Back when I was 5 years old my grandparents sent me a basket of souvenir Philippine seashells they bought in Florida, and my Dad gave me a brand new copy of the first edition of the Seashells of the World Golden Nature Guide to identify them.  Within a few months, after comparing shells in this book with the same shells shown in other books from the library, I realized that common names differed from book to book, but the Latin names didn't change, so I immediately jumped on identifying all my specimens using the scientific names.  It was the best thing I did - really helped me appreciate not only the shells but also the science behind their study (and now I'm a paleontologist).  I really believe (and teach my students) that an awareness of the scientific nomenclature, not just of shells but of anything else, helps to instill more of a sense of wonder and appreciation, even among children.  And, I've done plenty of self-illustrated talks on dinosaurs at elementary schools, and many of the kids are quite familiar with the scientific names (usually Genus, but still...) of many dinosaurs.  I really don't know of any consistent "common names" for such dinos as Tyrannosaurus rex and Apatosaurus and Velociraptor that are favored by young people more than these scientific names.  Why should it be different with seashells?  I use the same idea when I prepare my Biblical teachings - I routinely make use of the "original" Greek, Hebrew, or Aramaic words (even though, like Latin, I don't know the languages) where appropriate to make a point or clarification, and people do appreciate it - they can see that there's actually some research behind the teachings and not just someone making it up.  Seeing the occasional "foreign" word in whatever field can inspire a novice to want to dive more into the subject, and maybe also give them an appreciation of other languages if not science.

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From: Conchologists List [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Callomon,Paul [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Tuesday, December 03, 2013 12:32 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [CONCH-L] Is there a common name for this cone

Latin is part of what we do. It shows a commitment to objectivity, but its elegance also appeals to a sense of "other", of activities that are not just consumption and mindless surplus. If you approach shell collecting the same way as, say, stamp collecting, then you will miss out on its more profound rewards, and on the window it freely offers anyone into natural science.
This is not snobbery, as some infer, but the reasonable proposal that people will get far more out of this if they adopt an appropriate frame of mind. You wouldn't sit someone down in front of a piano and say "here - play the Moonlight Sonata". You'd at least give them the sheet music and expect them to be able to read it...

PC

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