Almost Before We Spoke, We Swore:
Yet researchers who study the evolution of language and the psychology of swearing say that they have no idea what mystic model of linguistic gentility the critics might have in mind. Cursing, they say, is a human universal. Every language, dialect or patois ever studied, living or dead, spoken by millions or by a small tribe, turns out to have its share of forbidden speech, some variant on comedian George Carlin’s famous list of the seven dirty words that are not supposed to be uttered on radio or television.
Key quote: “Even the quintessential Good Book abounds in naughty passages…”
Key discovery: “The investigators have found, among other things, that men generally curse more than women, unless said women are in a sorority, and that university provosts swear more than librarians or the staff members of the university day care center.”
For those who must, here’s Carlin and his seven words you can’t say on television. [Note: Audio file. May be offensive to some.]