Beyond Words - Language Blog
Recent Blog Posts
7 Questions to a Linguist: Scott McGinnis
February 12, 2016
For this edition of 7 Questions to a Linguist, ALTA Language Services interviewed Scott McGinnis, Academic Advisor for the Defense Language Institute, Washington, D.C. branch, and Coordinator of the federal government’s Interagency Language Roundtable. In addition to lending his language skills to support U.S. security, Dr. McGinnis has served as […]
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Laughs in Translation: New Web Series Looks for the Funny in Every Country
February 3, 2016
Don’t let the name fool you — the new web series from comedian Brooks Wheelan is not about how one country’s comedy can be localized to suit another’s tastes. Instead, the globetrotting host – whose credits include a successful 2015 comedy album and a fleeting one-season stint on Saturday Night […]
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Translation Tip of the Week: Create a Glossary
January 20, 2016
In this new series, ALTA Language Services will be sharing tips, tricks, and translation best practices. These industry insights are especially helpful for companies and individuals who work with translation agencies on a regular basis, or are in the market for complex translation services. In today’s post, we look at […]
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7 Questions to a Linguist: University of Cambridge Professor Henriëtte Hendriks on Language Acquisition
January 14, 2016
As a specialist in language acquisition, Dr. Henriëtte Hendriks is as much a professor as she is a practitioner. The Head of Cambridge University’s Department of Theoretical and Applied Linguistics, Dr. Hendriks researches the complex interactions between culture, cognition, and the way we learn languages. As a speaker of 6 […]
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Did a Bad Translation Influence the Bombing of Hiroshima?
December 10, 2015
Inaccurate and culturally uninformed translations have been known to cause problems, but here is a case from the annals of history that, if true, shows the consequences can be catastrophic. A recent article by historian Sam Yamashita of Pomona College suggests that a bad translation by the Japanese War Ministry […]
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7 Questions to a Linguist: Framing the Issue with Dr. Julie Sweetland
December 9, 2015
In this installment of 7 Questions to a Linguist, the focus is on an organization that crafts metaphors for more effectively communicating social issues and scientific topics. The FrameWorks Institute, a recipient of this year’s MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions (the “organizational genius grant” awarded by the John […]
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7 Questions to a Linguist: Vyvyan Evans Shares the Bloody Secret Life of Theories
November 18, 2015
In the latest installment of 7 Questions to a Linguist, ALTA Language Services had the pleasure of catching up with Vyvyan Evans. Vyv Evans, PhD, is a professor of Linguistics at Bangor University, United Kingdom. The author of more than a dozen scholarly and popular books on language, meaning, and […]
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World Language Competency Credits Empower High Schoolers to Honor Their Cultural Heritage
November 12, 2015
More than 40 million people in the U.S. speak a language other than English in the home. This data, courtesy of the 2011 American Community Survey conducted by the Pew Research Center, should indicate a growing comfort and acceptance among young bilingual Americans and their peers. The reality, however, is […]
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7 Questions to a Linguist: Arika Okrent Follows Her Curiosity
October 28, 2015
Today’s installment of 7 Questions to a Linguist features a conversation with the popular, prolific, and Klingon-certified writer Arika Okrent, PhD. Not only is Okrent a frequent contributor to Slate, The Week, and Mental Floss, where she takes an entertaining approach to exploring and explaining linguistic phenomena, she’s also this […]
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From Head to Toe, Speaking Another Language is Good for You
October 22, 2015
One day, when I was 8 years old and still spoke with a thick Russian accent, my mother and I sat in the lobby of a dentist’s office. While we waited our turn to have modern dentistry reverse the effects of Soviet toothpaste (no fluoride!), I picked up a magazine […]
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