🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <lhp+news-2611001219060001@globemaster.toft-hp.dk>,
Lasse Hiller�e Petersen <lhp+news@toft-hp.dk> wrote:
> In article <8vpu31$51r@web.nmti.com>, peter@abbnm.com (Peter da Silva) wrote:
> >In Australia in the '60s and '70s we were taught that "U S -> (us $ symbol
> >with 2 bars)" and "A S -> (australian $ symbol with one bar)".

> The dollar sign is a stylized rendering of two columns with a ribbon slung
> around them.

What do you know... the entire New South Wales school system was operating
on a false premise. This isn't to say that I believe the NSW schools, mind
you, it wouldn't be the first time bogus information got into the educational
system... but they *did* mark you down if you used the "wrong" symbol.

> See also <http://www.collectsource.com/americas.htm> which I was able to
> find within about 5 seconds in the middle of writing this.

Five more minutes would have you hit a page where it claimed that the symbol
was the result of hastily writing an "s" on top of a "p" in the symbol for
"peso", "piastre", or "pieces" (of 8). I think it's fair to say that the
actual origin of the symbol is confused, and it's likely the back-formation
for "US" was conventional wisdom by the time of the founding of Australia.

-- 
 `-_-'   In hoc signo hack, Peter da Silva.
  'U`    "Milloin halasit viimeksi suttasi?"

         Disclaimer: WWFD?