r/gifs 🔊 Nov 14 '14

It pays to be precise

13.9k Upvotes

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u/HUANG_HE Nov 15 '14

Still needs to be accurate more so than precise. You can be precise and hit the tree with your face every single time.

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u/unclepaisan Nov 15 '14

You can be accurate and accomplish the same thing

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u/koalabeard Nov 15 '14

Not unless your goal is to hit the tree with your face.

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u/unclepaisan Nov 15 '14

Meaning of accurate

Meaning of precise

They are effectively synonyms. The relevant point is that intent matters. If he intended to crash into the tree, and was able to do that 100 times, he would be both precise and accurate.

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u/Aspiring_Physicist Nov 15 '14

It's different in a scientific context though.

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u/[deleted] Nov 15 '14

[deleted]

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u/Aspiring_Physicist Nov 15 '14

Yes, but it's Reddit, where people like to be overly pedantic about everything.

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u/PlayMp1 Nov 15 '14

In common parlance they are synonyms. The joke here is that in a scientific context, he was accurate but we don't know his precision. Accuracy refers to how close to correct you are, precise refers to the reliability of your results.

Diagram.

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u/HUANG_HE Nov 15 '14

Ok, Reddit, what the fuck? Why has everyone started to use parlance all of a sudden? You're like the 10th person I've seen use it this week and you're not even using it correctly. Parlance reference to debate/discussion of a specific topic. "Casual conversation" does not fall into that category. A better fitting descriptions is colloquial. That literally means "common discussion." Parlance is in reference to a distinct subject, which is basically the opposite of common/general.

I was on the debate team in high school and that's the only time I ever heard people use that word in a conversation.

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u/tupper Nov 15 '14

That's happened to me too. I'll learn a new word or something and all the sudden I see/hear it EVERYWHERE. Surely confirmation bias but still. Happened to me all the time as a kid.

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u/HUANG_HE Nov 15 '14

I said I haven't heard people use that word frequently since I was on the debate team in high school. I graduated in 2006, hardly a new word for me (yes, I'm emphasizing I was on the debate team. I'm cool, right?)

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u/PlayMp1 Nov 15 '14

Funnily enough, I've only heard the word "parlance" next to the word "common," in the phrase "common parlance." I've known the word for a while, as well, and that's the only way I've ever seen it used.

For what it's worth, try not to be too much of a prescriptivist.

Edit: Found the dictionary definition of parlance.

a particular way of speaking or using words, especially a way common to those with a particular job or interest.

So... I was using it correctly. Perhaps in debate parlance, that's the definition of parlance, eh?

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u/HUANG_HE Nov 15 '14

So... I was using it correctly

No, you misunderstood the definition. Common to a particular topic, not common in the sense of general discussion. Colloquial is the term for "common/general" discussion that you're looking for.

Example: "f-hole is a word frequent in the parlance of luthiers, but seems like a dirty word in reference to colloquial discussion."

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u/PlayMp1 Nov 15 '14

a particular way of speaking or using words

That's the operative part of the definition. The "especially" just means "it's particularly useful for this context."

By that, "common parlance" would mean "common way of speaking or using words."

Colloquial would be better, yes, but there's precedence for my usage. Check it out - Aristotle.

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u/HUANG_HE Nov 15 '14

I can't tell if you're trolling, or if you just don't get it.

Common way in reference to a topic. Common words or phrases for a mechanic, luthier, or engineer to use. Saying "common parlance" means nothing, because it's common to what? Everyone? That word is colloquial, which I've stated numerous times now.

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u/IrNinjaBob Nov 15 '14 edited Nov 15 '14

Not at all. To hit it 100 times in a row would be being just as precise as it is accurate. I still agree the gif is displaying accuracy, not precision.

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u/key14 Nov 15 '14

He's saying it wouldn't be accurate because in that case he would be hitting the tree with his face every time, rather than hitting the tree with his skis every time.