If an alien were to stand in the middle of the Quad, or maybe in the center of Lenoir Dining Hall, they’d hear some of the most exquisite diction of our species. Someone is “geekin” on the escalator.

If you asked me to identify the most clichéd sentence in on-the-job writing, that sentence would be my nominee. Yes, it's common. Yes, it's handy. Yes, it's readily understood. (And no, this column ...