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Congratulations, Paul & Jessica; Welcome to the world, George

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Re: Congratulations, Paul & Jessica; Welcome to the world, George

#31

Post by glymor »

megaduck wrote: post #27
glymor wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's very funny but as someone with an unusual name it's less funny. More seriously your should use a middle name to provide uniqueness. People are basically unable to recognise words they haven't heard before. Complexity in the part of the name used normally is a hassle.

I'd say the middle name is the place for common-ness. My first name is unusual (Lon), but my middle name is as common as dirt (David). The first name is a hassle sometimes, but I can always go by my middle name if I want. It also gives me the option to use the elitist "L. David" if I like. I really like having a unique name, and I don't think I'd be happier being a "John Smith". Ultimately, your name is what you make…

Just look at Barack Hussein Obama

Actually for much of his early life he went by Barry. Also Barack and Hussein are very common Arabic names.

Re: Congratulations, Paul & Jessica; Welcome to the world, George

#32

Post by conanite »

andreyf wrote: post #10

Congrats! I'm also a new father - PG (and everyone else) could you share any general parenting advice, or give pointers to sources from which you seek advice on parenting? One I've found invaluable is Alfie Kohn - his ideas gave me insight into general psychology as well as child raising that I'd feel completely lost without.

Firstly, congratulations on your children. Secondly, congratulations on caring enough to read about how to parent well. Anything by Faber and Mazlish is well worth reading - and it resonates well with Alfie Kohn. Their work covers eliciting co-operation, alternatives to punishment, encouraging autonomy, dealing with feelings, and much else besides.

Re: Congratulations, Paul & Jessica; Welcome to the world, George

#34

Post by Eliezer »

Eliezer wrote: post #13

Well, it's too late now, but if there are any other parents out there, for God's sake give your kid a globally unique name. It's all one big namespace now. There are other Eliezer Yudkowskys out there, the poor bastards, and they'll spend the rest of their lives under my ugly Google shadow.

Yikes, I see this is currently at the top of the page. Please downvote me far enough so that it isn't the first thing Paul and Jessica see when they check in. PS: Congratulations Paul and Jessica.

Re: Congratulations, Paul & Jessica; Welcome to the world, George

#35

Post by glymor »

Eliezer wrote: post #28
glymor wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's very funny but as someone with an unusual name it's less funny. More seriously your should use a middle name to provide uniqueness. People are basically unable to recognise words they haven't heard before. Complexity in the part of the name used normally is a hassle.

I could wish my name was easier to pronounce, but I would still want first+last to be unique. The thought of people meeting me, typing my name into Google, and getting back a soccer player, frankly does not fill me with joy. Middle name isn't good enough, most people won't type that. Oh, well. I'm sure George Graham will want to change his name anyway at age 21 in order to outrun all the hideously embarrassing Intern…

He's badly off for more than that reason: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Duke

Re: Congratulations, Paul & Jessica; Welcome to the world, George

#36

Post by Eliezer »

glymor wrote: post #35
Eliezer wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I could wish my name was easier to pronounce, but I would still want first+last to be unique. The thought of people meeting me, typing my name into Google, and getting back a soccer player, frankly does not fill me with joy. Middle name isn't good enough, most people won't type that. Oh, well. I'm sure George Graham will want to change his name anyway at age 21 in order to outrun all the hideously embarrassing Intern…

He's badly off for more than that reason: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Duke

Well, yes, that's the point.

Again, think of it as a single global namespace. When this particular fellow was named, the other David Duke hadn't hit the news yet - but when the name "David Duke" did become famous and recognizable, there was a namespace collision. That can happen to anyone, especially if your last name is common.

Google makes names easier to "recognize", and the Internet's vastness increases the total amount of "fame". So in the age of the Internet, you want to pick a name for your child that is likely to be and stay unique.

If you have a common last name, a first name that is very rare but not unique, doesn't look strange, and is easy to spell and pronounce, would be ideal.

Re: Congratulations, Paul & Jessica; Welcome to the world, George

#37

Post by glymor »

Eliezer wrote: post #36
glymor wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He's badly off for more than that reason: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Duke

Well, yes, that's the point. Again, think of it as a single global namespace. When this particular fellow was named, the other David Duke hadn't hit the news yet - but when the name "David Duke" did become famous and recognizable, there was a namespace collision. That can happen to anyone, especially if your last name is common. Google makes names easier to "recognize", and the Internet's vastness increases the total…

Sorry that's obvious in retrospect.

My problem with your argument is that words are "easy to spell and pronounce" because they are common and people have experienced them before.

When I said people are unable to recognise names they haven't heard before I mean that literally. They try to coerce it into one they've heard before and either succeed and call you something random or require you to repeat it 3 times before they are convinced they're not just miss-hearing it.

The only way to get something easy to spell and pronounce that is rare would be to compound common forms. Frankly this is exactly what the middle name does.

That said JoHadRon is globally unique (at least according to google) and has useful short forms. I may change my name.

Re: Congratulations, Paul & Jessica; Welcome to the world, George

#38

Post by Alex3917 »

andreyf wrote: post #10

Congrats! I'm also a new father - PG (and everyone else) could you share any general parenting advice, or give pointers to sources from which you seek advice on parenting? One I've found invaluable is Alfie Kohn - his ideas gave me insight into general psychology as well as child raising that I'd feel completely lost without.

Read both of these, and soon, since they describe things which become fixed after age three or so:

Meaningful Differences In The Everyday Experiences Of Young American Children

Emotional Intelligence

There are other books you can read once the kid gets to school age, but I think these two are the most important for the cognitive and emotional development of the infant.

edit: Kohn is also one of my all time favorite authors.

Re: Congratulations, Paul & Jessica; Welcome to the world, George

#39

Post by point »

Eliezer wrote: post #13

Well, it's too late now, but if there are any other parents out there, for God's sake give your kid a globally unique name. It's all one big namespace now. There are other Eliezer Yudkowskys out there, the poor bastards, and they'll spend the rest of their lives under my ugly Google shadow.

Like a GUID?

Re: Congratulations, Paul & Jessica; Welcome to the world, George

#40

Post by yummyfajitas »

Eliezer wrote: post #13

Well, it's too late now, but if there are any other parents out there, for God's sake give your kid a globally unique name. It's all one big namespace now. There are other Eliezer Yudkowskys out there, the poor bastards, and they'll spend the rest of their lives under my ugly Google shadow.

This is the sort of reasoning that gives children names like 'Uniq' and 'Latrina'.
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