US academic verbiage was Re: [Sca-cooks] Re: bundt cake?

[Susan Fox-Davis]

Giles wrote:

> At 14:50 17/12/02 -0500, you wrote:
> >After high school, one goes to college/university
> >How's that for a summary?
>
> Excellent, thanks. I was thinking more of other terms, what is:
> Homecoming (and where have they been?)

The school football team has been playing games at the other schools' campuses,
now it's our turn to host the games.  Celebrated with a homecoming dance,
"homecoming queen" and other popularity contests and puberty rituals.

> Commencement (doesn't his happen at the end of the school year?)

It does, being the graduation ceremony

> Freshman

First year of four, either high school or college.

> Sophomore

Second year of four, either high school or college.  "Sophomoric humor" means
it's dumb and only maybe funny, although I have known a few very amusing
sophomores in my life.

> letterman

Having achieved a certain level of achievement in a sport.  One can "letter" in
multiple sports.

> varsity

Highest level sports team, usually seniors or less commonly very talented
underclassmen

> the terrifying ritual of the pep assembly/rally (as in Grease or Heathers)

Drumming up patriotic spirit for one's team with band music, cheers and girls
in very short skirts.

> The even more baffling rituals of the road trip and spring break

"Getting Away From It All."  The Road Trip being the journey and the Spring
Break the destination. "Spring Break" is a one-week school holiday around
Easter;  certain cities are traditional gathering places for area college
students at this time, where they make every attempt to break all the rules of
good behavior at once.

> What purpose do fraternities/sororities have and why are they named after
> strings of Greek letters?

Not sure about the origin of the Greek Letter naming practice.  Such
organizations provide a social structure and support group for new and
returning students, sometimes including lodgings, companionship with persons of
the same major or interests.

> Why does everyone get so worked up about cheerleaders? (Vacuous *and* loud
> doesn't seem to be a combination to laud, to me)

It's the "popularity contest" thing.  The people who get worked up about it are
usually the ones who were not chosen.

> Do kids ever bring their lunch to school?

I did about half the time.  School food has the advantage of being hot, but the
disadvantage of being provided by the lowest bidder.

> SAT's

College board examinations, given on the same day nationwide.  They provide
colleges with a level diagnostic basis for assessing a student's verbal and
mathmatical knowlege.  The same testing board also administers "Achievement
Tests" in other areas, such as history or sciences.

> Ivy league

A specific group of colleges in the Northeast US, some of the oldest colleges
on the NA Continent with the highest standards.  Brown, Columbia, Cornell,
Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn, Princeton and Yale.  Named for proverbial "ivy coved
walls" not ivy covered professors.

> Food content: caught an episode of Jamie Oliver's new vehicle Oliver's
> Twist tonight. What a load of bollocks. Fortunately offset by the repeat
> screening of the Two Fat Ladies and the bio of Jennifer Patterson this
> evening on the trusty ABC...

Oh I'm with you on this one.  Jamie Oliver's show is much too elementary for
me.
I can only surmise that We Foodies are NOT the target audience.  Besides,
he reminds me suspiciously of Malcolm McDowell in A CLOCKWORK ORANGE.

The Two Fat Ladies on the other hand, rock the house.  No apologies, they are
what they are, take it or leave it.  We briefly thought about writing a
proposal for a US version
but neither Ms. Huette nor I could drive a motorbike. <g>  I understand that
Clarissa
owns a cookery book store in Edinburgh, I'd love to visit whether she was on
the premises or not!  She also did another series that I hope they show here,
BBC's "Clarissa and The Countryman" where she does NOT cook but does
participate in a number of politically-incorrect rural pasttimes, escorted by
her lifelong friend sheep farmer Sir Johnny Scott
<http://www.bbc.co.uk/factsheets/clarissa_and_the_countryman/index.shtml>

Selene Colfox, Continental Caid
selene at earthlink.net