Tech Lingo, the Other Universal Language
In order to stay connected in today’s world you not only need to speak English, you need to speak Web 2.0 as well. In fact, I’d recently told John about the joys of Esperanto, an easy to learn language developed to become international language, but that never caught on. A few days later, John passed on this article about the new universal language: Nerdic, the language of technology.
Knowing the language of technology can help you learn English and vice versa. Katie, our resident teacher often writes about wikis and videos can be used in the classroom.
But it’s clear to me that a lot of our users here at English, baby! aren’t familiar with some of the latest functions of the Web. Take tags, for instance. We had to remove the tag field on lessons because members were entering in the craziest things! (Actual examples: “I need to find a wife in Iran”, “how are you?”, “Angelina Jolie” on a lesson about bowling, not to mention the stuff in Chinese.)
Although tags aren’t covered in this video, a lot of the basics of Web 2.0 are. The video is made by an English teacher in Barcelona and aimed at helping teachers integrate new technologies into their teaching methods and get over their fears of them. I particularly like that the audio of the video is very slow and clear, so ESL students can understand it too.
And here’s a fun video of William Shatner speaking Esperanto in the 1965 movie, Incubus, one of the only movies made entirely in Esperanto.
Photo: The creator of Esperanto’s tombstone. Yes, it is in Esperanto.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:33 am
What an interesting contribution! I am not sure that English is as widespread or useful as people claim. I would like to argue how useful Esperanto is as the international language. It is a planned language which belongs to no one country or group of states. Take a look at http://www.esperanto.net
Esperanto works! I’ve used it in speech and writing in a dozen countries over recent years.
Indeed, the language has some remarkable practical benefits. Personally, I’ve made friends around the world through Esperanto that I would never have been able to communicate with otherwise. And then there’s the Pasporta Servo , which provides free lodging and local information to Esperanto-speaking travellers in over 90 countries. In the past tear I have had guided tours of Berlin and Milan in the planned language. I have discussed philosophy with a Slovene poet, humour on television with a Bulgarian TV producer. I’ve discussed what life was like in East Berlin before the wall came down, how to cook perfect spaghetti, the advantages and disadvantages of monarchy, and so on. I recommend it, not just as an ideal but as a very practical way to overcome language barriers.
May 9th, 2008 at 8:50 pm
Wow, thanks for the great comment, Bill. I had no idea that Esperanto was so widespread and practical! Maybe I should take a few weeks this summer and learn it. Is it hard to stay fluent in it? It seems like opportunities to practice might be difficult to come by unless you’re traveling.