tupae colored ttrae on the tblae

I get tense when you tease me about placing a taupe colored treat on the table

I think that's what they were.


TTFN

RE: Does spelling matter?

Treat does fit, but the word I had in mind was Tarte.  Although you would probably get away with in with these two words,  tarte and treat being of similar ilk, it does show why spelling is so important.  Next time, the words might not be so close.

RE: Does spelling matter?

Actually, that was my mistake, since I was supposed to keep the first and last letters intact.


TTFN

RE: Does spelling matter?

LOL, I missed it too.

RE: Does spelling matter?

All this discussion seems to revolve around whether or not a misspelled word can be decoded by the brain.  The general consensus is that it can, even under some fairly extreme conditions.

However, if the purpose of the written word is to communicate ideas, and a desirable thing is to be able to communicate those ideas with a minimum of effort and at the highest possible speed and efficiency, then spelling does matter.

Not one of the examples above can be read and understood as quickly and as accurately as would be possible if the spelling were to conform to some "standard" conventions.  The plight of the non-native speaker, or those with reading difficulties (not just the dyslexic) just reinforces the need for spelling to conform to some standard.

And that standard does not have to be logical - the only requirement is that it exists and is freely available to all.

Bung
Life is non-linear...

RE: Does spelling matter?

Very well put, Bung!

RE: Does spelling matter?

"...........and via this document, we introduce XXXXXXXX. XXXXXXXX is our most impotent project engineer........."
Nothing wrong with the spelling. It was checked.

RE: Does spelling matter?


As with many of us, I'd seen this (the English version, anyway) via a pass-around e-mail.

Pattern recognition.  Our brains/minds want the world to fit into patterns; our brains will do as much as they can on auto-pilot, but now and then our minds must help out.

It seems to me that, within the "first and last letter" constraint, that if the remaining letters are reversed, the scrambled words are generally hardest to read.  That is a qualitative assessment of mine; try it and see if you agree (or not).  

Spelling matters (of course); this is merely an example of decreasing the signal-noise ratio.

RE: Does spelling matter?


To rnd2:

I'd read somewhere the lament that spell-checking software should have the collective slogan "We check everything except 'context'."

RE: Does spelling matter?

Spell-check can't determine what you meant.  Proofreading your written materials is still quite necessary.  Spell-check won't tell you there's anything wrong with the sentence:

"The tentative schedule will now go into effect."

when you really meant to say:

"The tentative schedule will not go into effect."

If spelling didn't matter, it wouldn't have been developed.  Words have meanings, and the politically correct machinations of our culture do not change that.  If we can all decide for ourselves what any given word means, communication and civilization fails entirely.

RE: Does spelling matter?

2
The only case I accept incorrect spelling is when I know the person writing is dyslectic. Having said that, I admit that spelling errors drive me crazy.  I think that occasional spelling error is acceptable in personal communication, professionals, however, should take care to avoid them. There is no excuse for spelling errors in official communication.

I have recently commented on some final documentation having misprint on the cover of the binder. I have been criticized as being picky for pointing that out. I did not reject the document (that would  not be warranted) and gave the contractor a chance to correct it, which he, in his infinite wisdom, rejected. To me that binder is now an exhibit of lack of professional pride.

I am hereby changing my handle to "Picky".

Putting Human Factor Back in Engineering

RE: Does spelling matter?

Sorry the handle "Picky" was already taken.

Putting Human Factor Back in Engineering

RE: Does spelling matter?

I checked the text MintJulep placed in his initial post and it transpires that many words have been scrambled by just switching two letters. Some of them were scrambled but the most typical letter clusters remained intact. With a bit of "science", I guess, one could prove anything. have to admit, however, that I had some fun reading, so the exercise was not useless at all.

Putting Human Factor Back in Engineering

RE: Does spelling matter?

Very Picky, a srta fro yuo.
Now here's something anecdotal. It was effortless to read MintJulep's original post; yet, some of the other posts that were deliberately mis-spelt were a struggle and I gave up on some.
In an earlier post, my attempt at humour was to remove the r from important but that (deliberate attempt at humour) changed the meaning completely whereas this thread is about mixing up the letters.
To be absolutely honest, in this post I re-arranged star to srta (yes,only two words re-arranged)and yet when I re-looked at it I stumbled over it.

RE: Does spelling matter?

Spelling counts.  [and lords over us].  It is particularly noticable when you enter a word or phrase into Google Search (or any other search engine you may choose).   If you misspell it, the correct term may be offered by the search engine.  On the other hand, you may also get a bunch of listings that you would never have seen otherwise (possibly quite happily).

I usually am much better at seeing other people's spelling errors than my own.  Of course, I know what I meant!

RE: Does spelling matter?

It is a kiss of death... the spelling criterion being the google search engine. However better this motivation than none, I guess.

Putting Human Factor Back in Engineering

RE: Does spelling matter?

It's useful.  At some level, English Is As She Is Spoke.  If the majority of the English-speaking world goes in a particular direction, that's a change to what should be considered correct.  Otherwise we'd still be speaking Old German.  Google is a quick-n-dirty way to see what the trends are.  

Example:  24,400 hits for "constructability", 12,500 for "constructibility".  546 with both mixed freely.  Looks like "a" is the way to go at the moment.  (I know of one publication that actually drew a meaning distinction between the two spellings, but that was just silly.)

Hg

RE: Does spelling matter?

Lots of opinins on spellin, good tread!! I use Merriam-Webster OnLine, when I need to spell. Whitch good fer me isn't very offten.

RE: Does spelling matter?

I use dictionary.com, mostly because I can always remember the URL.

Hg

RE: Does spelling matter?

I just came across a nice one in a bid proposal:

FLUE GAS and FUEL GAS.

Not much of a diference, is it?
Maybe spelling matters after all?

Putting Human Factor Back in Engineering

RE: Does spelling matter?

Quote:

A The new "Reba" collection will debate in the spring. ...

I captured this from ABC 7 web news. Looks like a spell-check override event and the author went for it without question.
I think these errors are hard to catch because once you think you repaired a mistake your brain will see(read)the correct word even though it's truly the wrong word. Been there done it for sure.

BTW, Fun Thread.

Regards
pennpoint    

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