Happy Birthday SMS! 20 years old.

The first SMS was sent  by a British engineer called Neil PapWorth, who wrote from his computer “Happy New Year” to his colleague Richard Jarvis.

One year later, in 1993, Nokia showed the first mobile phone which permitted the challenge of SMS between users in a commercial way.

SMS permitted to express any kind of feelings in a few 160 characters. In fact, SMS is the most favourite way of communication to wish New Year, Christmas and Saint Valentine´s Day.

Therefore, there are differences between male and female use of SMS language.

According to Norwegian researcher Richard Ling, there are differences in the SMS language of females and males. The lexical, morphological and syntactic choices between males and females SMS users suggested to Ling that women are more skillful  and more "literary" texters. Richard Ling observes:

  

Women's messages tend to be "longer".

 Women used more "complex structure" and grammar.

Men's messages tend to comprise "one-sentence", "one-clause" or "one-thought" constructions (the latter is markedly observable among male users within the ages 16 to 19).

More greetings and words of parting were observed in women's messages.

Women had messages with emotional and practical (e.g. arranging a meeting) content unlike men, who mostly used SMS language for practical content only.

Women and the younger users (across gender) tend to use more shortened forms and emoticons than men.

While women observed conventional rules more than men, the difference is marginal. This involves the use of correct spelling, punctuation, capitalization etc.

Sources:

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMS_language

By: Sandra Barranco Aguilar

SMS in Restaurants

The phones are expanding the horizon to restaurants when they are attracting new customers, retain them and to supply all information instantly on local demand, services,  offers and promotions. 

The new mobile applications allow diners find restaurants where they are, see the opinions and reviews from other customers, learn about deals and discounts or even place orders through its terminal.

 It is very common  sending  sms as a reminder of key dates, events, invitations, discounts and to inform about new products or new additions to the menu.

Loyalty and customer contact are the two main objectives of restaurants when using mobile devices either through advertising, mobile or web applications that allow different terminals.

A clear example of successful marketing campaign through mobile driven by large restaurant chains. "Starbucks in the United States has increased its customers and sales using mobile marketing strategies, such as sending mobile coupons to drive traffic to their stores consumers and facilitating payment via mobile"

Another of the  revolutions that are developing mobile phone is the possibility to pay through the same devices as well. For instance, Starbucks is one of the companies which supports on mobile payments from your IPhone, Ipod Tuch and Blackberry.

A new system is possible due to an Apple application, called “Starbucks Card Mobile”, in which you can pay and it is avaliable on iTunes in English and Spanish. The system allows costumers to pay and reload the Card through Pay Pal or credit card.

So far, it has introduced in three American cities: Seattle, San Francisco and New York.

But the newest thing that has happened, is that mobile phone is introduced as an element of interaction between the waiter, the customers and the chief.

Sources:

http://www.involvemobile.com/mobile-marketing-solutions/entertainment

http://www.ehow.com/how_7462612_incorporate-sms-restaurant-business.html

http://www.gestionrestaurantes.com/llegir_article.php?article=737

By: Sandra Barranco Aguilar

The national flag of the United States of America

Thirteen bars and fifty starts. This is how we named our blog and it is also the main characteristic of the American flag but do you all know why the American flag is made of bars, stars and the colors white, blue and red? I will devote this post just to explain the meaning and importance of this flag.

This peculiar flag is made up by fifty stars, thirteen bars and the colors red, blue and white. Did you know what the stars and the bars symbolize? Maybe some of you do so, I will explain it to the ones who don’t. On one hand, The stars, that are white, symbolize the fifty states of the US.

On the other hand, the bars. The bars are all equal and they are settled horizontally. The colors used for this bars are red and white. These bars represent the union of the first thirteen colonies that got separated from the British Crown in 1777.

As for the colors, according to a book named Our flag, they had no meaning at all at the beginning in 1777. However, they did get a meaning in 1782; white as their skin, read as their blood and blue as their sky and their justice.

Curiosities:

1. Did you know that the first American flag had no stars at all? Instead of stars, it had a small representation of the British flag.

2.  The first American flag that had stars contained thirteen.

3. The number of stars increased when the states added to America.

4. The last state which added to America was Hawái in 1960.

6. This flag is the only one in the world that has been waved on the moon.

By Francisco Manuel Alfonso Sánchez

American English Vs. British English; SPELLING

British English has a tendency to respect the pronunciation of many words of French origin and Americans often take away words “that are not necessary”, and usually don't respect the pronunciation of word of French origin to give a pronunciation “more American”.

To be sure which version you use, first, you must consider the nationality of the people that you are addressing, and secondly, you must be consistent to be using British English or American English.

Most dictionaries include both spellings and make note of the two spellings. In many American dictionaries, the difference is included in brackets, for example: Labo(u)r, Colo(u)r, etc.

And in British dictionaries, make note of the difference in brackets immediately after the headword. For example: watch (plural: watches).

American English spelling sometimes doesn’t double the consonant at the end of a word, while British English spelling does. Especially when the consonant is an “l”. For example: British: travel, traveller, travelling and American: travel, traveler, traveling.

-ise and –ize: spelling with –ise is more used in British English and the spelling –ize is more used by American people. For example: realise - realize.

-ae/oe and –e: British use –ae and –oe and American use –e: Example: BrE anaesthetic, foetus, encyclopaedia. AmE anesthetic, fetus, encyclopedia.

-ou and –o: Examples: BrE: colour, honour, labour, mould. AmE: color, honor, labor, mold.

-en and –in: Examples: BrE: enclose, enquiry, ensure. AmE: inclose, inquiry, insure.

-re and –er: Examples: BrE: centre, litre,theatre, fibre. AmE: center, liter, theater, fiber.

-ce and –se: Examples: BrE: defence, offence, licence. AmE: defense, offense, license. 

And Finally, you can see other spellings:

British English              American English

cheque                            check

moustache                     mustache

storey                              story

tyre                                  tire

tsar                                  czar

pyjamas                          pajamas

programme                    program

kidnapper                       kidnaper

analogue                         analog

catalogue                        catalog

Sources: “The English Language”, David Crystal

The new Oxford American dictionary.

A dictionary of spelling British and American, Michael West, D,Phil. http://www.transpanish.biz/es/ingles.html

http://en.citizendium.org/wiki/British_and_American_English

María Durán Martínez