Pretentious, Moi?

I went down to a meeting at the contractor's today, don't worry I won't bore you with the details as it is of no interest to anybody cept those who were there, I have those sort of meetings, not smoke filled rooms where decisions that will change the world as we know it happen, but the humdrum boring ones that most people have to suffer.

The buffet lunch was excellent though, which was nice.

On the way back as I wasn't driving, I don't do driving I learnt 20 years ago, passed my test and have only driven a handful of times since. I don't enjoy it and can't afford to run a car. Anyhoo as I was saying on the way back I started to think about the construction of language, really it is absolutely a bit of genius that switching the order of a few words can change something from a statement.

I can have an ice cream

Ich kann ein Eis haben (school girl German w00t!)

to a question

Can I have an ice cream?

Kann ich ein Eis haben? ('O' level Grade C not bad eh? - I'm dyslexic remember and took this exam 20 years ago)

That is bloody genius it really is, maths doesn't have that level of subtlety well not at the level everyone can understand. I am quietly gobsmacked at the cleverness of it. Now you may all be saying "Get over it Jane it's nothing" but I'm a scientist by training and not versed in the ways of linguistics so I'm easily impressed by this.

That's all I wanted to say really.