I've Culled and Combed the Dictionary, -both the Merriam Websters College, and M-W Unabridged of the English Language (and some Smaller Dictionaries as well), -for making a List of both Survival and Preparedness Gear. and Important Subareas of the Same.
Its Easy!, -at least for a guy like me, -once you get your Inspiration Up! When you Find the Bug so Biting you!, -in other words.
I'm also the kind of person who can Fairly Rapidly Cull Thru such, -and yet Comprehensively Cover it all ! Without really Missing Out on anything!
I had given myself a Month as a Goal, -for the Unabridged. I actually got it all Comprehensively Done in a Week!
I've found that I can so Cover 1 % of the 2, 662 page work in an Hour! For some 26 pages. At that rate, -one can so Cover 500 plus pages within a 24 hour period, theoretically. In practice, -I of course have gone for only about Half that! Can't Spend *all* the day doing that! There were days though, -that I substantially even Covered More Ground than that! -The Mood was Still On! Extrapolating that 10 % out to the entire 100 %, -I was able to Get it Completed!, -within about a Week!
The English Language Unabridged is indeed a Major Work and Tome. And thus takes its 100 Hours. But for ones so Inclined, -It Really need Not take up any Prohibitive Amount of Time!
Now the Great Acid Test of its Effectiveness!, -just happens to be a Crosscheck of what Equipment I continually run across while Reading these Forums!
In a General Sense now, -not so much the Detailed Specific. By this I mean, things like "Light", "Knife", Whistle", "Matches", "Mirrors", "Sleeping Bags", "Tents", "Arrows", ...and of course 1,001 other such things! Rather than "Surefire", etc etc etc. (When you read "Surefire", for instance, -you of course know that that comes under "Light", "Flashlight", etc. And so you Note accordingly.).
Point is they Keep Comporting and Crosschecking Out! There is so far *Nothing* I havn't since come across in these Fora, -that I havn't now "Listed Out", from the Dictionary! My previous Project has Borne Fruit! And has Passed the Acid Test! That I've so mentioned.
Its a Good Roundabout Way, of making a Comprehensive and Complete Gear (and Other Important Survivi-Prep Subareas) of a List! For those who Find such Culling, -to be more or less Down their Alley!
Similarly, -I've found that Really Checking Out and Familiarizing yourself with the Glossary! That you'll usually Find in any given Book on any given Field! Goes at least 80 to 90 Percent! Towards Really Getting to Know the Gist of the entire Field!
Of course there are Aspects which *Don't* readily Lend themselves to Words. So this Method cannot entirely be the *Only* Means toward such.
But for the Very Most Part, -if "Something is a Something" in any given Area of Knowledge, -*Then There is a Word for it!* This is an Important Little Thing to Know!
And a larger *General* Dictionary, as well as a Field Specific Dictionary or Glossary, of course for all Intensive Purposes, -contains "All the Words"!
In a Very Large sense, -How can it be otherwise?! The Language, let alone the Field's specific Sublanguage, -the Vast Majority of the time has to have a Word for it!
Thus the Great Key and Avenue this is! Toward getting a Grasp and Grip on any given Field!
By this, I mean to Quickly yet Comprehensively Read or Skim thru all the Definitions and Entries of such Glossary. Merely Reading the Entry Term itself, -often Leaves a Lot to be Desired! And so oftentimes Just Will Not Do!
Survivi-Prep "is No Exception to the Rule"!
And so the *Glossary* of many a Survival or Outdoors Book, -would be a Very Good Place to Start!,...!
What I've said here concerning both the Dictionary and Glossary, -it all comes under the Umbrella, -of Thinking Around and Outside the Box!....! [color:"black"] [/color] [email]ScottRezaLogan[/email]
Edited by ScottRezaLogan (11/22/06 01:35 AM)
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"No Substitute for Victory!"and"You Can't be a Beacon if your Light Don't Shine!"-Gen. Douglass MacArthur and Donna Fargo.