Computer Gender

[nin@xxxxxx]

Dear Burmanet readers,

Autumn in Europe means not only a technicolour land scape and lovely
scent in the air but also shorter day-light-time. What do we do in 
this shorter and darker day situation? Make a cup of tea, light a 
candle and read some thing funny or whatever one prefers.
The following is simple but brilliant - I forward it as it came 
into my mail box. Please enjoy.


 "Computer Gender"
  by author unknown

 A language instructor was explaining to her class that French nouns,
 unlike their English counterparts, are grammatically designated as
 masculine or feminine.  Things like 'chalk' or 'pencil,' she described,
 would have a gender association although in English these words were
 neutral.

 Puzzled, one student raised his hand and asked, "What gender is a
 computer?"

 The teacher wasn't certain which it was, and so divided the class into
 two groups and asked them to decide if a computer should be masculine or
 feminine.  One group was composed of the women in the class, and the
 other, of men.  Both groups were asked to give four reasons for their
 recommendation.

 The group of women concluded that computers should be referred to in the
 masculine gender because:

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

 2.  They have a lot of data but are still clueless.

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

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

 The men, on the other hand, decided that computers should definitely be
 referred to in the feminine gender because:

 1.  No one but their creator understands their internal logic.

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

 3.  Even your smallest mistakes are stored in long-term memory for 
     later retrieval.

 4.  As soon as you make a commitment to one, you find yourself 
     spending half your paycheck on accessories for it.
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 v