×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

Element 13

Element 13

RE: Element 13

Okay, so "aluminum" actually came first, but the American choice of said spelling was not due to historical correctness but to a typo on an advertising flyer?  Right for the wrong reasons.  I love it.

A more problematic UK/US distinction is what a "billion" is.  (I grew up with "milliard" for 10^9 but I wasn't old enough for billions or trillions at that time, so I just translated "milliard" into "billion" when I moved to the US and didn't have any conflict with other terms.)

Hg

Eng-Tips policies:  FAQ731-376

RE: Element 13

Hg, are you French?

Cyril Guichard
Mechanical Engineer Consultant
France

RE: Element 13

"The colour of aluminium would be the same as the color of aluminum if 'u' and 'I' were the same..."

RE: Element 13

When I came to Canada I worked for a company which used aluminium extrusionsn for their architectural glazing products. It took me about a year to be able to pronounce "Aluminum" without having to stop & think about it. Even now when typing, I usually have to go back to delete the second "i" ... but only if absolutely necessary.

It's very hard to de-programme ones spelling sometimes. wink

cheers
Helpful SW websites  FAQ559-520
How to get answers to your SW questions  FAQ559-1091

RE: Element 13

In India we follow the British. It is aluminium. also we spell mould and not mold for mould.

RE: Element 13

CorBlimeyLimey (Mechanical)
As a British transplant in the USA I run into exactly the same difficulties. When I write Aluminium the "locals" take great delight in pointing out my spelling "mistake".
They also get on me when I "realise" I have done that.
B.E.

RE: Element 13

I was about to correct a British coworker one time on his spelling of aluminium.  Fortunately I looked it up first to see if there was such a word.  It saved me from getting red faced.

RE: Element 13

FrenchCAD--no, I'm slightly Israeli.

Hg

Eng-Tips policies:  FAQ731-376

RE: Element 13

HgTX : ok. it was because you said "milliard" which is French word for "billion".

In France, it is aluminium as well.

Cyril Guichard
Mechanical Engineer Consultant
France

RE: Element 13

Modern Hebrew took a lot of its technical terminology from German and Russian.  German has "milliard" as well.

Hg

Eng-Tips policies:  FAQ731-376

RE: Element 13

oh ok. I never learned to count that far in German, so I didn't know that winky smile

Cyril Guichard
Mechanical Engineer Consultant
France

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources