A gamble in one language could be an opportunity in another. In a recently published study, psychologists at the University of Chicago examined what happened when participants in a series of experiments weighed their odds in high-risk situations, like profit...
Have you ever wondered about the origins of indigenous languages spoken throughout the United States? We often don’t think about North America’s great wealth of indigenous languages. Nor do we usually consider that, as time has passed, many of these...
How does a researcher broach the fields of linguistics, psychology, and computer science? Dr. James Pennebaker, Chair of the Department of Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, does it by plugging text into a computer to attempt to...
Spoonerism (n.): the transposition of initial or other sounds of words, usually by accident. Also known in other languages as: French – contrepèterie German – Schüttelreim Spanish – trastrueque verbal Greek – Σαρδάμ Polish – marrowsky Finnish – sananmuunnos As...
In a BBC News Magazine article published several months ago, Matthew Engel discusses and laments Americanisms. The article, “Viewpoint: Why Do Some Americanisms Irritate People?,” explores the increasing presence of Americanisms in the British vernacular, and how some Americanisms should...
Many roads lead to the education of a populace and the process and approaches to that end have changed, undergone scrutiny, been adapted, ramified, and revisited over mankind’s existence. Many centuries-old techniques, such as the regular memorization of poetry both...
We’ve all experienced the occasional verbal slip-up, whether we’re nervous or the words just don’t come out right. In casual speech between friends, a faux pas is usually laughed off and moved on from as quickly as it appeared. However,...
The process of second-language acquisition in children is a brilliantly whimsical foray into how the mind superimposes available rules onto new terrain. Young students do not have to contend with the fears and hang-ups that adult language-learners struggle with, and...
If you had told a linguist five years ago that text messaging would help save an endangered language, he or she probably would have laughed in your face. But it’s true, according to Samuel Herrera of the linguistics laboratory at...
Spring break is upon us. Do you know where your documents are? One of the biggest hassles for international travelers is gathering all manner of necessary forms and applications to make their dream vacations a reality. Despite rising fuel prices...
A while back, we compiled five of the best TED talks on language that were available through TED’s website. Among the presentations was one by the popular linguist, Steven Pinker. Here’s the description we wrote about that talk: “Steven Pinker...
I’m happy to announce that ALTA Language Services has been sold to its employees through a leveraged ESOP. In December, the company closed the transaction that acquired 100% of the company’s stock from the departing owners, Abe Revitch and Rosine...
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