Where are the female and non-white polyglots?
Most of the public Internet polyglots are white males.
Do race and national origin play a role in the decisions people make about learning languages? What can we do to inspire more non-whites to learn...
My new book in Italian: La lingua è musica
I just published La lingua è musica, the ebook version of my book on learning languages using music, TV, radio, etc, in Italian.
Free during Covid-19 pandemic
I am offering the book for free during the...
How Russian speakers can sound harsh in English without realizing it
Jon Stewart of The Daily Show made a funny and correct assessment of why Russian speakers sound "evil" in English, although they may not have any bad intentions.
"I wonder if Russia has been our...
Learn a language. Change your mind.
My hero in brain work, Dr. Oliver Sacks, shows us in his New York Times Opinion piece how learning can help us grow our brains, at any age.
This Year, Change Your Mind:
Don’t leave...
Aprender inglês com música, “For the Longest Time”
Aprendi português ouvindo a radio portuguesa e cancoes brasileiras. Sei que e posivel aprender uma nova lingua sem viver no pais onde se fala a lingua. Eu nunca morei em um pais que fala...
Making language learning free and available to all
Aaron Myers and I met in Istanbul, Turkey in November 2011. Aaron Meyers has created his project, I-586, to bring free language learning materials to people in languages other than English since so many...
Review of Babel No More: what makes people learn many languages?
I highly recommend the book, Babel No More. It's a fun read as it's written like a detective story and you can feel the passion for languages that the hyperglots demonstrate.
Why I read Babel No...
Music can bridge the income gap in education
Music can help people bounce back after a stroke or brain trauma. It can also narrow the achievement gap between poor and rich kids.
Low creativity in education is bringing the country down
Is America Experiencing a Creativity Bust?
This is a great article from Newsweek about how too much standardization and rote memorization in school is bringing down our ability to think creatively.
Foreign languages classes are often...
Dr. Oliver Sacks on language and music
My admiration for Dr. Oliver Sacks is no secret. He was just on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart last night talking about the effects of music on the brain. I am thrilled that he...