NationStates Jolt Archive

A language instructor was explaining to her class that, in French, nouns are grammatically designated as masculine or feminine.

"House," in French, is feminine -"la maison." "Pencil," in French, is masculine -"le crayon."

One puzzled student asked, "What gender is computer?"

The teacher did not know, and the word wasn't in her French dictionary. So for fun she split the class into two groups (appropriately enough, by gender) and asked them to decide whether "computer" should be masculine or feminine noun. Both groups were required to give four reasons for their recommendation.

The men's group decided that computers should definitely be of the feminine gender ("la computer"), because:

No one but their creator understands their internal logic.

The native language they use to communicate with other computers is incomprehensible to everyone else.

Even the smallest mistakes are stored in long-term memory for possible later retrieval.

As soon as you make a commitment to one, you find yourself spending half your paycheck on accessories for it. The women's group, however, concluded that computers should be masculine ("le computer"), because:

In order to get their attention, you have to turn them on.

They have a lot of data, but they are essentially clueless.

They are supposed to help you solve problems, but half the time they ARE the problem.

As soon as you commit to one, you realize that if you'd waited a little longer, you could have gotten a better model.

Of course, the women's group won.

So, which is it? Why?

So, which is it?
I'm too lazy to decide, so I'll say that computers are genderqueer.
:D

EDIT:
Holy shit, that's actually an option?
Cool!

EDIT:
Holy shit, that's actually an option?
Cool!
:D

My computer made my old girlfriend jealous, so it must have been female.

Computer is "Ordinateur" in French. According to my dictionary, it's masculine, but that's slightly irrelevant as the article (ie. masculine is usually "Le") is conjugated because it begins with a vowel. For example, L'ordinateur. You could probably regard it as a neuter.

So, which is it? Why?
It's la computadora in Spanish. And it's very odd that they do not tell you the article in the dictionary. Does French have neuter cases like Latin?

None of the above, Gender-neutral. Some older languages like early forms of latin and Sanskrit allowed for a gender-neutral category.

I need to quit posting an obligitory BS option in my polls, They always get way to many votes,

Why does no one answer my thread? :(

Why does no one answer my thread? :(
Don't feel bad...
:fluffle:

Why does no one answer my thread? :(

I've already explained it seriously, and once i've explained something seriously I find it hard to turn into a humorous diatribe. Sorry :(

Why does no one answer my thread? :(

Cause we all hate you, Go Away! [/owned]


jk, man you're great, I especially loved that video :D

Cause we all hate you, Go Away! [/owned]
*cries* you don't mean that do you


jk, man you're great, I especially loved that video :D
Oh, good. ;)

DAMMIT! :headbang:

I voted before reading the post!

:headbang:

Should've said Genderly confused.

EDIT: Whoo! My 747'th post! :D :D :D

Judging by the attachment I have to my computer, I'd say female. However, I ahve a decent understanding of how the code they operate with works, though I can't code machine or assembly, wheras I have no clue how girls work.

What flavor is pussy?

1. Fishy
2. Beefy

Decide.

0's and 1's will always be easier than trying to undertand women.

Bad EE Joke:There are only 10 kinds of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't. :p

What flavor is pussy?

1. Fishy
2. Beefy

Decide.
You mean a pussy cat?

Or a human female's pussy?

What flavor is pussy?

1. Fishy
2. Beefy

Decide.


Foul: No non-sequitars. :D

Foul: No non-sequitars. :D
It's exactly those kind of staements that have kept you from getting pussy.

It's exactly those kind of staements that have kept you from getting pussy.
Ouch.

It's exactly those kind of staements that have kept you from getting pussy.

Owned, self.

No, wait. :headbang:

It's actually a quote from a Tom Stoppard play.

It's actually a quote from a Tom Stoppard play.
It is?

So, which is it? Why?
Dude its obvious it cant be male because the Female argument becomes nul and void by default as if a womans opinion could be valid Jez

Owned, self.

No, wait. :headbang:
No harm wished. Just had to say it, given your choice of words.
You've been arright.
:D

It is?

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead.

No harm wished. Just had to say it, given your choice of words.
You've been arright.
:D

I did set myself up pretty good, didn't I?

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead.
That's very sad for Them.

That's very sad for Them.

No, thats the play. :p (Not sure if you were jk or not)

It's la computadora in Spanish. And it's very odd that they do not tell you the article in the dictionary. Does French have neuter cases like Latin?
I thought it was el ordenador?
It's male in German, too.

It's male in German, too.
'Cepting that German is not a Romance language.

'Cepting that German is not a Romance language.
Not the last time I checked. ... But they use the English word anyways 'Der Computer'

No, thats the play. :p (Not sure if you were jk or not)
Do I look like I'm joking?

Not the last time I checked. ... But they use the English word anyways 'Der Computer'

Thats b/c English is a mix of French-Latin and Low-German. Consequently the English language has over 5000 words, the most of any language. That's nearly 3000 over China which comes in second.

Thats b/c English is a mix of French-Latin and Low-German. Consequently the English language has over 5000 words. Thats nearly 3000 over China which comes in second.
...And that's why Germans use the English word for computer?
I'm confused.

Do I look like I'm joking?

Err, well, um, I...don't

...And that's why Germans use the English word for computer?
I'm confused.

Most likely its the reverse. I know the comp was developed in the US, but I believe the term computer was around before then.

Thats b/c English is a mix of French-Latin and Low-German.
Kind of. It is a Germanic language, but we have adopted much Romance vocabulary when we went throught that whole Latin thing.

Most likely its the reverse. I know the comp was developed in the US, but I believe the term computer was around before then.
I just didn't understand what you meant to say with your post.

Most likely its the reverse. I know the comp was developed in the US, but I believe the term computer was around before then.
Oh, yes. But the term "computer" came from French. Quite literally. The French computer is where computer came from, the verb to denoting "to compute". A computer was a person who computes, and now it has been adopted to mean the machine that computes, along with quite a few other things now.

Yes, when the French Normans ruled, they tried very hard to enforce their culture on the Saxons. Since they were the ruling class, they were richer and viewed themselves as more sophisticated. That tradition holds even to today. If we want to sound more fancy, we use the French-latin word. If we want to sound more common, we use the Saxon word. Ex: ask-question. yes-affirmative. There are loads of other examples.

Oh, yes. But the term "computer" came from French. Quite literally. The French computer is where computer came from, the verb to denoting "to compute". A computer was a person who computes, and now it has been adopted to mean the machine that computes, along with quite a few other things now.

Huh, I learn something new everyday.

I just didn't understand what you meant to say with your post.

Never mind, I was owned by Gnostikos. :D

Never mind, I was owned by Gnostikos. :D
I wouldn't trust you with a question on the gender of a word anyways... judging from your name :p

I wouldn't trust you with a question on the gender of a word anyways... judging from your name :p

Yeah, I wanted to the evil dictatorship I created to sound German. I'm kinda moving more towards capitalism now, though.

Yeah, I wanted to the evil dictatorship I created to sound German. I'm kinda moving more towards capitalism now, though.
So you'd be 'Der Bösen' now? :D

Male all the way. He gives relevant data and doesn't want to talk about feelings

Male all the way. He gives relevant data and doesn't want to talk about feelings
I'll agree on the second part, but relevant data? How does that make a computer male?? :p

Men always give only relevant data:

some examples:
"I like beer"
"Bush is an asshole"
"This food sucks"
"Feck off!"

Men always give only relevant data:

some examples:
"I like beer"
"Bush is an asshole"
"This food sucks"
"Feck off!"
Her: "does that look good on me?"
Him:"uuuuhhh..."

:p

Ok...it's early for me, that's the best I could come up with. But don't be fooled, there's more! ;)

Her: "does that look good on me?"
Him:"uuuuhhh..."

:p

Ok...it's early for me, that's the best I could come up with. But don't be fooled, there's more! ;)
"uuuuuhhh...." = "you are asking a delicate question which I cannot answer"
relevant

Hard call, every computer is different, with its own temperaments and peculiarities.

I would be less surprised if the first true AI to view itself as being characteristically any gender at all considered itself feminine than if anything else.

"uuuuuhhh...." = "you are asking a delicate question which I cannot answer"
relevant
plus: the female obviously feeds the computer wrong data so she doesn't get the answer she expects

"uuuuuhhh...." = "you are asking a delicate question which I cannot answer"
relevant
Not for her, it isn't. She doesn't care about how you feel, she only cares about how she looks :p
Better option: Just go for a :fluffle:, she'll be happy and he won't have to answer...at least not for a little while...

I would be less surprised if the first true AI to view itself as being characteristically any gender at all considered itself feminine than if anything else.
If you're referring to AI, then it will be gender neutral. Gender only exists in sexual entities.

plus: the female obviously feeds the computer wrong data so she doesn't get the answer she expects
And we all know just what kind of "data" computers need from females :D

"Do you still love me?"
:fluffle:

"Are you having an affair?"
:fluffle:

"You think I'm fat, don't you?"
:fluffle:

"Have you been drinking again?"
:fluffle:

Obviously fluffles are the answer to any female problem :eek: *major epiphany*

Gender is a psychological phenomenon, not a physical one. Any self-conscious being, regardless of physical composition, will be influenced in their own views by the environment - whether they acknowledge and let pass, get caught up in it, or ignore it is an issue for them and them alone, but the odds that the world will have no influence on the AI's views is very nearly zero.

I know the comp was developed in the US
EXCUSE me? I think you'll find the first computer was Babbages Analytical Engine built in Cambridge.
http://www.fourmilab.ch/babbage/
Followed by the Enigma code cracker Colossus developed at Bletchley Park during WWII.
http://www.codesandciphers.org.uk/lorenz/colossus.htm.
Granted IBM USA developed the first PERSONAL computer but that was by no means the first EVER computer. :rolleyes:

Well, if it's German, then computer is masculine, so that's my answer.

Gender is a psychological phenomenon, not a physical one. Any self-conscious being, regardless of physical composition, will be influenced in their own views by the environment - whether they acknowledge and let pass, get caught up in it, or ignore it is an issue for them and them alone, but the odds that the world will have no influence on the AI's views is very nearly zero.
Yes, I realise that, but the thing is the drastically different way that AI and human intelligence work. Without sexes, it is unlikely that there will be gender, in my opinion. If only we had a sentient asexual animal to observe on this...but unfortunately you need more than just a central nervous system to count as sentient.

We say ''un ordinateur'' so it's masculine in french.

I thought it was el ordenador?
It's male in German, too.
Depends. If you're in America it's la computadora, femenine, from English computer. If you're in Spain it's el ordenador, masculine, from French ordinateur.

So, clearly, it's confused about its gender.

I say a woman. They're cranky, annoying, do whatever they want, and are a b****. No this was not meant as a slur against women, I am not a schovenist (spelling) pig, it's humorous. In fact I like high maintenance women, keeps me on the edge and in check ;).

Computer is female because it sits around doing nothing except pleasing you occaisonally (ie porn) and wastes your money. And sometimes you hit it.

"Do you still love me?"
:fluffle:

"Are you having an affair?"
:fluffle:

"You think I'm fat, don't you?"
:fluffle:

"Have you been drinking again?"
:fluffle:

Obviously fluffles are the answer to any female problem :eek: *major epiphany*

LOL!!!

*writes that one down*

Mines a man, otherwise I'd feel really bad about hitting it when it doesn't work, and I don't want to fall into bad habbits for latter life.

Depends. If you're in America it's la computadora, femenine, from English computer. If you're in Spain it's el ordenador, masculine, from French ordinateur.

So, clearly, it's confused about its gender.
So maybe it does depend on the language. In German and French they're male, in Spanish gender-confused and in English... who knows?

Mines a man, otherwise I'd feel really bad about hitting it when it doesn't work, and I don't want to fall into bad habbits for latter life.

If I yell at my computer it sort of gives me the finger and does it's own thing. Whenever I tap it (fan needs cleaning) it sort of kicks my ass too. Good thing it isn't a "real" woman or else I'd have to beat myself for smacking it.

If I yell at my computer it sort of gives me the finger and does it's own thing. Whenever I tap it (fan needs cleaning) it sort of kicks my ass too. Good thing it isn't a "real" woman or else I'd have to beat myself for smacking it.
How about you actually DO treat it as a woman. Maybe then you'll think twice about smacking your computer after beating yourself up a hundred times :D

In French, computer (un ordinateur) is French!

l'ordinateur (masculin)

EXCUSE me? I think you'll find the first computer was Babbages Analytical Engine built in Cambridge.
http://www.fourmilab.ch/babbage/
Followed by the Enigma code cracker Colossus developed at Bletchley Park during WWII.
http://www.codesandciphers.org.uk/lorenz/colossus.htm.
Granted IBM USA developed the first PERSONAL computer but that was by no means the first EVER computer. :rolleyes:

Electric computer, I mean. Babbage's invention was not even really called a computer,although it is considered the first example of the idea. But they weren't called computers until ENIAC.

PS: You know Babbage never finsihed either of his machines. I'm forgetting what the first one was called.

How about you actually DO treat it as a woman. Maybe then you'll think twice about smacking your computer after beating yourself up a hundred times :D

If I did then it'd have to be a real woman. I'm not really fond on loving inanimate objects. It never ceases to amaze me are those guys who treat their cars as actual people and who give them more love than actual, real people. Not only that but they have the hottest girlfriends. What the hell!

Now if you're talking about Femputer from Futurama, it's a woman, definitely.

Note: Named his computer Jessica.

"What gender is computer?"

Whatever "gender" you choose. :)

Feminine because it wastes so many guys' time.

First of all, a computer is called: ordinateur in French.

As for gender, they are female because you plug things into them. There is a piece you can get called a gender converter, but I have no idea what it does. Plants also have gender...

my computer is preventing me from getting a stable relationship. makes it a girl- chicks always try to wreck other girls' lives :D

First of all, a computer is called: ordinateur in French.

Yes. But the word 'computer' can still come from French (or a common earlier language).
The word 'compter', to count, in French looks a lot like the English compute.

The consensus so far.... computers are genderly confused.

The consensus so far.... computers are genderly confused.

I'm not quite sure the computers are confused and not the people using them...