Tag Archives: language learning

Book Review: “Babel No More” by Michael Erard

Posted on 2013年04月10日 | 04/10/2013 by

“Babel No More” by Michael Erard focuses on a particular group of people who know and learn multiple languages, known as hyperpolyglots. Although I do not aspire to be a hyperpolyglot, I do like to read about languages and language … Continue reading →

Posted in language | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Language study update

Posted on 2013年01月16日 | 01/16/2013 by

My study time has significantly increased since I set out my four goals in my last update. I feel really good about my progress. It feels good to be actively using a language. I’m not changing my goals. But I … Continue reading →

Posted in language, Language Study Update, Taiwanese Mandarin | Tagged | 2 Comments

Bilingualism and the brain

Posted on 2011年06月05日 | 06/05/2011 by

Another article about bilingualism and the brain has appeared. I’ve posted about such studies before, but this time I want to respond to the comments that came with the article. It seems that some people are bothered by the concept … Continue reading →

Posted in language | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Which computer system is best for multiple languages?

Posted on 2011年05月03日 | 05/03/2011 by

I think I’ve had fairly reasonable exposure to different computer operating systems in my daily life. My home computer has the Windows OS. I’ve used Mac OS in the past and now use a version of it in the form … Continue reading →

Posted in language | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mental breakthrough about kanji

Posted on 2011年04月26日 | 04/26/2011 by

I haven’t made much progress in my Japanese studies. Even though I have learned hiragana and katakana, I still need to review all the characters. Regularly. I’ve probably already forgotten some, so I need to practice. The next step after … Continue reading →

Posted in language | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Word of the week #25: camellia

Posted on 2011年04月21日 | 04/21/2011 by

The word for this week was inspired by the article “A Camellia Preserve on an Island Known for Tabasco Peppers” from the NY Times. The article introduces the camellia that bloom on an island off of Louisiana. I tend to … Continue reading →

Posted in language, Taiwanese Mandarin, Word of the Week | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Word of the week #19: book

Posted on 2011年03月04日 | 03/04/2011 by

The word for this week is book. The Han characters for the words for book all mean book in Chinese. 書 (shu) is the general word for book. 本 (ben) is the word used to count 書. The word 冊 … Continue reading →

Posted in language, Taiwanese Mandarin, Word of the Week | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Health benefits to learning languages?

Posted on 2011年02月27日 | 02/27/2011 by

I was reading an article on The Guardian titled “Being bilingual may delay Alzheimer’s and boost brain power” and wondered if there were other reports of language learning and health. I found an article from the BBC titled “Being bilingual … Continue reading →

Posted in language | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Word of the week #18: soccer

Posted on 2011年02月24日 | 02/24/2011 by

This week’s word is soccer. I managed to find the hanja for soccer for Korean, so included those too. It seems that Japanese for soccer is a direct transliteration. In Chinese, 足 means foot and 球 is ball. The words … Continue reading →

Posted in language, Taiwanese Mandarin, Word of the Week | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Character practice paper

Posted on 2011年02月15日 | 02/15/2011 by

I’ve been writing Chinese, Japanese, and Korean characters on regular lined paper. I chose to use wide-ruled paper, which is roughly 0.9 cm between the lines. I think it’s working for Japanese and Korean for now. However, I am only … Continue reading →

Posted in language | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment