War Of The Words  Oct 6 2012 @ 11:16am  Maria Konnikova laments
the lack of standardization for English spelling:  And so it is
that today, we find discrepancies not only between the greys and
grays of the world, safely ensconced on their respective sides
of the ocean, but between some of the leading bastions of the
English language on the same side of the pond. If I’m focused on
a writing assignment for The New York Times, I would do well to
remember to become focussed if I’m to go over to the New Yorker.
And forget any attempts to cooperate between the two. I’d be
stuck in endless coöperation–or co-operation, should I try my
hand at a piece for The Guardian–limbo before I could so much as
look up the meaning of dieresis.  Relatedly, British words seem
to be enjoying a comeback in the US:  The word gormless (the
best American equivalent is probably “clueless”) is on the rise
in the US, for example, says Stamper, but no-one thinks of it as
a British word. For some reason it sounds Southern to many
American ea