Cyberslackers, egosurfing, data smog? All three terms have entered the English language, according to the compilers of the Oxford Dictionary of English, who have added 3,000 more words to the 350,000 words and phrases in modern usage. —Charles Arthur —Internet terms make entry in dictionary (The Independent)

Contemporary English still contains a host of idioms that date from the mechanical era. We “spin our wheels” or “stay on track.” We might “hammer” an opponnent in a debate, or complain that “the pieces don’t fit”. Even some computer terms owe their origins to the mechanical age — the “line” in “online” and “offline” referred originally to the assembly line.