Re: sets and masses (was: Quine text)

[John Cowan <cbmvax!snark.thyrsus.com!cowan>]

la .and. rost. cusku di'e

> Note that in English we can say:
>    The dodo, which couldn't fly, is extinct.
> I think to say this in Lojban you'd have to say 'dodo' twice with a
> different descriptor each time?

In effect, but not in fact.  There is a group of words whose purpose is to
convert a sumti from one type to another:

        lu'a    'the individuals/members of...'
        lu'o    'the mass formed from...'
        lu'i    'the set formed from...'

I haven't thought the matter out properly, but let us suppose that "x1 is
extinct" is taken to be a set property.  Then we can say:

        lo'i cipnrdodo noi lu'a ke'a na ka'e vofli
                cu cabnalzasti
        the-set-of dodos such-that the-members-of it aren't capable-of flying
                are-presently-non-existing.

The lujvo is quite shaky, but the point is illustrated.  What makes this
possible, of course, is the Hebrew-style relative clause, with marker "noi"
(non-restrictive) at the beginning and pronoun "ke'a" at any desired point,
in this case within the scope of "lu'a".

--
cowan@snark.thyrsus.com         ...!uunet!cbmvax!snark!cowan
                e'osai ko sarji la lojban