Why do intellectually superior humans have around 7,000 distinct languages?

[DogmaHunter]

There are English accents that are Greek to me.

Belgium is a small country of about 10 million.
Only half of the country speaks dutch.

From Antwerp to the coast, is about 80 km. Just 80. That's like an hour drive.
Just one single hour.

So you have Antwerp and you go to, let's say Brugge near the coast. That's some 70km.
Little over half way, you pass the city of Ghent.


I kid you not, "truelly native" people from Antwerp, who grew up entrenched in Antwerp dialect, have trouble understanding "truelly native" people from Ghent.
The people of Brugge?? It's near impossible for someone entrenched in Antwerp dialect to have a conversation with someone using the west-flanders dialect.


Just 70km apart!

It's the subject of many many good jokes in Flanders though

 

[JackRT]

Where I live in Canada there is a family from Jamaica across the street. When they talk with each other it is almost incomprehensible but I know its English.

 

[durangodawood]

An ancient tablet provides the first ever image of the tower of Babel and offers a "very strong piece of evidence" that it was a real building. That's according to Dr. Andrew George, professor of Babylonian at SOAS University of London. His work is featured in a new episode of "Secrets" on the Smithsonian Channel. The 6th century B.C. tablet was discovered in Babylon more than 100 years ago. Because it was privately owned, linguists have not been able to study it until now. George was able to interpret the text and found that its account of the tower's construction is identical to the biblical story. But George also believes that the text shows that the Babylonian ruler Nebuchadnezzar II built the tower and that's where scholars disagree.

Yeah surely the Babyls built a tower or two.

But the same one as when everyone on earth spoke the same language???

 

[dad]

I can't even begin to address the many errors included herein - I literally don't know where to start.

The language YOU speak isn't even the same as the language that your DIRECT parents spoke.

Hey, at least I could understand them!

You today use words and sounds that they didn't. They used words and sounds that you don't. Dialects evolve all the time, much like species do.

After Babel this tends to happen. So?? Are you leading to some point?

It might come as a surprise to you, but some people actually study certain things and manage to learn a thing or two about the world that exists outside of the little corner they happen to live and reside.

You thought the fact that new words and stuff appear over time required some genius study? Ha.

 

[dad]

I just used it in the post you replied to.

Great, so now for the next time part.

 

[dad]

No, it talks about giants. As in 'giant people'. Well... depending on the scholar, it's either giant people or giant half human/half angel hybrids.
Neither of which are real or even remotely possible.

None of which are more than opinion either. So hey, why not dino giants?

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

Great, so now for the next time part.

Or you could just tell me now and save all this hemming and hawing.

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

None of which are more than opinion either. So hey, why not dino giants?

... I'd point out that we do have evidence of giant dinosaurs, but I have seriously no idea how you'll react to it.

 

[dad]

Or you could just tell me now and save all this hemming and hawing.

Maybe you learned your lesson about daring to use the word reality, so I won't need to

 

[dad]

... I'd point out that we do have evidence of giant dinosaurs, but I have seriously no idea how you'll react to it.

Of course we had dinos, this is news??

In fact I allow for the possibilty that birds and/or reptiles evolved/changed/adapted into dinos in the former nature, where rapid adapting was the norm. Then maybe even evolved back into birds if needed! Who knows?!

Your religion has no monopoly on interpreting evidences. I should point out also that if dinos were not original kinds, but evolved/adapted from the kinds, that would explain why none were on the ark!

The evidence mounts.

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

Maybe you learned your lesson about daring to use the word reality, so I won't need to

Or maybe I just want you to be honest and tell me why I'm wrong in using 'reality'.

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

Of course we had dinos, this is news??

In fact I allow for the possibilty that birds and/or reptiles evolved/changed/adapted into dinos in the former nature, where rapid adapting was the norm. Then maybe even evolved back into birds if needed! Who knows?!

Your religion has no monopoly on interpreting evidences. I should point out also that if dinos were not original kinds, but evolved/adapted from the kinds, that would explain why none were on the ark!

The evidence mounts.

... the evidence mounts that you really have no evidence at all and just have to resort to crackpot theories that you can't back up to try get your own religious views to fit into God's reality.

 

[dad]

Or maybe I just want you to be honest and tell me why I'm wrong in using 'reality'.

To use it is a bit like using a map. To get to the city called reality, we need to know the way, and show the details on the map of how we get there. Not just write the word and repeat it as if it meant we grew up there.

 

[dad]

... the evidence mounts that you really have no evidence at all and just have to resort to crackpot theories that you can't back up to try get your own religious views to fit into God's reality.

Bible based interpretations of scientific evidence may seem crackpot to naysayers and scoffers and the uninformed. You seem to be dealing more in misconceptions and old wives tales than in discussing any particular evidences.

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

To use it is a bit like using a map. To get to the city called reality, we need to know the way, and show the details on the map of how we get there. Not just write the word and repeat it as if it meant we grew up there.

... nope. Try again.

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

Bible based interpretations of scientific evidence may seem crackpot to naysayers and scoffers and the uninformed. You seem to be dealing more in misconceptions and old wives tales than in discussing any particular evidences.

No, I'm not talking about Bible base interpretations. I'm talking about what you think are Bible based interpretations, which are decidedly and firmly in the realm of 'crackpot'.

 

[Astrophile]

Dinosaurs, for one thing. Countries that are never mentioned in the Bible that existed at the same time as the Bible was written. Uranium (I just like that word really). A lot of things.

The planets. Binary stars. Variable stars. Neutron stars. Interstellar molecular clouds. Globular clusters. Galaxies. Quasars. The cosmic microwave background.

 

[Warden_of_the_Storm]

The planets. Binary stars. Variable stars. Neutron stars. Interstellar molecular clouds. Globular clusters. Galaxies. Quasars. The cosmic microwave background.

Television.

 

[klutedavid]

Do you have a link I can see it at?
And I will say thank you for actually addressing what I was looking for.

Tower of Babel Discovered? Ancient Tablet Describes Mesopotamian Structure Built By ‘Multitudes’

 

[Goonie]

Tower of Babel Discovered? Ancient Tablet Describes Mesopotamian Structure Built By ‘Multitudes’

Your link does not go to an article.