Comments

As regards the teaser, the meaning and the origin are well explained at the addresses http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/257/whats-the-origin-of-his-name-is-mud and http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/424000.html However, I liked another word combination Mr. McGovern used: the “online population”. It is a real “mot temoin” (a “word-witness”) , as the French linguist George Matore called this kind of vocabulary. Along with “online learning”, “business online”, “online wars”, “online training” (in sports), etc., such words testify to the appearance of the virtual reality, which is becoming no less important for human beings than the “real” reality. People feel they are a community even though they never meet each other in person – like the participants of the BBC blog :-)

As regards the teaser, its meaning and origin are easily found the moment you enter the respective key words in a search engine. However, I liked another word combination Mr. McGovern used: the “online population”. It is a real “mot temoin” (a “word-witness”) , as the French linguist George Matore called this kind of vocabulary. Along with “online learning”, “business online”, “online wars”, “online training” (in sports), etc., such words testify to the appearance of the virtual reality, which is becoming no less important for human beings than the “real” reality. People feel they are a community even though they never meet each other in person – like the participants of the BBC blog :-)

Hello, Kieran. Thank you for your questions. They are so interesting and also they stimulate me to search for new information. I think that an expression 'one's name is mud' must mean that someone has done something that sullied their name. Maybe a lot of such things. Concerning its origin, I googled it and found out one version about Dr. Samuel Mudd, who treated President Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth.

Hi Kieran! Very funny! I think your idiom suits Asha greatly, thought it's quite difficult to be angry with her, about what she has said or done, too little views she shared with us. Anyway her absence is bit annoying.

Hi Kieran! I think it is used when someone is offended someone else or the accepted rules. Mud/Mudd was known to cooperate in killing Lincoln. Am I right?

Hi Kieran, It’s true the people who use the internet are urban elite in India. Very few people only have access with internet connection in rural areas. Some of the rural folk avail this facility with the support of Government and NGO’S. The Government has taken many steps to introduce broad band facilities to the interior part of the rural area. The private net providers only concentrate on the urban areas with the aim of making profit. I would like to give one example how the rural areas are neglected from access with internet facilities. We are using Electronic Voting Machine to cast our vote. The Government has taken measures to install web cameras to give foolproof of the system. There was a problem in many interior villages to fix the cameras without net connections.

Hello my information about the expression "my name is mud" is that it is used when somebody's name is involved in a bad event while he is innocent. It comes from the name of Dr.Samuel Mudd who helped the killer of Lincoln and he took care of his broken leg, the police arrested them together.that is what I know about this expression....Thanks

Kieran,I hope you have had a good weather during the balloon festival.I saw a lot of youngish in balloons and couldn't see you.Ths a lot for your effort to share with us that special event.I thoroughly enjoyed.YOU ARE SO KIND.You ask for Asha?Did she take away for a while?Who will stands for her? "MUD"used to refer a stupid man, and for the first time usage recorded from the begining of 19.century. For you info.I didn't know it,I found it on the internet.It's advantage of usages internet.Have you heard,if one don't know foreign language and not able to use a computer,he/she is illiterate? No time to be idle.Hope you could understood my bad English.Regards

Hi Kieran! Nice pictures of the balloons. I'm trying to imagine the view the balloonists had from the heights. It must be beautiful (although I sometimes get height vertigo in high places). About the expression, I think it means that someone is impopular because they have done something dishonourable. But I can't guess where it comes from. Maybe because mud is associated with dirt. Looking forward to know the answer. Regards.

Hello Keiran, I guess you managed to capture the upper half of the heart formed by Red Arrows. The baloon fiesta seems to be a popular event. Thank you for the teaser! If someone's name is mud he/she probably is an unpopular person. And the phrase dates its origin back in 1823 but most oftenly Dr. Samuel Alexander Mudd is mistakenly given as the origin of this phrase. Looking for more intersting teasers from you as it gives me the opportunity to google and learn. All the best, Naheed

I just managed to see your pictures and to watch the BBC video. What a wonderful scene! So amazing! I wish I was there :) what happens to the unmanned balloons? How far do they go?

Hi Kieran,nice to watch the photos that were shot by you. These blogs( Teacher and Student) are awesome, however they need be watered by bloggers and readers. The Bloggers wrote as best as they can, the readers feed back with their comments as more as they can then, it would grow up after these interactions. Lack of one of them, it turns dully. Go!go! Teacher Kieran, keep writing the way you are now, Asha will back soon,hopefully.Incidentally, the sentence "Does know anyone know what this means?" that you wrote is weird of two " know"? . Best regards,James.

it is a song name of band Primus^^

Hi, I was looking for this word for quite a while.Because it is the only word that can describe my name .It is certainly mud if it means the difficult name to pronounce.I haven't clue about about its

Hi,KIERAN I was looking for this word for quite a while.Because it is the only word that can describe my name .It is certainly mud if it means the difficult name to pronounce.I haven't clue about its origin . But I think it is derived from wading in wet land.have a good one

Hi kieran, the Balloon Fiesta is really special. Thanks to you, we had a glimpse into what it is really like and enjoyed it vicariously. The first photograph is awesome with all those balloons flying away in a partly cloudy afternoon sky. Truly great effect. The second one, I don't know , is there really a heart-shape in smoke? So, Bristol is famous for its Balloon fiesta. Or do they happen in other cities too , in England? 'My name is mud' means I am a stupid fellow, much hated or disliked for something I have done. The origin could be a song by rock band Primus.

Hi Kieran, I believe that the expression "my/his name is mud" means that someone's reputation is disgraced,but I have no idea where it comes from.In Italy there are similar ways to describe the same thing ,but I don't think that the origin belongs to our culture.Can you reveal it? Bye bye for now Maione