Botanists finally ditch Latin and paper, enter 21st century

• Botanists drop Latin to save plants (video report)
• Botanists finally ditch Latin and paper, enter 21st century

 

I actually agree with the dumping of Latin in the full detailed explanations and replacing it with English. Also I agree with retaining the Latin for name/title identifications. Of course the use of English for deeper detailed explanations is good because as a language it is so universal in these modern times. Although I'm sure the deeper detailed descriptions can be tailored for any country's language within that country as a teaching tool.

 

The Scientific American link says "This isn’t just a simple Latin name we’re talking about...".

Are we talking about the Latin name at all? Or just the description?

 

The quote, read in context, suggests they're bemoaning the onerous task of providing a description in latin. I don't think the change affects the naming of plants. According to Botanists say goodbye to Latin and Acacias stay in Australia,

 

You'd think the reasons for using Latin in the first place would still be in effect.

 

They aren't. When Latin was first used for botany, it was the universal language used by all scientists in Europe (at the time, the only region with any tradition of scientific description). At the moment, English is the closest equivalent, though with current trends, Chinese might be a better candidate in a few years.