Course:COGS200/2017W1/NGramAssignment/JoshuaGrant

Comparing synonyms

"waiter" "waitress" "server" (case insensitive) <iframe name="ngram_chart" src="https://books.google.com/ngrams/interactive_chart?content=waiter%2C+waitress%2C+server&case_insensitive=on&year_start=1800&year_end=2000&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t4%3B%2Cwaiter%3B%2Cc0%3B%2Cs0%3B%3Bwaiter%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BWaiter%3B%2Cc0%3B.t4%3B%2Cwaitress%3B%2Cc0%3B%2Cs0%3B%3Bwaitress%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BWaitress%3B%2Cc0%3B.t4%3B%2Cserver%3B%2Cc0%3B%2Cs0%3B%3Bserver%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BServer%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BSERVER%3B%2Cc0" width=900 height=500 marginwidth=0 marginheight=0 hspace=0 vspace=0 frameborder=0 scrolling=no></iframe>

Usage of "server" was far lower than "waitress/waiter" until the mid 1980s. This shift may be partially caused by a shift from sexist language, but is probably largely caused by a growth in writing about computer servers. The contemporary attractor space is accounted for by both the technological meaning and the decline in sexist language.

Wildcard search

We see a very noticeable and long-lived spike for "sermon" throughout the 1800s. People must have had better things to listen to in the 1900s, though, as evidenced by the spike in "radio." Also note the steady, stable growth of "story" and "lecture."

Inflection Search

"fight_INF' <iframe name="ngram_chart" src="https://books.google.com/ngrams/interactive_chart?content=fight_INF&year_start=1800&year_end=2000&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t3%3B%2Cfight_INF%3B%2Cc0%3B%2Cs0%3B%3Bfight%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Bfighting%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Bfought%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Bfights%3B%2Cc0" width=900 height=500 marginwidth=0 marginheight=0 hspace=0 vspace=0 frameborder=0 scrolling=no></iframe> Remarkable here is how stable the relative distribution of the three inflections are. Also note the very obvious attractor points for World Wars I and II.

Parts-of-speech

"curry_VERB, curry_NOUN" <iframe name="ngram_chart" src="https://books.google.com/ngrams/interactive_chart?content=curry_VERB%2C+curry_NOUN&year_start=1800&year_end=2008&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2Ccurry_VERB%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2Ccurry_NOUN%3B%2Cc0" width=900 height=500 marginwidth=0 marginheight=0 hspace=0 vspace=0 frameborder=0 scrolling=no></iframe> The usage for "curry" as a verb referred to grooming horses or ingratiating oneself to someone. This seems to be overtaken in the 80s as the delicious foodstuff became popular in the English world.

Parts-of-speech, unspecific

"*_NOUN" <iframe name="ngram_chart" src="https://books.google.com/ngrams/interactive_chart?content=*_NOUN&year_start=1800&year_end=2008&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t2%3B%2C%2A_NOUN%3B%2Cc0%3B%2Cs0%3B%3Btime_NOUN%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Bman_NOUN%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Bmen_NOUN%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Bpart_NOUN%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Blife_NOUN%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Bpeople_NOUN%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Byears_NOUN%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BGod_NOUN%3B%2Cc0%3B%3BMr._NOUN%3B%2Cc0%3B%3Bday_NOUN%3B%2Cc0" width=900 height=500 marginwidth=0 marginheight=0 hspace=0 vspace=0 frameborder=0 scrolling=no></iframe>

An obvious one, but interesting nonetheless. "Time" is an all-time favourite. Note also the curve of interest in "God," which has slumped in the 20th century but is now on an upward trajectory. A possible attractor for this would be cultural shifts towards evangelical religiosity in the United States.