Opsimath

Encyclopedia : O : OP : OPS : Opsimath

An opsimath can refer to a person who begins, or continues, to study or learn late in life.The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, page 2010. Oxford University Press, 2002. The word is derived from the Greek οπσε (opse), meaning 'late' and μανθανω (manthano), meaning 'learn'.Bowler, Peter: "The Superior Person's Book of Words", page 101. Bloomsbury, 2002.

Opsimathy was once frowned upon, used as a put down with implications of laziness,[FirstThings.com essay] regarding "exposure" of opsimathy, implying negativity. (URL accessed April 15, 2006) and considered less effective by educators than early learning.[nifl.gov thread] concerning opsimathy. (URL accessed April 15, 2006) However, the opsimath population is increasing in the USA,[yourDictionary Word of the Day] asserts that opsimathy is on the rise. (URL accessed April 15, 2006) and the emergence of "opsimath clubs"[Simon Fraser News] reports an "opsimath club". (URL accessed April 15, 2006) proves that opsimathy is no longer looked down upon,[Glasgow Caledonian University speech] aggrandizing opsimathy. (URL accessed April 15, 2006) but is in fact desirable.[NIACE.org] promotes adult learning. (URL accessed April 15, 2006)

Notable opsimaths include Joseph Henry Blackburne, the leading English chess player in the late 19th Century, who didn't learn the chess moves until the comparatively late age of 19.[Academic Chess article] about the ages of chess grandmasters. (URL accessed April 15, 2006)

References

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.