[Comment on] “Bottom line” takes the cake!

Here at the Structural Processes Group of the Department of Geological Sciences, University of Vienna we have a number of eager (German mother-tongue) students who enthusiastically browse through the various international journals and newsletters of the geosciences. Eos, as a weekly sheet, is certainly of interest, and although based in the United States, it typically has a somewhat international flavour. Although the individual members of the Structural Processes Group all have good English usage skills, Eos (like many) occasionally falls prey, however, to the use of various, U.S.-particular colloquialisms or otherwise baffling cultural expressions in English, creating a bit of non-clarity and frequently some humour. As one of the native English speakers (British) of the group, I find myself frequently translating (or occasionally unable to translate!) for my colleagues the English language colloquialisms that surface in the literature from time to time.