what is a structure?

metal56 · Post by **metal56** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 10:48 am

From The Guardian newspaper:

Australia has three iconic structures: Uluru, the giant red rock in the Northern Territory, the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge…

but is a rock, or any other natural feature, a structure? Is Mount Everest or the Grand Canyon a structure?

Lotus · Post by **Lotus** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 12:33 pm

Obviously, Uluru is not a man-made structure, which is what one normally means when using the word structure, isn't it? You have hit upon one of my ongoing pet peeves. We have to teach our students how to make sense of English journalism. But journalists don't have to make our job quite so challanging.

lolwhites · Post by **lolwhites** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 3:51 pm

Geologists use the term structure, so I would say it doesn't have to be man-made. However, whether it can be applied to Uluru is another matter.

metal56 · Post by **metal56** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 4:59 pm

You have hit upon one of my ongoing pet peeves. We have to teach our students how to make sense of English journalism. But journalists don't have to make our job quite so challanging.

Oops!

I agree with you, though.

metal56 · Post by **metal56** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 5:00 pm

lolwhites wrote:Geologists use the term structure, so I would say it doesn't have to be man-made. However, whether it can be applied to Uluru is another matter.

OK, then it's OK for me to use it. Thanks.

Lotus · Post by **Lotus** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 3:21 am

metal56 wrote:You have hit upon one of my ongoing pet peeves. We have to teach our students how to make sense of English journalism. But journalists don't have to make our job quite so challanging.

Oops!

I agree with you, though.

Thank you, Metal. I am very poor at spelling, and I should have checked that before posting. I shall endeavor to be more vigilant in future. BTW, this isn't a promise, just a hope.