Half Greek, Half Latin: Politics !*@!
C.P. Scott, a British journalist, publisher and politician was once quoted as saying: "Television?
No good will come of this device. The word is half Greek and half Latin. "
Some of you might have wondered about the “good” of another device this week: the telephone. Although the origin of the word telephone is completely Greek, prior to the North Carolina primaries on Tuesday, I myself pondered its overall merits. In truth, I was ready to unhook the thing. Hounded by Hillary, barraged by Barak, I actually experienced a sense of relief after seeing the no message light on my answering machine Wednesday evening. Nothing like an election year to make one think about the meaning of the word campaign (especially, a Linguistics geek like me).
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Defending the Empty Vessel Approach to Naming
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Maghan Cook, Verbal Branding Associate for Addison Whitney, was recently published in the May 2008 issue of PharmaVOICE. Please click here to view an abstract of her article on Defending the Empty Vessel Approach to Naming.
By: Trista Thielker
Putting Heads…Teambuilding on the Greens
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Putt-Putt, why do they name it twice? If the answer is because of how many times you have to hit it to make it in, then in my case, it would be called “Putt, putt, putt, putt, putt...”
Earlier this month, my department took a field trip. This is a new thing for us: a fun, creative voyage that we plan once a month to refuel our creativity by surrounding ourselves with inspiring environments. Our first outing…Putt-Putt. The scenery set the perfect stage to rouse our over-pared creative energy. It was a perfect spring-like day, the birds were chirping, kids playing in the distance, the sound of streaming waterfalls, and us, six women with dreams of being the Tiger Woods of miniature golf.
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You Do What for a Living?
“Wow is that like branding a cow?” or “You must be really creative to do that!” … That’s what people say when I tell them what I do for a living.
My name is Kelly, and I am a “brand namer,” a Senior Associate of Verbal Branding to be exact. "You guys must sit around in beanbag chairs and come up with names all day” or “That must be such a cool, easy job” are among other statements that I hear often. While we do sometimes brainstorm in beanbag chairs, and it is a cool job to talk about with others, naming doesn’t always come so easy, and although I like to think I possess a spark of creativity, it’s not as simple as thinking of a clever name, writing it down, and it magically appearing on a package. It’s actually much more than that…
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