When did an area or region become a quadrant? I only ask because there’s a particularly annoying weather forecaster on my local early evening news programme who will insist on using it over and over again. Last night, it was “the south-west quadrant”. The definitions of said word are: each of four quarters of a circle; or an instrument used for taking angular measurements of altitude in astronomy and navigation, typically consisting of a graduated quarter circle and a sighting mechanism. I’m the first to acknowledge that language evolves, but is there really any need to gussy up the weather forecast?
I was delighted to read recently that the Department for Transport is advertising for “a head of uncertainty”. Part of the job description goes as follows: “The focus of the team is on understanding and modelling travel demand and the uncertainty around it, developing novel and new approaches to representing uncertainty in appraisal and supporting decision making under uncertainty and using the National Transport model to test Departmental policies and to produce national road traffic forecasts.” I don’t mind admitting that I’m in two minds whether to apply.
