The great script swooped and spated; then broke off, baulkingly, with a scatter of dashes and curves.

The greeting you alright? took a long time to get used to. In the US asking someone if they're alright implies that they look like they're not ok.

Moving about in experiment or sitting motionless in study were scores of the most hideous Martians they had yet seen—octopoid creature with enormous staring eyes and eight black tentacles.

The dirty secret of the internet is that all this distraction and interruption is immensely profitable. Web companies like to boast about […], or offering services that let you […], share the things you love with the world and so on. But the real way to build a successful online business is to be better than your rivals at undermining people's control of their own attention.