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2 Words Could Clean Up 'Death Panel' Mess: Parker

'A simple amendment' would put debate to rest

(Newser) - Sarah Palin went way too far in suggesting “death panels” would kill her loved ones—but  the wording of the House health bill authorizing payment for end-of-life consultations is worrisome, writes Kathleen Parker in the Washington Post. “A simple amendment would do much to cool tempers.” The...

Dogs as Smart as 2-Year-Olds
 Dogs as Smart as 2-Year-Olds 
Aug 9, 2009 6:32 AM CDT

Dogs as Smart as 2-Year-Olds

(Newser) - It won't surprise most dog owners, but now scientists know it: The average dog is as smart as a 2-year-old child, reports the Telegraph. Dogs understand up to 250 words and gestures, can count to 5, and do basic calculations, researchers have found. "Obviously, you can't have a conversation...

Swearing Cuts Pain, Dammit
 Swearing Cuts Pain, Dammit 
Jul 12, 2009 12:05 PM CDT

Swearing Cuts Pain, Dammit

Scientists suggest link to fight-or-flight response

(Newser) - Stubbed your toe? Let loose a torrent of profanity and you may actually feel better, a study suggests. Scientists had subjects stick their hands in ice water for as long as they could, once while cursing and again using only G-rated language. The researchers discovered that cursing subjects could keep...

If Monkeys Could Talk ...
If Monkeys
Could Talk ...
Jul 9, 2009 3:54 AM CDT

If Monkeys Could Talk ...

Tamarins possess skills fundamental to human language: researchers

(Newser) - Monkeys can recognize “incorrect” syllable pattern in words, revealing that species other than human possess the underlying skills necessary for anguage, the BBC reports. Researchers played recordings of made-up words that shared either a common prefix or suffix for two groups of cotton-top tamarin monkey. Tamarins familiarized with either...

Pungle, Nebby, Oh My! Folksism Dictionary Is Almost Done

Experts fear Twitter's effect on local lingo

(Newser) - Do you know what a “mumble squibble” is? How about a “elbedritsch”? When the final volume of the Dictionary of American Regional English comes out next year, a decades-in-the-making collection of odd vernacular from across the country will be complete at last, NPR reports. "It's very...

'Web 2.0' is English's Millionth Word

A new word emerges every 98 minutes

(Newser) - The millionth word to enter the English lexicon is pure geek-speak, the Telegraph reports: Web 2.0 was entered this morning by Global Language Monitor, which recognizes words once they’ve appeared 25,000 times in the media, blogs, and social websites. The linguistic cataloger estimates that a new word...

TV Slows Babies' Learning: Study

Cuts crucial talking time with adults

(Newser) - Infants’ time in front of the tube can mean less interaction with parents—interaction key to language development, a study suggests. Over 2 years, researchers recorded what kids aged two months to 4 years heard and said in random 12- to 16-hour periods. The scientists found that every additional hour...

2 Languages Better Than 1 for Baby's Brain

Bilingual kids may talk later but excel at 'executive functions'

(Newser) - Some teachers complain that children raised in bilingual households tend to lag behind their peers in school, but a new study suggests multilingual kids' brains may be better organized, the Economist reports. Polyglot babies have stronger "executive function": processes in the brain that help humans plan, prioritize, and switch...

Going Public in Bear Market Is Risky Bet for Rosetta Stone

Firm could make less money due to bear market

(Newser) - Rosetta Stone, the popular language-learning software maker, holds its initial public stock offering today—a risky move in a bear market, Jennifer Collins reports for Marketplace. Rosetta Stone’s profit has quadrupled since 2007, but it could make twice as much by waiting. It’s possible Rosetta needs cash now,...

A Rose by Any Other Name Might Smell ... Manly?

Language influences perception, study finds

(Newser) - Think of the Golden Gate Bridge. Would you describe it as fragile, elegant, and slender? Or strong, dangerous, and sturdy? When they pictured a bridge, a group of German speakers offered the first group of words, while Spanish speakers offered the second, NPR reports. The difference, believes the psychologist behind...

Recession Creates Nation of Potty Mouths

F-bombs a popular way to react to your 401(k) statement

(Newser) - The state of the economy has made for a lot of bad news, and bad news makes for a lot of cussing, MSNBC reports. “I’ve been dropping the F-bomb every time I look at the Dow,” said one 35-year-old writer. “You see that number and you...

Half the World's Languages Will Vanish by 2100

More than 2400 tongues at risk of extinction, as last speakers die out

(Newser) - Globalization has many benefits, but the preservation of the world's languages is decidedly not among them. Ever since the invention of agriculture 10,000 years ago, smaller tribes have assimilated into bigger ones and seen their native tongues lost, and the process has been speeding up, reports the Washington Post....

The Insult That Hurts Worldwide


 The Insult 
 That Hurts 
 Worldwide 
COMMENTARY
Mar 14, 2009 4:51 AM CDT

The Insult That Hurts Worldwide

(Newser) - Next time you want to indulge in a pulse-pounding, worldwide tradition, call somebody a motherf**ker, Nina Shen Rastogi writes at Slate. The Chinese, Africans, and Arabs are among those who have hurled versions of the indignity for generations. Anthropologists say it works because, like religion and scatology, family and sex...

Discomgollifusticated? Check This Dictionary of Vernacular

(Newser) - The Dictionary of American Regional English, a 40-year lexicographical labor of love, will be competed next year, Good reports—with compilers finally making it to Z. The tome, which revels in local disparities, has been a boon not only to word lovers; it helped bring down the Unabomber through his...

Obama Speeches Teach English, Hope to Japanese

Dem's speeches good for language-learners, more inspiring than local pols'

(Newser) - The Japanese version of Amazon.com features an unlikely bestseller: the collected speeches of Barack Obama, with Japanese translation and accompanying CD, Reuters reports. Obama’s inspiring but straightforward rhetoric is perfect for teaching English in a country that hankers to learn the language. He “uses words such as...

English Language Nears 1M Words
English Language
Nears 1M Words
OPINION
Jan 2, 2009 4:58 PM CST

English Language Nears 1M Words

Foreign words help language reach milestone

(Newser) - If your New Year’s resolution is never to use the words “change,” “bailout,” and “Phelpsian” again, you’ll get some help on or about April 29, when the English language will acquire its millionth word—or so says a Texas-based group that tracks such...

Texting Could Save Dying Languages
Texting Could Save Dying Languages
Jan 2, 2009 8:25 AM CST

Texting Could Save Dying Languages

Linguists push to get more of them on cell phones

(Newser) - Linguists trying to save the world's endangered languages believe cell phones—more specifically, texting—can give them a vital boost, the Wall Street Journal reports. Some 7,000 languages are spoken worldwide, but predictive text software currently exists for just 80. Experts believe developing the technology for more tongues will...

Let's Stop Talking In Slogans
 Let's Stop Talking In Slogans 
GLOSSIES
Dec 7, 2008 12:44 PM CST

Let's Stop Talking In Slogans

Using language to communicate hampered by psychology of advertising

(Newser) - We live in a world of snappy slogans, but that may not be the best way to communicate, write Dan Heath and Chip Heath in Fast Company. "People need a reason to prefer Crest over Colgate," but those same people—that's us—shouldn't talk like toothpaste salesmen. "...

Birds Think Like Us
 Birds Think Like Us 
Nov 22, 2008 4:01 AM CST

Birds Think Like Us

New book chronicles the life and mind of Alex, the world's smartest parrot

(Newser) - In her new book Alex and Me researcher Irene Pepperberg explains how her work with the African gray parrot shed light on human intelligence, Scientific American reports. The author says Alex’s smarts demonstrate why scientists should examine how an animal’s brain works, not just how it looks, because...

Top 10 Most Irritating Phrases

Absolutely a nightmare, 24/7

(Newser) - At the end of the day, it's not rocket science, but the Guardian reports that researchers at Oxford University have been working absolutely 24/7 to compile a fairly unique list of phrases which, with all due respect, are some of the most irritating in popular use. You’ve just read...

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