Last July

English translation: July / Summer 2017 (= July / Summer last year)

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
English term or phrase:last July / Summer (written in Autumn 2018)
Selected answer:July / Summer 2017 (= July / Summer last year)
Entered by: Tony M

04:53 Sep 5, 2018
    The asker opted for community grading. The question was closed on 2018-09-08 11:54:07 based on peer agreement (or, if there were too few peer comments, asker preference.)


English language (monolingual) [Non-PRO]
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
English term or phrase: Last July
Below you can find a link to an article published on September 3, 2018. (I believe the date is important.) Does “Last July” refer to July 2017 or to July 2018?

Google's Doors Hacked Wide Open By Own Employee
https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomasbrewster/2018/09/03/googl...

== BEGIN QUOTE ==

*Sep 3, 2018*, 08:02am



*Last July*, in Google’s Sunnyvale offices, a hacker found a way to trick doors into opening without the requisite RFID keycard. Luckily for Google, it was David Tomaschik, an employee at the tech giant, who only had good intentions.



*Last summer*, when Tomaschik looked at the encrypted messages the Software House devices (called iStar Ultra and IP-ACM) were sending across the Google network, he discovered they were non-random; encrypted messages should always look random if they’re properly protected. He was intrigued and digging deeper discovered a “hardcoded” encryption key was used by all Software House devices. That meant he could effectively replicate the key and forge commands, such as those asking a door to unlock. Or he could simply replay legitimate unlocking commands, which had much the same effect.

== END QUOTE ==
Lazyt3ch
Local time: 16:15
July / Summer 2017
Explanation:
In normal usage in British English at least, I'd say it is much more likely to mean 'the previous year'. When we say 'last' like this, on a scale of a year, we usually mean 'the previous' — i.e. the Summer / the month of July in the previous year. It is a lot less common for it to be used to mean 'the one just gone'.

Of course, if we say 'last week / month', we clearly MUST mean 'the one just gone' — since otherwise there would be no way of knowing which particular week / month it was referring to in some previous year!

If a writer wanted to refer to the month of July / the Summer that has just gone, they have other, less ambiguous options they might use, such as 'this last Summer' or 'July just gone' or 'this past Summer', etc. Indeed, in many instances, 'this' would be used, as in "fewer people went on holiday this Summer than last Summer"
last = the year before
this = the year we're in now
next = the year coming

My feeling is that, while we are still in the current year, 'last' refers to the one that happened last year.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2018-09-05 07:29:30 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Your added context confirms my suggestion: if the writer consciously says "last July" and then "in August", then 'in August' can only mean 'the August in thez current year when the piece was written', and hence 'last July' can only be referring to July last year.

From a purely logistical point of view, if he had only discovered this in July 2018, it would have been too short notice to get it programmed for DefCon in August '18!
Selected response from:

Tony M
France
Local time: 12:15
Grading comment
Thanks a lot!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
4 +7July / Summer 2017
Tony M


Discussion entries: 16





  

Answers


1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +7
last July Summer
July / Summer 2017


Explanation:
In normal usage in British English at least, I'd say it is much more likely to mean 'the previous year'. When we say 'last' like this, on a scale of a year, we usually mean 'the previous' — i.e. the Summer / the month of July in the previous year. It is a lot less common for it to be used to mean 'the one just gone'.

Of course, if we say 'last week / month', we clearly MUST mean 'the one just gone' — since otherwise there would be no way of knowing which particular week / month it was referring to in some previous year!

If a writer wanted to refer to the month of July / the Summer that has just gone, they have other, less ambiguous options they might use, such as 'this last Summer' or 'July just gone' or 'this past Summer', etc. Indeed, in many instances, 'this' would be used, as in "fewer people went on holiday this Summer than last Summer"
last = the year before
this = the year we're in now
next = the year coming

My feeling is that, while we are still in the current year, 'last' refers to the one that happened last year.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2018-09-05 07:29:30 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Your added context confirms my suggestion: if the writer consciously says "last July" and then "in August", then 'in August' can only mean 'the August in thez current year when the piece was written', and hence 'last July' can only be referring to July last year.

From a purely logistical point of view, if he had only discovered this in July 2018, it would have been too short notice to get it programmed for DefCon in August '18!

Tony M
France
Local time: 12:15
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 309
Grading comment
Thanks a lot!
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you!

Asker: > Your added context confirms my suggestion: if the writer consciously says "last July" and then "in August", then 'in August' can only mean 'the August in thez current year when the piece was written', and hence 'last July' can only be referring to July last year. Perhaps the author started writing the article in August and made some alterations in early September before publishing it? > From a purely logistical point of view, if he had only discovered this in July 2018, it would have been too short notice to get it programmed for DefCon in August '18! Unfortunately, I know about hackers’ modus operandi mostly from movies and TV series. :)

Asker: Sorry, the two parts of my note got mixed up. (1) Perhaps the author started writing the article in August and made some alterations in early September before publishing it? (2) Unfortunately, I know about hackers’ modus operandi mostly from movies and TV series. :)


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Björn Vrooman: Technically, summer isn't over yet (23 Sept). "July/summer last year" would have been less ambiguous, but yes: It's the same in German and in American English. The AP Stylebook prefers "in July" over "this (past) July"--nothing added.
33 mins
  -> Thanks, Björn!

agree  Herbmione Granger: Also, July of this year would normally (common sense) be "this July" or "in July."
43 mins
  -> Thanks, H/C!

agree  Sarah Bessioud
49 mins
  -> Thanks, Sarah!

agree  Charles Davis
2 hrs
  -> Thanks, Charles!

agree  AllegroTrans: Chubby Checker solution is rather excellent methinks
3 hrs
  -> Thanks, C!

agree  Yvonne Gallagher
3 hrs
  -> Thanks, Yvonne!

agree  B D Finch: Perhaps we come from areas with different local dialects, but 'July just gone' sounds very odd to me. Also, 'this last Summer' would be a phrase I'd only use if I wanted to contrast it with previous summers.// I'm from NW London.
6 hrs
  -> Thanks, B! My British EN is heavily influenced by London usage, which may account for certain regional inflections I am unaware of ;-) / Perhaps then North Country, as my father was originally from Lancashire.
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