#linguist problems

[cascade-languages]

ASR: An Exact method for measuring your language abilities

Imagine I played you a podcast in the language you are learning and I slapped you every time you heard a word you do not know. On average, how often would I slap you? What a weird question to begin with, right? It may not be obvious yet, but the answer to that question is a very good way of measuring your language abilities. If I were cocky, I would even say it’s the best method.

“Okay, Mr Cascade Languages, prove it,” I hear you say. “My pleasure”, I respond. The measuring of language abilities has at least one thing in common with the measuring of rainfall. With rainfall, you first need to choose the part of the world whose rainfall you want to measure. With language abilities, you first need to specify the environment against which language abilities need to be assessed. Let me use an example to demonstrate what I mean.

Hiroshi is a Japanese high school student who is studying English so he can study Philosophy in Australia. ASR is a good method for measuring Hiroshi’s English abilities (I’ll get to what ASR stands for in a minute). The environment in the case of Hiroshi is that of a Philosophy student in Australia. The first step of ASR is to sample the environment. Australia already has Philosophy students and sampling the environment would simple consist of recording the speech and language interactions of Philosophy students in Australia. We find some Philosophy students (say, 5 or so), then stick recording devices on them and record all the English they are exposed to for a semester. This will include everything they say, hear, read and write. The second step of the ASR method is the most fun (for us, the assessors).

Having compiled a recording that is representative of the language environment of Australian Philosophy students, we assess Hiroshi against it. We play the recording and whenever Hiroshi is exposed to a word he is not familiar with, we slap him. Not only that, we keep track of the frequency we slap Hiroshi. When Hiroshi is still a beginner, we would be slapping him at a high rate (e.g. 200 slaps a minute). As Hiroshi’s English abilities improve, the rate also reduces. After Hiroshi’s abilities have improved to a level where we would consider him proficient, the slap rate will be low (e.g. 5 slaps an hour). Oh, ASR stands for Average Slap Rate.

The beauty of ASR is that it is exact and determined without subjectivity. The same cannot be said of other methods. Most commonly, if you ask someone how good they are in a language, they will say something like, “lower intermediate.” This assessment is based on what level they feel they are at. It is an in-exact subjective estimate. ASR is not an estimate, it is a measurement. It’s an independently measured number which describes how well you would fare in the environment you intend to interact and communicate.  

#langblr #studybrl #study method #linguist problems #language learning #language #foreign languages

[bakuliwrites]

Entirely unrelated to anything, but I'm working on a conlang and have been for a number of years, now. As a linguist, I know that it would be good to do syntax trees for it but what if I just, like, didn't??? Because I hate them and they hurt my brain and I simply do not want to make syntax trees???

#everytime I am forced to make a syntax tree I die a little more on the inside #I recognize their value #but I also hate them #I refuse to use them #maybe it would be helpful #but it just makes me sad #linguistics #linguist problems #conlang #why is Language harddddddd

[striderincosmos]

Alright, I can't keep it in anymore.

Turians, as they stand visually, have a gap between their lower and upper jaws that shows their teeth, as this photo shows and has largely been the case with most turians for the last nearly two decades.

Here's where my undying love of linguistics comes in. How then, pray tell, are they able to call their home planet Palaven? Plosives (some pronunciations of 't', 'd', 'k', 'g', and most importantly, all pronunciations of 'p' and 'b') require something to stop on. For most letters, it's usually a tightening of the larynx, but for 'p' specifically, it's a hell of a challenge to not contain some air in your mouth and still have the sound come out correctly.

Thus, unless the universal translators that the setting tacitly implys exist are doing some funky things to change the pronunciation of a proper noun, then the turians, as they're showcased, can't even easily and properly say the name of their own home world.

#Mass Effect #rant #turians #linguist problems #the heart admires the bared fangs #but the mind rebels #wanting to give them cheeks and lips under the mandibles and armor #ah well #there's always AU

[virgomoonstudy]

Seeing all that pictures about studying in library or cafe make me to go there too. But honestly I have zaro energy just to go somewhere..

Second year makes me really tired and all what I want to do after classes is to sleep. And nothing else..

#thoughts #studyblr #study notes #study blog #linguistics #linguist problems #university #my notes

[moondogss]

yesterday i was thinking about gender and pronouns and something that annoys me about romance languages after being exposed to english for so long is how gendered everything is ? like im a cis girl and i only use she/her and ella/la in spanish and i definitely identify by that but its so tiring how present your gender is in every sentence in romance language

like lets say you want to say "she is beautiful" right? the gender is that sentence is only present once (she), in spanish it would be ellA es hermosA, gender is present twice in the same sentence

this makes me feel like english is a much more gender neutral language in general which i find more comfortable even if as a cis girl, like yeah im a girl but i dont want it to be the only present characteristic about me and in romance language it often ends up feeling like it is, specially when speaking in plural because plural spanish is either the masculine gender pronouns or the new gender neutral pronouns that were invented somewhat recently (elle/le) and it still feels like the feminine pronouns are the odds ones out, like if you want to say they are beautiful you're going to say ellOs son hermosOs or ellEs son hermosEs, and i dont know i kinda wish we could say ellOs son hermosEs and for gender to only be present once in the sentence like in other languages :(

i also know this is mostly my brain getting brainwashed a bit by how present english is on the internet but like romance languages are still colonialism so who gives a fuck indigenous languages are gender neutral fuck you romance languages

#romance languages #spanish #linguistics #linguist problems #rambles #english language #gender neutral pronouns #pronouns #lol

[akaessi]

the linguist in me gets so peeved about conlanguages that don't have conwritingsystems but maybe I'm neurotic

*Clarification in the notes*

#fantasy writing #writing guides #worldbuilding #conlang #linguistics #linguist problems #dark acadamia quotes #dark academia #chaos academia #light academia #goblin academia #university #study #writing tips #seriously stop taking ancient writing systems and just adding like a line here and there #am I being salty?

[withoutalice]

Why do Chinese or Russian artists draw more rare pairs than English speakers? Why are Spanish fandom edits, memes, and analyses better?

#second language is English problems #linguist problems #withoutalicespeaks!

[pawswithprose]

I really love learning about words and their origins.

Defenestration is one of my favourite words because it’s origin and history is fascinating but also so many people have never heard about it. At least people I’ve asked among friends and family (excluding the Fannibals of course).

#words #linguistics #linguist problems #entymology #word #language #pawswithprose

[aristattle]

i will not elaborate on this, but the name noam chomsky is an onomatopoeia for when one is chewing with their mouth loosely and loudly

#linguistics #noam chomsky #linguist humor #linguistness #linguistique #cunning linguist #linguist problems

[larphis]

There is nothing I hate more about being bilingual than having a word in one language that I can’t directly translate into the other language but not because there isn’t a translation,

but because the translation lacks the proper accuracy to really nail the word at its core.

An example:

I am German but also fluent in English because the internet basically raised me and, well, you can’t really go anywhere without being confronted with English content as a small kid if your preferred fandoms weren’t that popular in your own native language.

But anyways, I digress.

So recently I wanted to introduce my dad to The Magnus Archives - only problem being his English isn’t exactly the crème de la crème if you get what I’m saying. So in a hyperfixated rage I started writing a German translation of the first episode for him - only to realize that German doesn’t really have a proper equivalent for the word “researcher”.

The most commonly used translation for researcher in German is “Forscher”.

Problem being that “Forscher” is commonly associated with people in lab coats running around and conducting experiments and in this case we are talking about people who are researching in a journalistic sense.

Now there is an alternative, we could also use a common loanword but the loanword is “Rechercheur” which was obviously inspired by the French language and if you think “Forscher” sounds like a hand full I can tell you that “Rechercheur” is so much worse.

So now I’m angry because I’m stuck; but at the same time fascinated by the way language travels and how associations with words are formed.

#bilingual #bilingualism #German #English #translation studies #language #linguist problems #linguistics #the Magnus archives #tma podcast #personal #me #observations

[pterygoplichtys]

❗️A CALL FOR HELP❗️

I’m doing a research project on verbal concepts. It presupposes a comparative analysis of one word and concepts which stand behind this word in the minds of people with different native languages. To conduct this analysis I need to collect the research data. Therefore, I ask native speakers of English, please, give me three associations with the word “fate”, which come to your mind, and three associations with the word “destiny”. These associations can be anything: a noun, a verb or an adjective. Thanks in advance to all that can help 🌸🌸🌸

#university project #linguistics #linguist problems #language #student #pls help #urgent #need help #english

[poisonpeche]

One time I was reading the instructions of some microwavable food out loud and I said "make sure the food is peeping hot" and my then boyfriend just burst into tears. Apparently that's not how you say it. THEN WHY IS IT PIPING LIKE THIS?? PIPI????

PEEPEE I’M FUCKIN’ HOWLING 😭

Literally I love you so much for trying because learning a new language is so hard and no one ever talks about how thick of a skin you need to have to stumble through it as a beginner.

Plus the intelligence too??? Major kudos to you for having the bravery to go for it and learn new things!

It’s the best way to learn though and you’re doing GREAT.

PIPI AND ALL 😌

#this story made my fuckin day #gonna do a Duolingo course in your honor 🖤 #linguist problems

[moonsquaremars]

linguistics notes // decolonization · language revitalization

#linguistics #languages #studyblr #langblr #university student #study notes #linguist problems #indigenous #decolonize #decolonialism #saturn in 9th house #9th house #pluto in sagittarius #mercury in 11th

[immaculata-nocturne]

My entire life: I don’t desire to learn French, I’ll focus on other languages.

Currently: In Quebec translating electrical schematic descriptions to English.

#travel #montreal #french #I’m not sure if I have a genuine interest or if I’ve been indoctrinated after spending 3 weeks here #engineering #lingblr #linguist problems

[pixelybook]

Do you ever watch a movie or video and some time later don't remember if you watched it in your first language or in your second+ one?

Sometimes I really can't remember lol

#language #linguistics #movies #linguist problems

[akaessi]

controversial opinion but I think literacy education teachers (in the US) should have more than a English degree. I think they need a heavy linguistic background as well, which some English degrees do not provide to an adequate degree, if at all.

this might be directed at a certain person who didn't know what a vowel chart was, but is in charge of teaching young children how to read. and got mad at me for trying to show her???

#linguistics #linguist problems #early literacy #reading #education is important #reading education #phonics #bring back phonics #dark acadamia quotes #dark academia #academia aesthetic #light academia #academia quotes