Sure, of course it would... but that still has nothing to do with speaking a language, which is still what we're talking about.

You don't need to read and write to speak a language. Certainly writing systems can be more and less complex, but spoken language is separate from written language. We're talking about spoken language here only.

Not a linguist, but from the grammars and suchlike I've read, the International Phonetic Alphabet (or a variation on it) is generally used to write down the phonetic/phonemic representation of a language (how it sounds), and the field linguist in question would probably come up with an easier-to-read transcription…

Can you comment on relative complexity of languages?

The twist from the videogame Knights of the Old Republic.

I gotta bring up Red vs. Blue every time people mention twists. I know it's not as well-known as Se7en, KotOR, Empire Strikes Back, etc., but it's just executed so fantastically. And it's one of those twists where not only is it a shock to the characters, but the audience is left kicking themselves, wondering how on…

Those are the best twists, the ones where you kick yourself afterward because it's so obvious, in fact, how could it be anything else? But you just didn't quite see it. I love twists like that.

The Fourth Doctor was in top form that entire serial.

...your analogy makes no sense in this context.

Dude, you realize that asking for academic proof that linguists are descriptive is like asking for academic proof that scientists don't believe the Earth is flat, right? This was literally discussed on the first day of the first class I ever took on linguistics. But if you like, I can see if I can find something that…

"Nope, I just asked for one ;-)"

"non-academic"—yeah, find me some professional linguists (aka academics) who agrees with you, and maybe I'll start thinking that you've got a leg to stand on. Linguists, mind you. Not English teachers and writers. English teachers and writers are not scientists and do not study language scientifically. Linguists do.

Um—any society throughout all of history that hasn't had a written language? Or any society that does have a written language, but where the majority of speakers are not literate? Do I really need to start listing off languages spoken by such societies? (and I have a really hard time believing you found dictionaries…

The funny thing is, your last quote actually kind of proves my point that you don't need rules made up by some pedant to use and comprehend language. Who told you that jubjub is an adjective and bandersnatch is a noun? Nobody did, you figured out the parts of speech unconsciously based on context. Which is really…

Doesn't seem to be a big barrier for communication in societies without dictionaries. It's almost like language changes and evolves based on the people who speak it, not on pedants who insist everyone talks the way they want them to talk!

I'm not familiar with this particular dictionary, but generally dictionaries aimed at children have a lower reading level (they use simpler words in the definitions), would be smaller in size, and might not have as much information. Just to make it easier for a kid to use and understand.

"I would suggest a proper dictionary does a bit of both ..."

Well, it was (and is) the largest ship to ever sink on the Great Lakes, and did so during a time in which people seemed to think the big boats were unsinkable. It also was what spurred the implementation of modern safety regulations and search-and-rescue capability. So it was genuinely a big deal, in that regard.

Lord of the Rings is what got me into fantasy in a serious way too—read it when I was 13 (the movies were just coming out then) and just was addicted. It wasn't the first fantasy novel I'd read by a long shot, but it was just so huge. For the first time, I really got the idea of a fantasy world as entirely different…

I know it depends on the breed and the collective intellectual power of chickens is about equal to that of a rock*, but they can be such sweethearts! When I visit my parents', I always have to stop by their hens and cuddle. They just love being picked up and petted—well, three of four do. The other one only lets you…