Three things, nearly

Tonight I met some friends after work for a drink (or two), and I learned three things I didn't know before.

The first thing I learned was how to pronounce automaton. The stress is on the second syllable! I didn't know that, and have been pronouncing it wrong for years. (Pronouncing it wrong mentally, that is. I don't think I've ever had occasion to say it out loud before.)

The second thing I learned was that Japanese colour photocopy machines, even the cheapest and oldest models at the school where one friend works, will not copy money, even money covered with protective plastic. Even Canadian money. She tried to photocopy some Canadian money to show some students, who are going to Canada to study for three months. She wanted to familiarize them with the various notes. But the machine stuck its nose in the air and refused to function. It told her, prissily, "This is not appropriate material to photocopy," or words to that effect in Japanese.

Another friend told us that something similar happens with official documents (marriage certificates and so on) which you usually have to pay for at City Hall. If you need a copy for your bank, say, and go to a convenience store to photocopy the original, the original comes out with a COPY watermark all over it. It's still readable, and acceptable as a copy, but you certainly couldn't pass it off as an original.

Isn't that amazing? I'm amazed, anyway. How do the machines KNOW?

The third thing I learned was... the third thing was... oh, sod it, I've forgotten. It was something else amazing. Perhaps it will come back to me the next time I have a glass or three of wine.

Oh, but I do remember that the friend who has taught pronunciation a lot told me that minimal pairs are the way to go with my Vietnamese student's th problem. You have to hear a sound before you can pronounce it, she says, and the ear can be trained. It takes time and effort but it's worth doing.