Archive: Aug 2017

  1. Fighting Words With The Unabomber

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    Fighting Words With The Unabomber

    “Murder! Mystery! Mayhem! These are not generally words one associates with linguistics. And yet it turns out in some of the world’s most baffling criminal cases—notorious kidnappings, domestic terrorism, thinly veiled threats and collusion, false confessions, mysterious deaths—it was not the chance appearance of some wayward DNA, CSI-style, that finally cracked the code, but some seemingly harmless point about language.”

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    Fighting Words With The Unabomber
    DAILY.JSTOR.ORG

  4. British Museum Uploads 3D Model of the Rosetta Ston

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    British Museum Uploads 3D Model of the Rosetta Stone

    “We now have unprecedented open access to the Rosetta Stone thanks to the digital technicians at the British Museum, who last week uploaded the very first 3D model of the stone slab. Residing on Sketchfab, the model allows you to examine the gray stela from all angles and zoom in to study its inscribed characters and varying textures from up close.”

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    British Museum Uploads 3D Model of the Rosetta Stone
    HYPERALLERGIC.COM

  5. Cognitive scientist calls for integration in language sciences

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    Cognitive scientist calls for integration in language sciences

    “The current fragmentation is rooted in the 1960s, when the ideas of linguist Noam Chomsky revolutionized the study of language. Chomsky proposed that humans have a genetic blueprint that allows us to learn and use language. It was later suggested that language is the product of biological evolution. While trying to substantiate Chomsky’s theories, the language sciences split up into subareas, each attempting to understand various aspects of language in isolation.”

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    Cognitive scientist calls for integration in language sciences
    PHYS.ORG

  7. In their words: English learners share their stories about school

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    In their words: English learners share their stories about school

    “Bulkeley High School in Hartford has seen a steady influx of students who just moved to the country. Almost two-thirds of the students who attend the school have lived in Connecticut for less than 30 months and understand so little English they require extra support. As part of its recent exploration of issues surrounding English-language learners, the Mirror wanted to hear what these students feel is helping them. Here are a few of their stories.”

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    In their words: English learners share their stories about school
    CTMIRROR.ORG

  9. Physics of bubbles could explain language patterns

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    Physics of bubbles could explain language patterns

    “Traditional dialectologists use the term ‘isogloss’ to describe a line on a map marking an area which has a distinct linguistic feature. Dr Burridge said: ‘These isoglosses are like the edges of bubbles—the maths used to describe bubbles can also describe dialects. My model shows that dialects tend to move outwards from population centres, which explains why cities have their own dialects. Big cities like London and Birmingham are pushing on the walls of their own bubbles.'”

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    Physics of bubbles could explain language patterns
    PHYS.ORG

  10. Cardinal Sins of Translation #8: Ignore the Language Police

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    Cardinal Sins of Translation #8: Ignore the Language Police

    “Why would you ever break the very rules that you, as a language professional, are supposed to enforce to the letter? The simple answer would be to improve communication. We need to carefully determine whether a particular rule improves or hinders the conveyance of a message to a particular audience, in a particular situation. We, as translators, have many opportunities to be bona fide delinquents and circumvent the language police. Here are a few.”

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    Cardinal Sins of Translation #8: Ignore the Language Police
    INTRALINGO.COM