Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[kerstin]

1.design's next "frontier"=the unexplored areas about design

can I say "we want to explore /move on to /find out design's next frontier."?

2.Designing for space travel shouldn't be the *domain *of just left-brain engineer.
=the territory or the authority owned by some professional?
Is it correct to say"She has the domain of the company."to indicate she has power in the company.?

[CP]

1. It is just a metaphor, so you can use "design frontier" any way that makes sense. You might say, "Our creative staff have blazed new trails into the frontiers of design." This works best with inspiring music playing at the same time.

2. This use of "domain" is equivalent to "area of influence" or "turf." I might say, "I stay out of the kitchen. That is my wife's domain." Less concretely: "Hammering out lasting bargains between labor and management is the domain of the professional mediator. We amateurs should leave it to the professionals."

I would not say "She has the domain of the company," but I might say, "Hiring is Helen's domain; firing is mine. You're fired."
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You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb

[kerstin]

"Our creative staff have blazed new trails into the frontiers of design."
what does "blaze "mean in the sentence?


In what kind of situation would you use* less concretely*?



Thanks a lot

[CP]

"Our creative staff have blazed new trails into the frontiers of design."
what does "blaze "mean in the sentence?
--To blaze a trail through some territory is to cut down plants in the way and make a new path. Metaphorically, I was referring to making new discoveries in design, cutting a path into the new frontiers.

In what kind of situation would you use* less concretely*?
--Well, I used "less concretely" to mean making use of the term in less concrete, more metaphorical ways. We say "concrete example" to mean a real example; "concrete proposal" to mean a real proposal, one that might actually be submitted.
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You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb