The "treating data as singular" one is interesting - "data" as a plural is actually one of my biggest pet peeves because I strongly suspect that realising that it is technically the plural of "datum" is the only reason people started using it like that. The actual concept it conveys is almost always not a plural: it's more like "sand" than "pebbles".
Exactly. And the fact that (probably) none of these people ever use the singular "datum" in writing makes the whole thing reek of gate-keeper-y "I am smart and you are not because I know a Latin thing".
Also, every single time I see this "gripe" I am tempted (but don't because it helps nothing) to go "hmm, interesting you don't have the same issue with 'agenda'."
The whole British English thing of "companies are plural nouns" (e.g. "Apple are creating a VR headset") simultaneously makes so much sense from how companies actually are (vs the American English that treats the company as a singular individual) and sounds completely wrong to me lol
British English usage would distinguish between the cases when the company as an entity in itself does something and when the people who comprise the company do something.
Here Centrica is regarded as a singular:
"It is the third time Centrica has upgraded its annual expectations this financial year,"
