New Experiments in Data Science
What a nightmare these words can be. I have often had existential crisis about teaching after realizing the profound confusion at such a basic level of the language. I mean, we haven’t even come to the truly complicated structures and irrational phrasing that exist in English. Plus, there is an entire ocean of language waiting Read more about Say and Tell and Talk and Speak[…]
Last week I had the first class with a student since before the holidays. We had a late start due to work schedules and, when we finally met, my student tried to express the amount of time that had passed in a typical expression of surprise: “How many time we don’t have class!” I was Read more about ¿Cuánto tiempo?….a long passage of time[…]
This is maybe the most persistent mistake among students, at least here in Spain. I regularly hear the phrase “My weekend was very funny.” I almost always know that they are using the wrong adjective. The little watch dog inside of my head barks immediately and says “No, no, no…you don’t know what you’re saying, Read more about “Funny”? Don’t you mean “Fun”?[…]
I have been noticing lately that my Spanish students are always saying “I stayed with a colleague” or “We stayed with smiles on our faces”, and I have come to realize that this is a difficult corner of language that sounds correct but is probably being used incorrectly. I am beginning to suspect that Read more about “Estar” is not the same as “Stay”[…]
This another installment of the History of English which tells of how English was influenced by the Normans. In this video, they explain that the Normans are Scandinavians (who we tend to call Vikings – but they never had horns on their helmets). Vikings were called many different names and were not one distinct group Read more about The Viking Saga Continues[…]
Well, this topic is obviously irritating for some. For me I am indifferent….maybe I’m a little irritated by it. Some of the more stuffy British English speakers wish to protect their sacred use of “lift” instead of “elevator,” or “flat” instead of “apartment,” or “fish” instead of “chips”…..???…..(I might be mistaken on the last one Read more about American English[…]
I remember when I was young, maybe I was seven years old, I had a very strange thought about this question. My parents were always trying to get me to take the garbage out and I was very absent-minded about things that I didn’t want to do. Except one time I was alone and I Read more about Where Does Language Come From?[…]
What advice do you have for people who are younger than yourself? Listen to these people who have over 100 years of experience. Life is full of happy memories and regrets, mistakes and advice and lessons we have learned. We can learn from each other. What do you have to share? We are also always getting older. It’s never to late to ask ourselves the question: “What type of person do you want to be when you get older?”
There are many theories on the best way to learn a language. Numerous schools and academies try to convince you that their method is the one proven way. Polyglots, people who speak more than several languages, post videos to give you “the secret” to learning languages. Many people are just trying to get a corner on the market and compete with other schools promoting other methods.