[WikiEN-l] Twitterpedia will win

[Carcharoth]

On Tue, May 5, 2009 at 12:48 AM, David Gerard <dgerard at gmail.com> wrote:
> 2009/5/5 geni <geniice at gmail.com>:
>> 2009/5/5 David Gerard <dgerard at gmail.com>:
>
>>> know in 140 characters or less. You should read the Twitterpedia
>>> version of the Peloponnesian War. Soon, that's all we'll be able to
>>> comprehend, 140 characters or less.
>
>> Effectively thats what the opening sentences of wikipedia articles
>> should already be (with the opening paras being the summery
>> wikipedia).
>
>
> "The Peloponnesian War, which lasted from 431-404BC, was an Ancient
> Greek military war, fought by Athens and its empire against the
> Peloponnesian League, led by Sparta."

Flabby wording with lots of redundancy.

> That's 167 characters. Think we could get a 140 character requirement
> added to [[Wikipedia:Lead section]]?

"The Peloponnesian War (431-404BC): Athens and its empire fought the
Peloponnesian League, led by Sparta."

The phrasing "Ancient Greek military war" is horrible in so many ways.

Better still, have poetic summaries of Wikipedia articles:

"In days of yore,
in Ancient Greece
on the wine-dark sea
and over the olive-clad hills
Athenian hoplites did battle
with Spartan warriors
over the islands of the Peloponnese"

After Wikipedia Art, we have Wikipedia Poetry?
Using Wikipedia articles as the inspiration for poems?

Carcharoth