What Year Is It?

[arwalden]

Poll question: What Year Is It?

What year is this? What do you normally say in everyday conversations?

[democrat in Tallahassee]

1. feels like 1984?

[arwalden]

3. My grandfather would have said

Nineteen hunnerdt and eighty four. He was born in 1898. I'll never forget how he always included the "hunnerdt" in the year.

-- Allen

[grannylib]

23. 1984 was what I was going to say...and my grandpa would have said it

just like that too! So would my father-in-law...
miss you gentlemen...

[terrya]

2. "Two Thousand Four"

That's the ONLY way to say it, IMO.

:-)

Terry

[arwalden]

7. I Agree... HOWEVER...

When we get to 2010, I'll drop the "two-thousand" and simply call it "twenty".

"Twenty-Nine" doesn't work... but "Twenty-Ten" does. (And "twenty-oh-nine" just sounds like it want's to be Irish.)

-- Allen

[AndyP]

15. i agree

I can't wait for it to be 2020, I'll feel futuristic

[terrya]

16. I'll still go with Two Thousand Ten and Twenty and so forth.

Until, of course, I drop dead, which at that point the whole thing will be moot.

:-)

Terry

[teach1st]

4. Oh For

or Zero Four

[SCDem]

5. I wonder what we are going to call this decade.

I grew up in the 80's and went to college in the 90's. Now my son was born in 2003. What are they going to call this decade?

[ScreamingMeemie]

6. The Oh-oh's ...in more ways than one.

;)

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

8. The naughties?

Not my idea. If you know where I got it from, you're terminally geeky.

[arwalden]

9. The Aughts or the Oh's... or... "The-Turn-Of-The-Century"

[SCDem]

13. I know before year 2000 people were talking about terms like

that but they never stuck and I think they are a little bit too foreign for most Americans so I still am curious as to what people or the media will be calling this decade in years to come.

[THUNDER HANDS]

18. the bad decade

Especially if Bush gets a second term.

[SCDem]

19. Yeah I could see that - the decade we'd rather forget about

[YellowRubberDuckie]

10. It would only be Two Thousand AND four if...

There were a decimal like this: 2000.4
THere's not. The year is 2004 . Don't you remember the rules from math class?! Jeez! LOL
Duckie

[kmla]

17. Nope.

2000.4 is two thousand POINT four. 2004 can be said as two thousand AND four.

Just pickin' nits...

;-)

[YellowRubberDuckie]

21. Actually, it only can if you're a hick and don't know the rules.

Duckie

[kmla]

24. OK...

Whatever.

:eyes:

[rabid_nerd]

26. Duckie's right and wrong

According to what I was taught...

"Two Thousand and Four" is not proper at all, and doesn't reflect 2000.4 either.

Just like "Two Hundred and Thirty-Eight" is not 238 nor any other number.

The and is only valid as the beginning of a fraction, not really a decimal.

"Two Thousand and Four" is incomplete:

2000 4/?

Could be 2000 and 4/5 or 4/7...

I remember that rule vividly!

Now researching I found:

Matter of personal preference - Chicago manual of style
http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/cmosfaq/cmosfaq.Numbers.html

and may be omitted / American proper does not include and
http://mathforum.org/library/drmath/view/57225.html

This has been argued before
http://www.improb.com/news/2001/aug/math101.html

I really believe it's a grammar question and not mathematical, although for technical applications I would avoid "and" unless using a fraction.

[AndyP]

11. other

two thousand fourizzle
:)

[billybob537]

12. 2K4

[mobuto]

14. MMIV

[arwalden]

20. Would That Be "Muh-Miv" or "MMMiv" or simply "Miv"?

:hi:

-- Allen

[khashka]

22. I voted but

it really feels like 1894.

But without the cool fin de siecle clothes or mutton chop whiskers or Queen Victoria. Instead we have King George, goattees, and thong underwear. Otherwise much the same, just not as cool.

Khash.

[gyopsy]

25. I'm the only one who said twenty oh-Four

And I don't get it. I'm sick and tired of having to say "two thousand and four." I miss the 20th century because the years were so much easier to say. :(