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by sooper 2862 days ago
I didn't realise the word "cyber" had been around that long... As much as I (have to) use the word, I didn't know it's background.
2 comments

Its etymology, as per wikipedia

> Cyber- is derived from "cybernetic," which comes from the Greek word κυβερνητικός meaning skilled in steering or governing

You might notice it's the same word from which 'Kubernetes' comes from, though Kubernetes is a more legitimate sounding word without the (modern) palatalization of C.

> though Kubernetes is a more legitimate sounding word

Weird, I feel the opposite way. To me "kubernetes" feels like someone couldn't come up with a name, so they obscured an existing word and hoped no one would notice. It's like calling "tumblr" "a more legitimate-sounding word than 'tumbler'". Why transliterate Greek the normal way when you can do it your own, less accurate way?

> without the (modern) palatalization of C

Huh? You could describe the change in Italian as palatalization; [s] is not a palatal sound at all, and the change in question took place many hundreds of years ago. Modern?

And cognate to "govern".
1948, Norbert Wiener, Cybernetics; or, Control and communication in the animal and the machine.

https://www.worldcat.org/title/cybernetics-or-control-and-co...

Incidentally, pronounced "cyber-NEET-iks", originally.

And explicitly intended to apply to biological and social systems. Also: The human use of human beings : cybernetics and society (1954).

https://www.worldcat.org/title/human-use-of-human-beings-cyb...