Markˣ
@shjsat.bsky.social
Pinned
Markˣ
@shjsat.bsky.social
· Jan 11
ˣ Mark is a PhD candidate in linguistics (Arabian dialects). He tries to talk about language, but mostly ends up posting about his kids.
ˣ Mark has lived in the Arab Gulf region, pretty much since 2014.
ˣ Other long-term interests: Books, distance running, geography, and books.
ˣ Mark has lived in the Arab Gulf region, pretty much since 2014.
ˣ Other long-term interests: Books, distance running, geography, and books.
Biology tidbit for parents:
Prolactin, a hormone that enables milk production, tends to make women sleepy, so when the baby pops up at night, if my wife nurses, she sleepeth ...
whereas, if I help the baby back to sleep, my only recourse is to eat pizza, watch YouTube, and hope for the best. 🤷♂️🍕
Prolactin, a hormone that enables milk production, tends to make women sleepy, so when the baby pops up at night, if my wife nurses, she sleepeth ...
whereas, if I help the baby back to sleep, my only recourse is to eat pizza, watch YouTube, and hope for the best. 🤷♂️🍕
nothing like a mile walk at 2am before spending the entire day in Dubai traffic with a baby
February 15, 2026 at 11:11 PM
Biology tidbit for parents:
Prolactin, a hormone that enables milk production, tends to make women sleepy, so when the baby pops up at night, if my wife nurses, she sleepeth ...
whereas, if I help the baby back to sleep, my only recourse is to eat pizza, watch YouTube, and hope for the best. 🤷♂️🍕
Prolactin, a hormone that enables milk production, tends to make women sleepy, so when the baby pops up at night, if my wife nurses, she sleepeth ...
whereas, if I help the baby back to sleep, my only recourse is to eat pizza, watch YouTube, and hope for the best. 🤷♂️🍕
Reposted by Markˣ
Iraqi Arabic, coming from a woman:
ممنونة جدا/كلش ممنونة.
رحم الله والديك/چ
مشكور/ة.
شكرا جزيلا.
ألف شكر.
ما أعرف شلون أجازيك/چ.
تسلم/ين.
عاشت إيدك/چ.
عاشت الأيادي.
ممنونة جدا/كلش ممنونة.
رحم الله والديك/چ
مشكور/ة.
شكرا جزيلا.
ألف شكر.
ما أعرف شلون أجازيك/چ.
تسلم/ين.
عاشت إيدك/چ.
عاشت الأيادي.
We say most of these variations in Gulf countries, with some minor accent changes. But we also say
مشكور
lit. "(you are) thanked"
مشكور
lit. "(you are) thanked"
Ways to say thanks in (Egyptian) Arabic
شكرا
shukran
Thanks
أشكرك
ashkurak/ashkurik (fem)
I thank you
ألف شكر
alf shukr
1000 thanks
جَزاك الله كُلّ خَيْر = رَبّنا يِجْزِيك = جَزاك اللهُ خَيْرًا
gazāka llāh kullə khayr
rabbinā yigzīk
gazāka llāh khayran
May God recompense you with blessings (Islamic)
(1/3)
شكرا
shukran
Thanks
أشكرك
ashkurak/ashkurik (fem)
I thank you
ألف شكر
alf shukr
1000 thanks
جَزاك الله كُلّ خَيْر = رَبّنا يِجْزِيك = جَزاك اللهُ خَيْرًا
gazāka llāh kullə khayr
rabbinā yigzīk
gazāka llāh khayran
May God recompense you with blessings (Islamic)
(1/3)
February 15, 2026 at 10:55 PM
Iraqi Arabic, coming from a woman:
ممنونة جدا/كلش ممنونة.
رحم الله والديك/چ
مشكور/ة.
شكرا جزيلا.
ألف شكر.
ما أعرف شلون أجازيك/چ.
تسلم/ين.
عاشت إيدك/چ.
عاشت الأيادي.
ممنونة جدا/كلش ممنونة.
رحم الله والديك/چ
مشكور/ة.
شكرا جزيلا.
ألف شكر.
ما أعرف شلون أجازيك/چ.
تسلم/ين.
عاشت إيدك/چ.
عاشت الأيادي.
We say most of these variations in Gulf countries, with some minor accent changes. But we also say
مشكور
lit. "(you are) thanked"
مشكور
lit. "(you are) thanked"
Ways to say thanks in (Egyptian) Arabic
شكرا
shukran
Thanks
أشكرك
ashkurak/ashkurik (fem)
I thank you
ألف شكر
alf shukr
1000 thanks
جَزاك الله كُلّ خَيْر = رَبّنا يِجْزِيك = جَزاك اللهُ خَيْرًا
gazāka llāh kullə khayr
rabbinā yigzīk
gazāka llāh khayran
May God recompense you with blessings (Islamic)
(1/3)
شكرا
shukran
Thanks
أشكرك
ashkurak/ashkurik (fem)
I thank you
ألف شكر
alf shukr
1000 thanks
جَزاك الله كُلّ خَيْر = رَبّنا يِجْزِيك = جَزاك اللهُ خَيْرًا
gazāka llāh kullə khayr
rabbinā yigzīk
gazāka llāh khayran
May God recompense you with blessings (Islamic)
(1/3)
One consequence of now having lived in “thank you” cultures for nearly a decade is that I don’t know what to do if someone does a small favor for me in India (like giving a ride home at night) as saying “thank you” is weird here. Can’t remember what I used to do before moving out of India.
February 15, 2026 at 10:46 PM
We say most of these variations in Gulf countries, with some minor accent changes. But we also say
مشكور
lit. "(you are) thanked"
مشكور
lit. "(you are) thanked"
my high-publishing neighbor: you gotta hunt that big game
me hunting big game:
me hunting big game:
Franzi Schimmer captured this Grizzly bear in Brooks Falls, Alaska just floating along, tippy-tapping down the river, browsing the salmon.
Prior to hibernation, up to 40% of a bear's body mass is fat, which is less dense than water (~0.9 g/cm^2), so the murder-monster is also a floaty-boaty.
Prior to hibernation, up to 40% of a bear's body mass is fat, which is less dense than water (~0.9 g/cm^2), so the murder-monster is also a floaty-boaty.
February 15, 2026 at 10:40 PM
my high-publishing neighbor: you gotta hunt that big game
me hunting big game:
me hunting big game:
If left to myself, I can become extremely organized, but rn my desktop has folders called "misc" and "misc misc" (for the things that just didn't fit into "misc")
naming a folder "linguistics" on my laptop is so uninformative -- like, it's all #linguistics
February 15, 2026 at 10:35 PM
If left to myself, I can become extremely organized, but rn my desktop has folders called "misc" and "misc misc" (for the things that just didn't fit into "misc")
nothing like a mile walk at 2am before spending the entire day in Dubai traffic with a baby
February 15, 2026 at 10:28 PM
nothing like a mile walk at 2am before spending the entire day in Dubai traffic with a baby
I went to the Sharjah Lights Run today (1K to 10K) and overheard someone calling it "the marathon". 😅
February 14, 2026 at 5:26 PM
I went to the Sharjah Lights Run today (1K to 10K) and overheard someone calling it "the marathon". 😅
Someone has bungled a bunch of map listings (OpenStreetMap?) or something and now people are pronouncing Arabic names even worse.
al-Jādah is Al Jaddah
`Aggah is Adgat 🤦♂️
al-Sīniyyah is Al Seanneeah
al-Rifā` is Riffa
al-Jādah is Al Jaddah
`Aggah is Adgat 🤦♂️
al-Sīniyyah is Al Seanneeah
al-Rifā` is Riffa
February 14, 2026 at 10:58 AM
Someone has bungled a bunch of map listings (OpenStreetMap?) or something and now people are pronouncing Arabic names even worse.
al-Jādah is Al Jaddah
`Aggah is Adgat 🤦♂️
al-Sīniyyah is Al Seanneeah
al-Rifā` is Riffa
al-Jādah is Al Jaddah
`Aggah is Adgat 🤦♂️
al-Sīniyyah is Al Seanneeah
al-Rifā` is Riffa
"They called their first child Kartūn, because when he was born he was put in a carton box. . . . Then they delivered another and he was called Doctor."
— Wilhelmina "Dr. Amina" van de Weg
— Wilhelmina "Dr. Amina" van de Weg
February 14, 2026 at 8:25 AM
"They called their first child Kartūn, because when he was born he was put in a carton box. . . . Then they delivered another and he was called Doctor."
— Wilhelmina "Dr. Amina" van de Weg
— Wilhelmina "Dr. Amina" van de Weg
Fujairah Arabic word of the day
alū, alūwa
'hello' (when answering a telephone)
alū, alūwa
'hello' (when answering a telephone)
February 14, 2026 at 8:07 AM
Fujairah Arabic word of the day
alū, alūwa
'hello' (when answering a telephone)
alū, alūwa
'hello' (when answering a telephone)
The big kid started imitating Arabic today by inserting a voiceless uvular fricative into English sentences.
He said something earlier like the carخ is onخ the tableخ
I wish I had a recording of it.
He said something earlier like the carخ is onخ the tableخ
I wish I had a recording of it.
February 14, 2026 at 6:54 AM
The big kid started imitating Arabic today by inserting a voiceless uvular fricative into English sentences.
He said something earlier like the carخ is onخ the tableخ
I wish I had a recording of it.
He said something earlier like the carخ is onخ the tableخ
I wish I had a recording of it.
Out of curiosity: Could an LLM have worked that was based entirely on programming languages?
I wonder if it would not be able to function because programming languages are sort of a subset of human languages and LLMs require so much training data.
I wonder if it would not be able to function because programming languages are sort of a subset of human languages and LLMs require so much training data.
February 14, 2026 at 6:50 AM
Out of curiosity: Could an LLM have worked that was based entirely on programming languages?
I wonder if it would not be able to function because programming languages are sort of a subset of human languages and LLMs require so much training data.
I wonder if it would not be able to function because programming languages are sort of a subset of human languages and LLMs require so much training data.
It has been a few years since I poured six months into a website and then abandoned it to the sands of time
February 13, 2026 at 8:54 AM
It has been a few years since I poured six months into a website and then abandoned it to the sands of time
This Is Bad News:
A kid died at school near my hometown yesterday. He choked on a grape. They tried everything but they could not get it out of his throat. 😔 Just awful.
A kid died at school near my hometown yesterday. He choked on a grape. They tried everything but they could not get it out of his throat. 😔 Just awful.
February 13, 2026 at 5:09 AM
This Is Bad News:
A kid died at school near my hometown yesterday. He choked on a grape. They tried everything but they could not get it out of his throat. 😔 Just awful.
A kid died at school near my hometown yesterday. He choked on a grape. They tried everything but they could not get it out of his throat. 😔 Just awful.
My son, reading the label on Vimto:
🤔 "Why doesn't it have any African flavors or presertives?"
(He was reading the word ARTIFICIAL.)
🤔 "Why doesn't it have any African flavors or presertives?"
(He was reading the word ARTIFICIAL.)
February 13, 2026 at 5:03 AM
My son, reading the label on Vimto:
🤔 "Why doesn't it have any African flavors or presertives?"
(He was reading the word ARTIFICIAL.)
🤔 "Why doesn't it have any African flavors or presertives?"
(He was reading the word ARTIFICIAL.)
Reposted by Markˣ
Since I'm about to co-teach a class on Raizal (San Andrés islander creole), I made a map to visualize possible African origins of individual Raizal lexemes compiled in Bartens 2003.
February 12, 2026 at 2:49 PM
Since I'm about to co-teach a class on Raizal (San Andrés islander creole), I made a map to visualize possible African origins of individual Raizal lexemes compiled in Bartens 2003.
Accidentally spent three hours surfing potential races (again)
February 12, 2026 at 11:24 AM
Accidentally spent three hours surfing potential races (again)
The baby (10.5 months) now recognizes the word EMERGENCY and when he hears it, he will put his hand on his ear like it's a phone.
This is because every day at the playground, it is *obligatory* that play "emergency center" with the 4-year-old.
This is because every day at the playground, it is *obligatory* that play "emergency center" with the 4-year-old.
February 12, 2026 at 6:45 AM
The baby (10.5 months) now recognizes the word EMERGENCY and when he hears it, he will put his hand on his ear like it's a phone.
This is because every day at the playground, it is *obligatory* that play "emergency center" with the 4-year-old.
This is because every day at the playground, it is *obligatory* that play "emergency center" with the 4-year-old.
Reposted by Markˣ
“Adventures in /Ɂ/” by Holger Mitterer (Feb. ’26) doi.org/10.16995/lab...
February 12, 2026 at 4:02 AM
“Adventures in /Ɂ/” by Holger Mitterer (Feb. ’26) doi.org/10.16995/lab...
Rand Paul
Who's the most famous alum of your high school?
I'll go first: David Draiman of Disturbed
I'll go first: David Draiman of Disturbed
guys i just found out i went to the same high school as howard lutnick. please respect my privacy at this time.
February 12, 2026 at 5:44 AM
Rand Paul
Reposted by Markˣ
A Reuters photographer captured this image of a page from Pam Bondi's "burn book," which she used to counter any questions from Democratic lawmakers during an unhinged hearing today.
It looks like the DOJ monitored members of Congress’s searches of the unredacted Epstein files.
Just wow.
It looks like the DOJ monitored members of Congress’s searches of the unredacted Epstein files.
Just wow.
February 11, 2026 at 11:06 PM
A Reuters photographer captured this image of a page from Pam Bondi's "burn book," which she used to counter any questions from Democratic lawmakers during an unhinged hearing today.
It looks like the DOJ monitored members of Congress’s searches of the unredacted Epstein files.
Just wow.
It looks like the DOJ monitored members of Congress’s searches of the unredacted Epstein files.
Just wow.
Reposted by Markˣ
For those of you who were keeping up with the mass market mess, here is a more informative article.
Trade paperbacks cost only 30c more to make and are priced $18-20 now, where mass market paperbacks didn't sell at $12. So... there's your answer. It's about margins.
boingboing.net/2026/02/10/t...
Trade paperbacks cost only 30c more to make and are priced $18-20 now, where mass market paperbacks didn't sell at $12. So... there's your answer. It's about margins.
boingboing.net/2026/02/10/t...
The mass market paperback is vanishing
The mass market paperback — born in 1935, boomed after WWII — is vanishing from airports, drugstores, and groceries.
boingboing.net
February 11, 2026 at 8:35 PM
For those of you who were keeping up with the mass market mess, here is a more informative article.
Trade paperbacks cost only 30c more to make and are priced $18-20 now, where mass market paperbacks didn't sell at $12. So... there's your answer. It's about margins.
boingboing.net/2026/02/10/t...
Trade paperbacks cost only 30c more to make and are priced $18-20 now, where mass market paperbacks didn't sell at $12. So... there's your answer. It's about margins.
boingboing.net/2026/02/10/t...
Iceland and Bhutan will share the gold medal for this one, I believe
February 11, 2026 at 10:28 AM
Iceland and Bhutan will share the gold medal for this one, I believe
This is one for @nathanielbdemiller.bsky.social , right?
Judging from this article he was just tired at the end www.thedodo.com/daily-dodo/r...
Random Dog Unexpectedly 'Wins' Downhill Skiing Race
Give this dog a medal.
www.thedodo.com
February 10, 2026 at 4:04 PM
This is one for @nathanielbdemiller.bsky.social , right?