Re: kissing (was: Re: Summary so far on DJUNO)

[John Cowan <cowan@locke.ccil.org>]

la .and. cusku di'e

> > Mathematicians, too.  Circles and spheres are said to kiss when they
> > intersect at a single point only.  I see no reason why, if people
> > can "sarji" a language, circles cannot "cinba".
> 
> If you're imaginative enough, I'm sure circles can sneeze too. Or
> perform conjouring tricks or whatever. But is this not *metaphor*?
> [W]e do need to distinguish between core/literal meaning
> and peripheral/meaphorical meaning.

Indeed, but how?  The place structures put constraints on this.
If the place structure of cinba had been "x1 kisses x2 using
configuration x3 of mouthparts x4", then circles could not
kiss, at least not without a tanru or lujvo.  But since the
true place structure is the simple " ... at locus x3", it seems
to me that circles can kiss, and that certain types of caresses
may be {cinba be te da} as well.  

Kissing mouth to mouth is undoubtedly the central concept,
and there is a periphery which is definitely cut off
("blowing kisses" is not a "nu cinba", because
there is no x3).  But I think the extension to circles or other
geometric objects ("locus" being itself a geometric term)
is well within the pericentral area.

As for sneezing, circles might be able to do that (one-place
predicates are rather loosely controlled), but coughing and puking are
definitely out.

-- 
John Cowan	http://www.ccil.org/~cowan		cowan@ccil.org
	You tollerday donsk?  N.  You tolkatiff scowegian?  Nn.
	You spigotty anglease?  Nnn.  You phonio saxo?  Nnnn.
		Clear all so!  'Tis a Jute.... (FW 16.5)