Notes & queries

The mystery of the disappearing Bermuda Triangle; Why so many languages?
bermuda triangle yacht poster notes and queries
A reward poster for the Saba Bank, a yacht that went missing in the Bermuda Triangle Photograph: Bettmann/CORBIS

Whatever happened to the Bermuda Triangle?

It disappeared without trace.

Chris Newman, Salisbury, Wilts

A Radio 4 series presented by Tom Mangold concluded that the Bermuda Triangle was effectively the product of 1950s American magazines such as Argosy and Fate.

Many ships and aircraft have been lost in the triangle, but on a scale which, according to Lloyd's of London, is not disproportionate when compared to other busy shipping lanes. The programme did give air-time to one or two triangle survivors with strange tales to tell, but largely dismissed their stories.

Books are still being written about the mystery, such as Gian Quasar's Into the Bermuda Triangle (2004), but, as Quasar was prepared to consider the currently unfashionable subjects of UFOs and Atlantis, and their possible connection to the Bermuda Triangle enigma, he received short shrift from Radio 4. One line of inquiry the programme did not consider, however, was the effects of solar magnetic activity, which even orthodox scientists concede can cause aircraft and ship's compasses to malfunction. Triangle survivors certainly claim this has happened to them.

The mystery has probably been exaggerated over time, but I am sure some odd things have happened there. I am also convinced that the enigma is likely to be the subject of many more books and related media interest.

Geoff Clifton, Solihull, West Mids

It vanished up its own apex.

David Lawton, Woking, Surrey

The human race spent millennia developing its most unique asset among all other species – language. So why did it then blow it by having a multitude of mutually incomprehensible separate languages?

The human race probably blew it right from the start. Humans developed in small groups and the natural tendency is for languages to begin to diverge if they are separated in space and time. Even when settled communities developed, in the absence of mass media, even a modest distance between villages would lead to peculiarities of accent and vocabulary arising quite quickly.

The questioner clearly considers the multitude of languages in the world a bad thing. I think he underestimates the extent of multilingualism in traditional or tribal communities; and also the value of being able to speak more than one language.

John Kruse, London E17

What is unique about the human brain is its capacity to link sounds or signs with experiences, and that's what makes language possible. Because of this capacity, the human infant is able to learn to speak a language at a phenomenal rate.

Language is not a consciously thought-out system: it just happens. Apart from facilitating communication between people, language also serves as a cohesive force within groups of people, so different countries each have their own language that becomes part of the national identity. The language of each country has a characteristic sound; so you can tell whether someone is speaking French or Italian even though you do not know what they are saying.

Even within a single country, people from different regions have their own dialect. One language or dialect evolves out of another. Because any one language is a modification of one that has preceded it, bits of the earlier language get retained in the new one, which is why spelling, grammar and pronunciation are often so irrational. But people like it that way – just think how boring it would be if the whole world spoke the same language with the same accent and same dialect.

John Birtchnell, London SE24


What worries me more than opening someone else's car (N&Q, 14 October) is that if I were to drop my keys and zapper in the street, say, and some ne'er do well were to find them, all he/she has to do is walk around the local car park or the streets of our small town pressing the zapper. When he/she was within 150-or-so metres of my car, it would conveniently flash its lights and ding-dong merrily on high, so the thief would know which car to head for. Is there any solution to this?

David McVerry, Stoke-on-Trent

Any answers?

If we can assume that the stars themselves didn't, who exactly made money out of the 30 Carry On films?

Tony Robbins, Barkingside, Essex

What effect do fireworks have on the environment? If the answer is "harmful", shouldn't their sale and use be restricted?

Anthony Green, Leeds
