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etymology - Why do we refer to computers and other machines as being up or down?


Generally when a machine is working we refer to it as "up" and when it's not we say the machine is "down." What is the origin of this?



Answer



The machine is up/down is an instantiation of a Metaphor Theme.


English speakers (like all humans) are oriented vertically with respect to a gravitational field, so the UP/DOWN dimension is significant, and English uses it in a variety of metaphor themes.


These themes include:




  • UP is MORE (DOWN is LESS):
    The prices are rising/falling.
    The stock market’s moving up/crashing.
    Turn the volume up/down.




  • UP is HAPPY (DOWN is SAD):
    He’s depressed.
    feeling up/down
    What a downer!




  • UP is POWERFUL (DOWN is WEAK):
    upper/lower classes
    superior/subordinate
    the highest levels




  • UP is ACTIVE (DOWN is PASSIVE):
    The computer is up/down.
    Are you up for some handball?
    Rise to the occasion.




  • UP is BETTER (DOWN is WORSE):
    higher/lower animals
    He fell down on the midterm.
    a rise/fall in performance
    aim high
    upwardly-mobile




  • UP is ABSTRACT (DOWN is CONCRETE):
    He’s got his head in the clouds.
    He’s got his feet on the ground.
    Come back to earth.
    higher mathematics
    high-level cognitive functions
    low-level details
    new heights of abstraction
    down-to-earth solution




All of these themes are coherent; that is, we tend to think of them in the same ways (e.g, LESS, SAD, WEAK, PASSIVE, and WORSE are all negative evaluations, and vice versa.)


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