this post was submitted on 26 May 2024
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Nominative Determinism

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Nominative determinism is the hypothesis that people tend to gravitate towards areas of work that fit their names. The term was first used in the magazine New Scientist in 1994, after the magazine's humorous "Feedback" column noted several studies carried out by researchers with remarkably fitting surnames. These included a book on polar explorations by Daniel Snowman and an article on urology by researchers named Splatt and Weedon. These and other examples led to light-hearted speculation that some sort of psychological effect was at work.

This is a community for posting real-world examples of names that by coincidence are funny in context. A link to the article or site is preferable, as well as a screenshot of the funny name if it's not in the headline. Try not to repost, and keep it fun!

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cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/12097070

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[–] themeatbridge@lemmy.world 4 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I do feel bad for anyone stuck in a desperate situation. Some people might enjoy working in fast food, but I didn't. I've never worked as a prostitute, but I cannot imagine being so desperate for money that I'd be willing to do that. I'm sure there are some prostitutes who enjoy their work, but there's a big difference between cleaning the grease trap and.... well, actually now that you mention it...

[–] boogetyboo@aussie.zone 8 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Preferred term is sex worker given the long and negative history of the word prostitute.

There's a decent Louis Theroux doco covering a brothel. The staff aren't desperate. It's a form of work. Some enjoy it. Some find it a boring slog like most do the 9-5 office life. I can't imagine doing sex work but then I can't imagine working on an oil rig either.

Sex trafficking, homeless sex workers etc and all the horrible things that go with it are obviously a thing. But don't project that extreme on all sex work.

[–] themeatbridge@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I'm not projecting or generalizing, I'm saying the legalization of sex work doesn't protect desperate people from degrading themselves for money. Only proper regulation and social safety nets will do that. I have no problem with sex workers (and I apologize for using an outdated term) on a moral basis as long as all the workers are not forced into it. Legalized prostitution protects the sex capitalist from prosecution, but it does not protect the sex worker from the sex capitalist who would leverage their position of power to abuse them. You can point to on documentary as an example of how it should work, but you cannot say that it is how it always works.

[–] boogetyboo@aussie.zone 3 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Didn't say that's how it always works.

And if you already think that having sex for money is an act of degradation, you're seeing things through a narrow lens.

[–] themeatbridge@lemmy.world 1 points 6 months ago

If you don't want to read what I wrote, that's fine. But I'm not going to argue with things you just make up.