Writing instruments: which one is your favorite?
Autor: Kaciana | Publicado: 2013-11-23T20:06:00-03:00


O site www.dictionary.com é uma verdadeira "enciclopédia" online, ou melhor, eu diria, um google especializado em línguas. Nele, além de podermos aprender o significado de várias palavras que são explicadas em inglês, incluindo a pronúncia e sua origem, podemos também aprender muito sobre a língua inglesa e sobre outros conhecimentos gerais. Toda semana o site nos apresenta um assunto novo, de importância cultural ou linguística. Um exemplo foi o dia em que colocaram uma breve história das tecnologias utilizadas para escrever, desde o tempo em que se escrevia com pedaços de metais e ossos até os tempos modernos, em que utilizamos os tablets, com teclados na própria tela. Sempre que possível, esses assuntos e publicações serão trazidos aqui para o blog, já que tratam de temas de interesse cultural.&nbsp; Hoje, para inaugurar o espaço e o valor do Dictionary.com para aprendermos sempre mais, apresento a publicação que fizeram sobre os variados instrumentos de escrita, desde o seu início. Depois de saberem mais sobre a evolução dos instrumentos de escrever, aposto que irão sempre visitar o www.dictionary.com, seja para saber mais sobre as palavras ou sobre qualquer outra coisa que diz respeito às linguas. Divirtam-se!&nbsp; 

A Brief History of Writing Instruments




                            



Stylus [stahy-luhs]




Back in ancient times, the stylus
 was the writing utensil of choice. Generally made of metal or bone, 
this long pointy tool was used to incise letters (often cuneiform) into 
tablets covered in a thin layer of wax or clay. Today a stylus can also 
refer to a pen-shaped device used to input drawings or notes into a 
computer, tablet or smartphone.






                            



Quill [kwil]



The quill 
fueled most written communication from the 6th to the 19th century. 
Quills were made of hollow bird feathers, most commonly goose feathers, 
though feathers from swans, crows, eagles and other types of birds were 
also used. To make marks on paper, quills were dipped into ink.




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Chalk [chawk]




Traditionally made of soft limestone and used to write on blackboards or slates, chalk
 writing implements are now made of gypsum. In many schools, blackboards
 and chalk have been replaced by whiteboards and markers or digital 
interactive whiteboards and computers. Chalk is also used by children to
 draw on sidewalks, and as a fine art medium.






                            



Pencil [pen-suhl]




Pencil comes from the Latin penicillus
 literally meaning "little tail." Pencils are made of graphite encased 
in wood. Nicolas-Jacques Conte, a scientist in Napoleon Bonaparte's 
army, invented the modern pencil in the 1790s. The phrase pencil something in, meaning "plan something tentatively," alludes to the erasable and nonpermanent quality of graphite.





                            



Pen [pen]



The fountain pen was the first type of pen
 that didn't require the user to dip the nib repeatedly in ink to write.
 Fountain pens first appeared in the 1880s, and ballpoint pens appeared 
as early as the 1890s. Felt-tipped pens were not introduced until the 
1960s.












                            


Keyboard [kee-bawrd, -bohrd]




From typewriters to computers to touchscreens, keyboards
 play a major role in modern communication. In English, the most common 
keyboard setup is called "QWERTY" because those six letters appear in 
the upper left-hand row. Christopher Sholes, the inventor of the 
typewriter and of the QWERTY setup, allegedly separated commonly used 
letters to slow down typists; if they typed too fast, it would jam the 
machine. People in need of more ergonomic or speedy setups can opt for 
alternative keyboard arrangements such as Dvorak, Colemak or Capewell.


Texto em inglês com imagens extraído do site:&nbsp; http://dictionary.reference.com/&nbsp;&nbsp; acesso em August 24th, 2013