The article discusses the extensive and varied ways snow can be described, focusing on Russ Scholl's project that catalogs these terms. Inspired by his skiing experience and a passion for language, Scholl developed a unique periodic table categorizing snow descriptions by their qualities. His work, alongside the insights from Ian Bogost's discussions on linguistic diversity, highlights the rich vocabulary surrounding snow, illustrating how cultural context shapes language. Scholl's comprehensive list is a celebration of both snow and the intricacies of linguistic expression, making it appealing to enthusiasts of language and winter sports alike.
He’s also assembled a similar chart for military slang; his website also says that a science fiction-themed periodic table is also in the works.
Scholl began work on the project during the early days of the pandemic; due to his many years of working as a ski instructor, he's become familiar with a vast lexicon of terms.
Squeaky snow. Or, as some New Englanders call it, 'screaming lobster.' It isn't hard to see the appeal of Scholl's project.
Bogost explored the ways that speakers of English and Eskaleut languages can describe a certain freezing cold precipitation - all the while noting the regional variations.
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