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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#1F497D'>Yes, Ron Bogdan points out that it frequently turns out as the third part of a sequence, in which it makes sense to call it 3*. But if it appears independently, I will use "[asterism]".<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> dcrm-l-bounces@lib.byu.edu [mailto:dcrm-l-bounces@lib.byu.edu] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Noble, Richard<br><b>Sent:</b> Monday, 31 October 2011 12:02<br><b>To:</b> DCRM Revision Group List<br><b>Subject:</b> Re: [DCRM-L] Asterism<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Georgia","serif"'>Because even though it may be in a standard dictionary, "asterism" is not a "standard" word, but a rather esoteric printer's term--as esoteric as it is when used to mean "a small group of stars" or "the optical phenomenon of a star-shaped figure exhibited by some crystals by reflected light (as in a star sapphire) or by transmitted light (as in some mica)" (Webster3). It's even more esoteric than, say, "fist", because it's not one's most immediate thought that there must be "a word" for the constellations <sub>*</sub><sup>*</sup><sub>* , </sub><sup>*</sup><sub>*</sub><sup>*</sup>.</span><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Georgia","serif"'>In a collational formula it would be inappropriate to write "[asterism]<sup>4</sup>", especially because it's most likely to turn up in a sequence of multiple-asterisk signatures, *-3*, or whatever; and, in nay case, one disregards such typographic details in the formula proper. In an explanatory note one might use the term for the sake of compact phrasing, e.g. "in edition A signature 3* is an upright asterism, in edition B an inverted one". But I'd <i>still</i> define the term, because I simply cannot expect even a reasonably sophisticated online catalog user to understand what the heck I'm talking about, or to have a lot of interest in looking up a word right at that moment. In a formal bibliography concerning a body of books in which asterisms turn up with some frequency, I might indeed use the word without explanation, though I'd probably define it in a, introductory note on my descriptive conventions.</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span class=apple-style-span><span style='font-family:"Georgia","serif"'>Mind you, I still <i>like</i> the word, and am delighted to have had it brought to our attention. And of course, we could take it as an inspiration to asterize all sorts of things (<i>asterizein</i>: Gr., to arrange in constellations).</span></span><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><span style='font-family:"Courier New"'>RICHARD NOBLE : RARE BOOKS CATALOGER : JOHN HAY LIBRARY : BROWN UNIVERSITY<br>PROVIDENCE, RI 02912 : 401-863-1187/FAX 863-3384 : <a href="mailto:RICHARD_NOBLE@BROWN.EDU" target="_blank">RICHARD_NOBLE@BROWN.EDU</a> </span><br><br><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal>On Mon, Oct 31, 2011 at 10:00 AM, Deborah J. Leslie <<a href="mailto:DJLeslie@folger.edu">DJLeslie@folger.edu</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></p><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#1F497D'>Oh no, it was serious. I like using a single word that exactly describes character in a signature statement or in a note, and think your workarounds are less descriptive and less elegant. Why would you feel constrained to explain a standard dictionary word? </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt'> <a href="mailto:dcrm-l-bounces@lib.byu.edu" target="_blank">dcrm-l-bounces@lib.byu.edu</a> [mailto:<a href="mailto:dcrm-l-bounces@lib.byu.edu" target="_blank">dcrm-l-bounces@lib.byu.edu</a>] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Noble, Richard<br><b>Sent:</b> Sunday, 30 October, 2011 21:19<br><b>To:</b> DCRM Revision Group List<br><b>Subject:</b> Re: [DCRM-L] Asterism</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif"'>If I were referring to such a phenomenon in a non-collation note I'd feel constrained to explain it: "asterism (i.e. 3 asterisks in a pyramid)". What of an inverted pyramid (much more common)? And in a collational <i>formula</i> I'd write "3*", and describe the arrangement in a further note, if the exact form needed specifying for some reason. What about six asterisks in a pyramid? </span><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif"'>Or is this a thickly pedantic response to a slightly tongue-in-cheek suggestion (for which I get maybe the lower half of a star for taking the bait, but no more than that)?</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif"'>It's a wonderful word, nevertheless.</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;margin-bottom:12.0pt'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Georgia","serif"'><br clear=all></span><span style='font-family:"Courier New"'>RICHARD NOBLE : RARE BOOKS CATALOGER : JOHN HAY LIBRARY : BROWN UNIVERSITY<br>PROVIDENCE, RI 02912 : <a href="tel:401-863-1187" target="_blank">401-863-1187</a>/FAX 863-3384 : <a href="mailto:RICHARD_NOBLE@BROWN.EDU" target="_blank">RICHARD_NOBLE@BROWN.EDU</a> </span><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>On Sat, Oct 29, 2011 at 9:18 PM, Deborah J. Leslie <<a href="mailto:DJLeslie@folger.edu" target="_blank">DJLeslie@folger.edu</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></p><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#215868'>This is going around on facebook just now: there’s a name for the pyramid of three asterisks: asterism. We can use it in signature statements instead of trying to describe it, a la “[three asterisks in a pyramid]” .</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#215868'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#215868'><a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/expresident/13-punctuation-marks-that-you-never-knew-existed" target="_blank">http://www.buzzfeed.com/expresident/13-punctuation-marks-that-you-never-knew-existed</a> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#215868'><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asterism_%28typography%29" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asterism_%28typography%29</a> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><i><span style='font-family:"Georgia","serif";color:#215868'> </span></i><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;color:#215868'>Deborah J. Leslie, M.A., M.L.S. | Head of Cataloging, Folger Shakespeare Library</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;color:#215868'><a href="mailto:djleslie@folger.edu" target="_blank"><span style='color:#215868;text-decoration:none'>djleslie@folger.edu</span></a> | <a href="tel:202.675-0369" target="_blank">202.675-0369</a> | <a href="http://www.folger.edu" target="_blank">www.folger.edu</a></span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div></div></div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div></div></div></div></div></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></div></div></div></body></html>