Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2013 October 5

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October 5

Use of Article

We know that in cases when the vowel sound of 'u' sounds like 'yoo', we're supposed to use 'a'. So "a university", but in all other cases we use 'an', like "an umbrella". Does this rule apply to other vowels too? Like the sound /e/ as in "egg" uses 'an' before it, but in other cases we use 'a'? In that case should we be saying "a ear" instead of "an ear"? (Since here e sounds like "ee" and not "ay".) Also, in cases when the first letter of the word is silent and is immediately followed by a vowel, we use 'an', like "an honourable man". If that is the case, and if we admit that we always say "an ear" and not "a ear", despite the "ee" sound, shouldn't we also say "an year" and not "a year"? Since 'year' and 'ear' pretty much sound the same? La Alquimista 08:45, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

No, since to native ears they don't sound the same (not for years and years). And "ee" is still a "vowel sound". Clarityfiend (talk) 10:14, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

Native speakers say 'a' before a consonant or semivowel, and 'an' before a vowel. The spelling is irrelevant. --ColinFine (talk) 11:24, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

That would once have been a true statement, but I know native speakers who say things like "a apple", "I've got a earache", etc. It's considered non-standard, but it's still part of the native speaker experience. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 11:36, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

OK, I have heard that in some US dialects. I've never heard it anywhere in the UK. --ColinFine (talk) 08:18, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

Or in higher-register speech, there are plenty of people who say "an historic" even though they pronounce the aitch. --Trovatore (talk) 22:32, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

The only time I have ever heard anyone speak that way is on Wheel of Fortune. μηδείς (talk) 18:43, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

An instance of "a" before "e" would be "a euphemism".--Shantavira|^{feed me} 19:01, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

"A euphemism" is consistent with the rule that "a" is used before a consonant or semi-vowel sound (in this case the semi-vowel often spelled y).

Duoduoduo (talk) 20:22, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

That's my point about the spelling being irrelevant. --ColinFine (talk) 08:19, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

Not sure what the WoF reference is about, Medeis, but there's plenty of evidence for a before a vowel: How to Make a Apple ID Account without a Credit Card (2013), Black wannabe Thug thinks he can dance in a Apple Store, I have a Apple Mac desktop ..., Here's a guy who writes "a orange" but says "an orange" - weird; a orange, a excellent …, a offer …. It's very common in a certain age group. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 20:50, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

I've often heard "a" before a vowel, even from the well-educated. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 21:21, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

You've brought that up before, Jack—here—giving me a chance to quote Stanley Kowalski on the ref desk. Deor (talk) 21:52, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

Ah, memory lane. I've forgotten far more than I ever knew. Which is quite an achievement, if you think about it. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 01:25, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

Not just the young - there's the song It's a Scandal! It's a Outrage! from Oklahoma! AndrewWTaylor (talk) 22:17, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

Yes, Oklahoma, where it's oh, such a beautiful morning, and "the corn is as high as a elephant's eye." ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 01:32, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

The (grammatical) law is a ass, that's all I wot I gots to say. Clarityfiend (talk) 02:27, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

So to wrap up, would people generally say "a year" or "an year"? Which is more grammatically acceptable in the UK? (I try to follow British English.) La Alquimista 05:54, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

In America it's "a year", and I'd be surprised if they said "an year" in the UK, but anything's possible. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 06:41, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

No surprise. We don't. - Karenjc (talk) 07:38, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

Quick question about instant coffee packets: Caffeine

Hello! I was wondering about the new style of instant coffee, have you seen these? They are slender packets about four inches long and contain enough coffee powder for one six-ounce (mug) serving of coffee. You just add boiling water and drink it (after it cools presumably). I think Starbucks was the first to popularize these in 2010 or so. Does anyone know whether Starbucks has more caffeine per serving in their instant product than other brands? I recently bought some Folgers instant pouches and they don't seem to be doing much for me, caffeine wise. Thanks for the help. Herzlicheboy (talk) 23:39, 5 October 2013 (UTC)

A good way to find this out would be to read the packages you are using for their ingredients. If the caffeine content is not specified (as it was not on the last can of gingerale I drank when I looked for it), there will almost certainly be a toll free number to reach the companies' customer service, and they will likely have this information. μηδείς (talk) 00:25, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

Note that Starbucks was by no means the first. Keurig was much earlier, and there might have been others before that. The quest to rip-off provide added value to suckers customers is endless. StuRat (talk) 00:59, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

Thanks, but what i'm talking about isn't Keurig, this is more like instant coffee in a plastic packet. Herzlicheboy (talk) 03:56, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

Medeis is making a joke there as ginger ale does not normally have caffeine in it. So looking for the content on the can will of course not be found. The ginger ale variety with green tea does contain caffeine. CambridgeBayWeather (talk) 02:00, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

No, actually I wasn't joking at all. It was about 10 days ago, and it was close to bed time, and I wanted a gin and tonic (yes, I know that sounds even more like a joke, but it's not) and all I had was vodka and ginger ale, and I was afraid if it had caffeine it would keep me up. I cannot sleep if I have coffee after dinner. Not usually drinking ginger ale I had no idea if it usually has caffeine or not. I took the lack of information as implying it didn't, but you never know. μηδείς (talk) 02:58, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

I read the labels. I'm a pretty rigourous food label-reader back from my athlete days. There is no caffeine info on the labels. If there was I wouldn't be asking here. Herzlicheboy (talk) 03:54, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

The problem at this point is we don't have the labels, while you may or may not. If you do, a lot of companies have very helpful customer service lines. You can also google "caffeine content x single" or whatever the appropriate name is, while we do not have the exact item to look at. μηδείς (talk) 04:10, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

You might also want to check the coffee content of "instant coffee". They may claim it's made from nothing but coffee, but whatever they do to it makes it nothing like coffee. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 05:07, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

Sorry Medeis I really thought you were joking. I just checked the pop cans we have here, in Canada. Both the Dr Pepper and Pepsi say how much caffeine there is per can. On the other hand neither the Coca-Cola or Arctic Co-operatives Limited house brand of diet-cola have the amount listed just that they do have caffeine in the list of ingredients. And the Sprite (soft drink) clearly states that it is caffeine free. Now I believe that a vodka and ginger was being offered? CambridgeBayWeather (talk) 05:19, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

To answer the original questions:

• This site claims that they called up Starbucks and were told that each sachet contains 130-140 mg of caffeine.
• CSPI has a long listing of caffeine contents for different brands of coffee. It doesn't list Folger's sachet but does say that 2tsp of Folgers Classic Roast Instant Coffee (sufficient for a 12 fl oz cup) contains 148mg of caffeine.

Abecedare (talk) 05:32, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

Very very nice, thank you very much User:Abecedare. Herzlicheboy (talk) 05:45, 6 October 2013 (UTC)

That sounds like a lot of caffeine for a cup. I was under the impression most coffee was in the 80-120 range. Shadowjams (talk) 20:32, 6 October 2013 (UTC)