CONTENTS FEATURE: Top 10 misused and overused words—part 3 GRAMMAR COACH: Fielding your questions NET NOTES: Captivating Web sites FINDER'S FEE: Recommend a friend—and earn up to $500 FEATURE: Top 10 misused and overused words—part 3      The previous two editions of the EditPros newsletter contained the first two installments of a three-part series examining 10 words now in the process of erosion. Habitual and often imprecise uses of these terms are abrading their vitality and blurring their meanings.      Casual and inattentive misuse of terminology is troubling to many semanticists—specialists in the meanings of words. We encourage preservation of the integrity of words by using them more sparingly and judiciously. Now, here are the final three words in our countdown. 3. INTERESTING      One practice that is commonly used to project a sense of gentility is understatement—restraint or subtlety in expressing opinions. However, use of the term "interesting" in critiquing is ambiguous at best and contemptuous at worst. Characterizing someone's viewpoint or artistic creation as "interesting" often slyly indicates ridicule or scorn. In a letter published in an East Coast newspaper, a citizen wrote, "City officials say their own traffic count finds downtown parking lots consistently full. That's interesting, because we never have a problem finding parking spaces, even during special events."      The writer was motivated by a response far more powerful than mere "interest." His real intention was to refute the assertion of city officials. "I find it interesting that the letter was written anonymously," stated a submission to the editor critical of a previously published letter.      The use of the listless adjective "interesting" is a skulking way to launch criticism. The writer really meant "ironic" or "paradoxical," but failure to say so rendered the criticism hypocritical. A commentary asked, "Isn't it interesting that only after a public outcry that the transit agency is informing us of their plans for the convention?"      Although the intention of the letter was portrayal of the transit agency's actions as unprincipled, the writer was evasive by terming its inaction as merely "interesting." When a county board of supervisors released a proposed set of "contracting principles," a trade association responded by issuing a policy paper that declared, "We find it interesting that it has taken five supervisors two years to get this draft document, but most nonprofits just heard about it two weeks ago and now you've given us one week to 'discuss'. We believe this is a back-room deal, far from one that has had public scrutiny—the same public scrutiny you say the county is entitled to from contractors."      More than finding the delay "interesting," the trade association officials appear resentful, incensed, even outraged. The policy paper should have stated so, clearly and unequivocally.      The proper meaning of the adjective "interesting" is "arousing or holding attention." With the availability of so many expressive, more precise adjectives—such as surprising, puzzling, startling, outlandish, illogical, idiosyncratic, infuriating, peculiar, predictable, fortuitous, favorable, helpful, disappointing or gratifying—the adjective "interesting" is, in the true sense of the word, an uninteresting choice. 2. ISSUES      Many lexicographers take issue with the increasingly prevalent use of the term "issue" as a substitute for "problem." The noun "issue" formally has as many as nine distinct meanings, the first of which is denotation of proceeds from a source of revenue (such as an estate). It also can refer to egress (such as liquid issuing from a pipe), offspring, the edition of a publication, a matter disputed between two people, or a matter of public concern or debate (for example, political issues). And it traditionally refers to a final outcome—a solution; therefore, its use in reference to problems is in direct contradiction to that proper definition. In a document prepared for a hearing by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the vice president of regulatory affairs and drug development for a pharmaceutical company wrote that "The drug alone has issues but the drug-device combination also has issues and these must not be underestimated because of separate applications."      The assertion that the drug "has issues" appears to be a coy attempt to evade candor. A more sincere statement would acknowledge that the drug and devices used in combination with it have triggered undesirable reactions in patients. In accusing her former supervisor of discrimination against career women of child-bearing age, a woman declared, "He has issues with women who could get pregnant."      Saying he "has issues with women" is a curiously elusive and unclear way of describing the actions or attitudes of a supervisor accused of subjecting employees to prejudicial treatment. On a discussion board, a computer technician asked, "Does that mean that version 3.1.2 has issues under the new compiler?"      He was awkwardly asking if the computer software was flawed. Commenting on a student who went on a shooting rampage at his school, a police chief said, "Anybody that does that has issues."      The chief more precisely was alluding to psychological problems. A wire service news article about a judge who questions the constitutionality of capital punishment carried the headline "Judge Has Issues With Death Penalty."      He was voicing his opposition to the death penalty. "Judge takes stand against death penalty" or "Judge assails death penalty" or "Judge denounces death penalty" would have summarized the story content more lucidly. In a statement endorsing a legislative bill, an organization introduced an advocate by saying: "She is concerned about the refusal of taxis to take wheelchair users and also has issues with the training of taxi drivers and how they handle disabled people safely. These are precisely the issues which the bill will help address."      The statement assigned two disparate meanings to the noun "issues," despite the existence of more distinct terminology. In reality, the advocate was critical of the training, and asserted that the legislation would rectify that and related insufficiencies. 1. IMPACT      Popular use and habitual misuse of the word "impact" are rampant. The noun form of "impact" can refer either to a collision, to the force of a collision, or to the impression that one object or concept exerts upon another.      As a verb, "impact" is used both transitively and intransitively, and that's where controversy about it arises. A transitive verb is one that shifts action to another word in a sentence; an intransitive verb is self-contained. For example, the verb "snores" in the statement "In our sales meetings, Fred often snores" is intransitive. In contrast, the verb "discuss" is a transitive verb; Fred and Joan can't simply "discuss"; they must discuss a topic—such as Fred's frequent snoring.      Traditionally, the verb "impact" has two legitimate meanings: "to pack firmly together" or "to strike forcefully." Both of those uses are transitive. But in recent years, "impact" is being applied in a new usage that dictionary panels regard as informal—to have an effect or impact on. In such casual uses, it is applied both transitively (as in "these course prerequisites impact incoming students") and intransitively with the preposition "on" (as in "those regulations impact on food wholesalers"). Dictionary panels reject such uses as nonstandard. Yet undisciplined use of "impact" in that sense is growing. "A transit study reported that "alternative routes to the Third Street route would significantly impact bus ridership."      How so? Would ridership increase or diminish? The verb sense of "impact" does not convey that vital information. "The results of the field experiment demonstrated that mosquito fish can impact fairy shrimp in vernal pools," declared a passage in a scientific report.      In what way can mosquito fish "impact" fairy shrimp? Would fairy shrimp populations become denser—the traditional meaning of "impact"? Or would fairy shrimp dissipate? Would fairy shrimp be endangered? Or do mosquito fish just annoy them? A fund-raising program at an institution of higher learning seeks "gifts that impact the university."      Presumably, the fund-raisers are seeking gifts that "impact the university" differently from the way in which mosquito fish "impact" fairy shrimp. A utility company prepared a report explaining "Factors that Impact Gas Prices" for its customers. The report included discussion of "national factors impacting supply," with the explanation that "colder than normal U.S. weather could cause storage levels to be drawn down at an accelerated pace this winter, impacting prices."      So while "impacting" fairy shrimp presumably can cause a population decrease, "impacting" gas prices equates to a price increase. Meanwhile, the adjective "impacted" can imply either reduction or densification. An organization's employee manual contained a notification that "Benefits that are impacted due to appointment changes are discussed in this section." A college admissions office explains that "an undergraduate major or campus is designated as impacted when the number of applications received during the initial filing period exceeds the number of available spaces"—more plainly put, when demand exceeds capacity.      Because "impact" and its variations can refer to increase or reduction, to changes that are beneficial or detrimental, to alterations that result in dispersion or in crowding, one conclusion is clear: the ambiguity of "impact" has rendered most of its uses unsuitable for business communication. When you're tempted to use it, think of a term that more precisely reflects the "impact" you're trying to describe, and use that term instead.      Just as "most wanted" lists compiled by law enforcement officials are not all-inclusive, neither is the list of the top 10 overused and misused terms presented in the past three issues of the EditPros newsletter. Far more words, unfortunately are commonly misunderstood, misappropriated and consequently corrupted. We'll examine other examples of linguistic abuse in future editions. Yes! EditPros can help your written materials communicate clearly and unambiguously. GRAMMAR COACH: Fielding your questions Carla Miller submitted this month's question: "When do you use 'who' or 'whom'?" The grammar coach replies:      Although the rule governing proper use of the pronouns "who" and "whom" is simple, determination about which one to use in complex, convoluted sentences sometimes can be difficult.      Here are the guidelines:      "Who" should be applied in reference to a person serving as the subject of a sentence, clause or phrase. "Who" is correctly used in the following examples: "Who is coordinating the conference?" (The pronoun "who" is the subject.) "The salesman who spoke to Julio at the store no longer works there." (The salesman, who did the speaking, is the subject of the sentence.) "Who answered the phone?" ("Who" is the subject.)      Whom" should be applied in reference to a person serving as the object of a verb or preposition. "Whom" is correctly used in the following examples: "The salesman to whom Julio spoke at the hardware store no longer works there." (Julio, who did the talking, is the subject of the sentence; the pronoun "whom" refers to the salesman—the object of the preposition "to.") "Whom do you wish to see?" ("Whom" is the object of the verb "see.") "Elaine has decided whom to hire." ("Whom is the object of the verb "hire.") "Ask not for whom the bell tolls." ("Whom is the object of the verb "tolls.")      Confusion is evident in overcorrected statements such as "Whom shall I say is calling?" or "Tell me whom is leaving." Here's helpful memory aid: use "who" if you could say "he" or "they"; use "whom" if you could say "him" or "them."      For example, if you're unsure about whether to ask "who is there" or "whom is there," remember that you couldn't say "him is there"; you would say "he is there"—so replace "he" with "who".      If you're stumped about whether to ask "who do you wish to see?" or "whom do you wish to see?" remember: You couldn't say "you wish to see he"; you would say "you wish to see him"; therefore, "whom" is the correct choice.      You'd say "he is calling," so the correct choice is "Who shall I say is calling?" Since "he is leaving" is correct structure, you'd correspondingly say "tell me who is leaving." If you're still unsure, rephrase or simplify the troubling sentence: "Who is calling, please?" "Who is leaving?"      Thanks for submitting your question, Carla!      Are you perplexed by some aspect of grammar or word usage? Don't be shy! Ask the "grammar coach" at EditPros and we'll try to help—at no charge, just for the sport of it. NET NOTES: Captivating Internet resources Glossarist topical dictionaries      Many disciplines and industries have lingo all their own. Jargon often can be baffling and exclusionary to outsiders, but this site can help. It's a directory of glossaries that can prompt you on the shorthand terminology used within various fields, including transportation, politics, military service, finance, education, medicine and more. We thank Diane Fischler for suggesting this site. TerraServer aerial views      Want to see your house or place of business from the air—at no charge? Visit this site and type in an address. When you're transported to a secondary page, go to the right column and click on "aerial photo" if one is available. The TerraServer site is an immense database, encompassing maps and aerial photographs of the United States supplied by the U.S. Geological Survey. The TerraServer name is a play on words, in which "Terra" refers both to the earth and to the terabytes of images stored on the site. We thank Marsha March for suggesting this site. News Page Designer      Whether you're responsible for your organization's newsletter, you're a graphic artist, a journalist or marketing administrator, you'll likely find this site inviting—and perhaps inspirational. This show-and-tell portal contains portfolios of the work of journalistic designers, as well as helpful suggestions about typography, layout and technology. The site is maintained by the Sun Journal of Lewiston, Maine. FINDER'S FEE: Recommend a friend—and earn a finder's fee of up to $500      Do you know of a friend or colleague whose office can benefit from EditPros services? If you do, EditPros may reward you with a "finder's fee" of up to $500.      EditPros performs writing, editing and publication management services for newsletters, sales literature, brochures, Web sites and other informational and marketing materials.      If you recommend our services to a friend or business colleague, and that introduction leads to an assignment for EditPros, we will award you a "finder's fee" equaling 10 percent of the amount we earn on the first assignment for the new client, up to a maximum finder's fee of $500. Naturally, the finder's fee is applicable only to clients for which we have not worked previously.      This offer will remain in effect until further notice. YOUR TURN: Ask the "grammar coach" or subscribe      We invite you to submit your questions to the "grammar coach," and we welcome you to subscribe to this monthly newsletter—which we'll send to your e-mail address at no charge. 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