Delete comment from: Computational Complexity
A genderless pronoun is likely to catch on. As the wiki article above mentions, there are multiple choices, and as Evelyn notes, 'they' seems to be a popular front-runner. I think it's fine to use any of these choices for generic examples, say in problem assignments, documentation, or research papers when describing a generic person. The preferred model at our institution when referring to a particular person is to simply ask their personal preference. This has become so common that students can list their preferred pronoun on their registration data, faculty commonly ask students to list their preferred pronoun along with preferred name during the first week of class, and students and faculty often sign emails with their name and preferred pronouns. It seems like overkill at first, but once it reaches a critical mass, nobody really thinks anything of it and people are free to express a wider range of preferences.
Feb 12, 2019, 9:54:22 AM
Posted to I think ze was confused -- in favor of genderless pronouns