Group items tagged

Discusses the different types of sign language throughout the world.

The English Proficiency Index ranks Swedes as the #1 non-native speakers of English. This Japanese study examines some factors that may've contributed to Swedesʻ successful language learning, including 1. Foreign language learning is compulsory and comprehensive in Sweden, and there are set minimum hours for instruction. Beginning in 1995, the Swedish educational system introduces English in Gr. 1, a second language in Gr. 6, and a third (yes, you read that right!) language in Gr. 8, 2) the perception that English= high status language (overall, in the EU, English is the most taught language and the most desirable for business and academic purposes), 3) Communicative Language Learning approach to teaching English: the foreign language class is taught in the target language 4)Higher expectations for teaching credentials; even elementary school teachers must have graduate school credits, 5) Linguistic similarities between L1= Swedish and target L2= English, as both share Proto-Norse as their linguistic ancestor, 6) High frequency of English terms absorbed into Swedish as a result of globalization, particularly pop culture, 7) Adoption of CLIL (Content and Language-Integrated Learning): in other words, English is the language of instruction for non-language disciplines.

And if the Yankees, who have a lengthy history with Japanese players, were to land the two-way Japan League star Shohei Otani next year? "I thought it could be beneficial for the Yankees to have a catcher who speaks Japanese," Higashioka said.

This article talks about how sleep plays an active role in language and brain development and the role it plays in early language acquisition.

This article talks about emojis and how their meaning depends on the reader's interpretation. Researchers are building more understanding of the role emoji play in human communication, by studying the linguistic properties of emoji in comparison with languages like English.

Researchers have found that people who speak multiple languages are twice as likely to recover their mental functions after a stroke as those who speak one language. The study gathered data from 608 stroke patients in Hyderabad, India, who were assessed, among others, on attention skills and the ability to retrieve and organise information. Bilinguals and multilinguals have better cognitive reserve - an improved ability of the brain to cope with damaging influences such as stroke or dementia - due to the mental challenge of speaking multiple languages and switching between them.

This article explains how learning a language improves functions like attention and alertness. It has also been shown that people who speak other languages have more empathy and global views.

I think that many of us have heard that swearing can help to improve pain tolerance, but this study shows that only using "real" swear words help. This makes me wonder what makes swear words so bad, and why it is so taboo to say them. I don't think it has very much to do with how rude the meaning of the word is. For example, I can say something like "explosive diarrhea" in class, but I can't say "sh*t". Also, why does text censoring make it better? We all know what the word says.