An Education Department regulation penalizes Fulbright-Hays applicants if they grew up speaking the language of their proposed country for research. Lawsuits have followed.
Tag Archives: Language and Languages
GPT-4 Is Exciting and Scary
Today, the new language model from OpenAI may not seem all that dangerous. But the worst risks are the ones we cannot anticipate.
Noam Chomsky: The False Promise of ChatGPT
The most prominent strain of A.I. encodes a flawed conception of language and knowledge.
The Etymology of Food Words
A new book exploring the origins of common food terms — from bialy to lima bean to bibimbap — is a fascinating history of how we eat and cook.
Some Republicans Want to Ban ‘Latinx.’ These Latino Democrats Agree.
In Connecticut, some Democratic lawmakers want to prohibit the use of the gender-neutral term in official government documents. The Republican governor of Arkansas does too.
Why Chatbots Sometimes Act Weird and Spout Nonsense
No, chatbots aren’t sentient. Here’s how their underlying technology works.
How Therapy-Speak Took Over Dating
In a time when emotional maturity is highly desirable, almost everyone is “doing the work.”
How Multilingual Couples Express Their Love Across Languages
Five couples who speak different languages share how they communicate affection with each other.
Valentine’s Day
In honor of the holiday, let’s look at the language of love.
Quiz: How Well Do You Know Your Modern Dating Terms?
Test your knowledge of the latest relationship terminology.
How Can China’s People Demand Freedom if We Can’t Even Say It?
My Chinese generation is losing the ability to express itself.
Inclusive or Alienating? The Language Wars Go On
New vocabulary is supposed to be supportive. But terms like “bodies with vaginas” just antagonize voters and empower the right.
Can We Talk About How We Talk About the Weather?
When the barometer drops, the hyperbole rises, and meteorologists aren’t happy about it.
‘Polar Vortex’ Got You Baffled? Try This Extreme-Weather Guide
A handy explanation of some of the newer climatological verbiage.
What Language Do You Speak to Express Love?
Are you in an intercultural/multilingual relationship? We’d like to know which language you use to express affection toward your partner, and why.
Tell Us About Your Strangest Terms of Endearment
Do you have a surprising pet name for your loved ones? When you were young, were you called something bizarre? Tell us about it.
Where Romantic Poetry in a Fading Language Draws Stadium Crowds
That 300,000 people celebrated Urdu verse during a three-day festival was testament to the peculiar reality of the language in India.
ChatGPT Has a Devastating Sense of Humor
The chat bot makes a lot of mistakes. But it’s fun to talk to, and it knows its limitations.
Manx Language Is Experiencing a Revival on the Isle of Man
After being on the brink of extinction, the ancient tongue is experiencing a revival on the Isle of Man, thanks in part to an elementary school and some impassioned parents.
Leg Booty? Panoramic? Seggs? How TikTok Is Changing Language
A new vocabulary — a little fun, a little dystopian — has emerged on the social video platform, as creators try to get around algorithms and strict content moderation. They call it algospeak.
An Ivory Comb With an Ancient Message: Get Rid of Beard Lice.
Archaeologists in Israel unearthed a tiny ivory comb inscribed with the oldest known sentence written in an alphabet that evolved into one we use today.
Troubled Loner? Political Terrorist? Both? It’s Often Hard to Say
The attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband has raised questions about the role of demonizing political speech in violent acts, not for the first time.
Can Cultural Identity Be Defined by Food?
Cuisine is one of the few ways to characterize Singapore’s Peranakan culture, a hard-to-pin-down blend of ethnic and racial identities.
Let Haitian Schoolchildren Learn Kreyòl
Haiti cannot recover from its brutal history until its schools stop systematically demeaning its sole common language.
Misinformation Swirls in Non-English Languages Ahead of Midterms
More multilingual fact-checking groups are pushing back against misleading translations, manipulated images and outright lies that jump platforms and cross borders.
A Language Test That Stigmatizes Black Children
Black English is not slang. It is a dialect with clear rules and structure.
After Dobbs: Feminism Beyond the Gender Binary
Jennifer Finney Boylan and Thomas Page McBee on what the feminist movement owes the trans community.
Mental Health in America: The Politics of ‘Insight’
Psychiatry still wants patients to have the “correct attitude,” but too often ignores how that can depend on culture, race, ethnicity and faith.
Six Lyrics That Show Why ‘Hamilton’ Is Tough to Translate
A direct transfer of words was never going to work for such a complex show. So the team involved got creative.
The Curious Hole in My Head
Born without my left temporal lobe, a brain region thought to be critical for language, I’ve been a research subject for much of my life.
The Animal Translators
Scientists are using machine learning to eavesdrop on naked mole rats, fruit bats, crows and whales — and to communicate back.
Did My Cat Just Hit On Me? An Adventure in Pet Translation
Entrepreneurs are aiming to put A.I.-powered pet translation tools into our pockets.
The 5 Love Languages at 30
Why have they endured as a self-help phenomenon?
Foreign Films, English Titles and the Dilemma Distributors Face
Leave as is? Translate? Change altogether? A movie’s success doesn’t depend entirely on what we call it, but it can have a big effect.
We Need to Talk About How Good A.I. Is Getting
We’re in a golden age of progress in artificial intelligence. It’s time to start taking its potential and risks seriously.
Canada’s Growing Linguistic Diversity
A new report from Canada’s census agency shows that one in four people speak a language other than English or French as their native tongue.
He Says, She Says: Hebrew Meets Gender Politics
In Israel, a linguistic revolution is underway in the quest for more inclusive language for Hebrew, whose modern form adopted grammatical norms from 3,000 years ago. Not everybody is on board.
English Is Messy. Do I Have to Spell It Out?
Whither our aspirational Esperanto.
‘Parentese’ is Truly a Lingua Franca, Global Study Finds
In an ambitious cross-cultural study, researchers found that adults around the world speak and sing to babies in similar ways.
In Argentina, a Battle Over Gender-Inclusive Language in Classrooms
The city of Buenos Aires banned gender-neutral language in schools, reigniting off a debate that is reverberating across the world.
A Ruling From Outside the Court: ‘Shame’ on the Justices
It’s the readers’ turn to judge … the Supreme Court’s recently ended term. Also: Anti-abortion activists; banning AR-15s; Australian slang.
Sometimes ‘Proper’ Speech Isn’t Correct Speech
Contractions can be frowned upon. We’re gonna wanna rethink that.
Recording India’s Linguistic Riches as Leaders Push Hindi as Nation’s Tongue
Ganesh Devy has spent decades documenting India’s hundreds of distinct languages. Up next: a 12,000-year history of India he hopes will help counter the government’s Hindu-first campaign.
How Gender Neutral Language Is Shaping the Fight for Abortion Rights
Progressive groups and medical organizations have adopted inclusive language, which has led to terms like “pregnant people” and “chestfeeding.”
‘Allinllachu.’ Google Translate Adds Quechua to Its Platform.
The addition of one of the most widely spoken Indigenous languages in the Americas could help public servants and health workers connect with their communities. (And by the way, ‘allinllachu’ means hello.)
Misusing Words Like ‘Groomer’ Isn’t Just Wrong; It’s Dangerous
A child in danger cannot find safety if the language we use to define abuse is diluted.
For Russian-Speaking Ukrainians, Language Clubs Offer Way to Defy Invaders
Many Ukraine citizens speak Russian as their first language. Volunteer organizations are helping them improve their Ukrainian and abandon “the occupiers’ language.”
I Think It’s Fine to Say ‘I Feel Like.’ I Reckon Others Do, Too.
Leaving room for disagreement is gracious, not timid.
The War in Ukraine Has Unleashed a New Word
In a creative play on three different languages, Ukrainians identify an enemy: ‘ruscism.’
A.I. Is Mastering Language. Should We Trust What It Says?
OpenAI’s GPT-3 and other neural nets can now write original prose with mind-boggling fluency — a development that could have profound implications for the future.