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His 'n' hers

Please note: This page is a read-only archive of messages posted in the Word Fugitives conference of Post & Riposte.

Topic:	8) His 'n hers (1 of 4), Read 81 times
Conf:	Word Fugitives, with Barbara Wallraff
From:	Barbara Wallraff ([email protected])
Date:	Wednesday, November 17, 1999 04:11 PM

A question that came up in Word Court this month has to do with whether the terms 'male' and 'female' are offensive when used with respect to things like electrical connectors. I don't think they are, but let's say a person didn't want to use these terms for one reason or another. What would be alternatives?

Topic:	8) His 'n hers (2 of 4), Read 78 times
Conf:	Word Fugitives, with Barbara Wallraff
From:	Pete Horne ([email protected])
Date:	Thursday, November 18, 1999 01:46 PM

While MALE and FEMALE are still used, (especially for audio/video equipment), there is a preference for more specific terms within the electronics industry. PIN and SOCKET are used for individual connections. A connector can contain many PINs or SOCKETs or both. The connector itself is a PLUG or a RECEPTACLE (sometimes called a JACK). When connecting to something relatively stationary, such as a wall or a case, the stationary side has the RECEPTACLE and the loose side has the PLUG. If it is a pair of cables that are being connected, both ends can be considered PLUGs, even though one is the complement of the other.

Topic:	8) His 'n hers (3 of 4), Read 55 times
Conf:	Word Fugitives, with Barbara Wallraff
From:	Gerson Ferracini ([email protected])
Date:	Saturday, November 20, 1999 06:33 PM

Concave and convex. Or caves and vexes, for short.

Gerson Ferracini

Topic:	8) His 'n hers (4 of 4), Read 39 times
Conf:	Word Fugitives, with Barbara Wallraff
From:	Anne Reissig ([email protected])
Date:	Wednesday, November 24, 1999 11:49 AM

I like "innies" and "outies."

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