linguistics

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Sad! Drifting word meanings may be creating two different political languages

7/31/17

Penn State psychologists say that presidential candidates can use the same words, but can mean something completely different. They say the gap between words and meaning has never been this big — and that this gap is growing. They used computer algorithms to examine how presidential candidates' used words together — word association — in speeches and debates since 1999 to help determine the meaning of those words in the minds of the candidates. The researchers were also able to use algorithms to predict a person's political leanings and party affiliation based on their word associations.

Aaron Rubin (Guggenheim Fellow)

Liberal Arts' Aaron Rubin named Guggenheim Fellow

4/11/16

Aaron Rubin, Malvin E. and Lea P. Bank Professor of Jewish Studies, Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies, and Linguistics at Penn State, has been named a 2016 Fellow by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation.

A student sits with their head in the chin rest of the eye-tracking device.

Language in the eye of the beholder

4/8/16

Clara Cohen, a postdoctoral scholar studying psychology, is using an eye-tracking device to research the subtle differences between how English and bilingual speakers process language.

Aaron Rubin

Rubin co-edits first reference on ancient and modern Jewish languages

2/16/16

The "Handbook of Jewish Languages," a publication co-edited by Aaron Rubin, the Malvin E. and Lea P. Bank Professor of Jewish Studies, Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies, and Linguistics at Penn State, is the first reference to be published on ancient and modern Jewish languages.

Reading comprehension focus of NSF grant

8/13/15

Understanding how different levels of readers comprehend science texts is the focus of a nearly $1 million grant awarded to an interdisciplinary team of Penn State psychology and education researchers by the National Science Foundation.

Researcher offers brief essay on bilingualism's benefits to the brain

6/2/11

Judith Kroll, distinguished professor of psychology, linguistics and women's studies and director of Penn State's Center for Language Science (CLS), has published numerous articles on the cognitive processes that underlie language, communication and bilingualism. Today in a syndicated public radio series called "Academic Minute," she explains some highlights of CLS research on the mental exercise that bilingual speakers perform that benefits their brains -- and that can benefit new language learners as well.

$2.8 Million NSF grant supports bilingual thinking, learning study

9/16/10

Exactly what goes on in the minds and brains of bilingual speakers when individuals first learn and then actively use two languages is the focus of a five-year, $2.8 million National Science Foundation grant to Penn State's Center for Language Science, based in the Colleges of Liberal Arts and Health and Human Development.

Professor of linguistics and classics to receive honorary doctorate

12/15/09

Philip Baldi, professor of linguistics and classics in Penn State's College of the Liberal Arts, will receive an honorary doctorate in January from the University of Uppsala, Sweden, a research university founded in 1477 and one of Europe's most renowned institutions of learning. Baldi is a renowned expert in historical linguistics, Indo-European comparative linguistics, and Latin linguistics.

Probing Question: What is lost when a language dies?

2/11/08

Oy vey! Although English dictionaries list "Oh dear!" as a rough equivalent of this Yiddish expression, Yiddishists will tell you how short that falls in conveying the phrase's varied, flexible, and nuanced meanings, ranging from sadness and worry to aggravation, anger, and tiredness.

Plain People of Pennsylvania

11/13/06

They are our neighbors, but how much do we know about the lifestyles and traditions of the Commonwealth's Anabaptist citizens? The Research Unplugged series joined WPSU's Common Ground Lobby Talks last week for a special event about the complex cultures of the Old Order Mennonite, Amish, and Brethren.

Five expert panelists participated in the lively conversation, which provided a historical context and a more accurate portrait of these often romanticized and misunderstood communities.

Probing Question: How did regional accents originate?

8/29/05

On the hot, humid streets of New Orleans, Louisiana, it's easy to pick out the locals with just one word: "'Nawlins". That's the name of their fair city, pronounced in the proper Bayou drawl. Far to the north, but equally striking to a visitor's ear, Boston natives can be heard ordering "clam chowdah" or giving someone directions to "Hahvad Yahd."

So what causes these distinctly different dialects?

Is it ever too late to learn a second language?

10/13/04

James Lantolf learned German, his fourth language, when he was 35. He picked it up during visits with his wife's family in Germany, where, for a while, his speaking skills confined him to a spot at the children's table. Raised in the United States in an Italian-speaking home, Lantolf learned English as a child. He later tackled Spanish in college. While studying in Mexico, Lantolf says, he was one of the few students whose language skills significantly improved, simply because he wasn't afraid to make mistakes.