How does your brain learn languages?

A discussion of the peculiarities of languages and the differences between them.
Apoclima
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Postby Apoclima » Thu Nov 24, 2005 12:08 am

I thought this might interest you, Ladyquill!

11. ADULT LANGUAGE LEARNING

Apo
Last edited by Apoclima on Thu Nov 24, 2005 12:15 am, edited 1 time in total.
'Experiments are the only means of knowledge at our disposal. The rest is poetry, imagination.' -Max Planck

Apoclima
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Postby Apoclima » Thu Nov 24, 2005 12:15 am

'Experiments are the only means of knowledge at our disposal. The rest is poetry, imagination.' -Max Planck

KatyBr
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Postby KatyBr » Thu Nov 24, 2005 12:40 am

but there are people who really have a hard time with a second language and their apparatus seems to have deteriorated to the point where it is a detriment [I'm not mentioning names here, but you know who they are].


Apo
he's talking about me, but the thing is I can still learn I'm just lazy..

Kt

Apoclima
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Postby Apoclima » Thu Nov 24, 2005 1:09 am

I wasn't talking about you, Kt. It was just a joke.

Apo
'Experiments are the only means of knowledge at our disposal. The rest is poetry, imagination.' -Max Planck

Ladyquill
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Postby Ladyquill » Thu Nov 24, 2005 9:35 am

When you are learning multiple lanugages, at first, the non-native ones are sort of thrown into a "Other Language" file that maybe a dominant one sort of takes over, like "German and other languages." So when one comes to an idea or a thing in a foreign language that we don't know, we search for a "Non-English" word first in our "Other Language" file.
Apo
WOW, you really hit the nail MY head. That is exactly what happens to me. I always say Portugues is my "default" second language. It's obviously the dominant language in my "other Language" file. Your whole post made absolute sense and I really want to thank you for responding. I will check out the site as well. :lol:
LQ

Brazilian dude
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Postby Brazilian dude » Thu Nov 24, 2005 10:01 am

Sinto-me lisonjeado por alguém falar minha língua neste fórum. Você estará ocupada mais tarde? Talvez possamo tomar um café.

Brazilian dude
Languages rule!

Ladyquill
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Postby Ladyquill » Thu Nov 24, 2005 11:03 am

Cafe? Cafe nao e meu favorito. Talvez uma guarana? :wink:
LQ

Ladyquill
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Postby Ladyquill » Thu Nov 24, 2005 11:10 am

oh...and don't feel too flattered...you haven't heard my portugues yet. hehehe :wink:
LQ

Brazilian dude
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Postby Brazilian dude » Thu Nov 24, 2005 12:40 pm

Cafe? Cafe nao e meu favorito. Talvez uma guarana?
Também prefiro guaraná.

Brazilian dude
Languages rule!

Ladyquill
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Postby Ladyquill » Thu Nov 24, 2005 1:01 pm

Vc sabe que nos nao temos guarana em Texas? :cry: We do have a new Brazilian restaurant in my city...but...once you've been to a REAL churrascaria, American imitations (or in this case, a Mexican imitation) can't compare. I'll be back in Brazil in July. Don't freak out if I show up on your doorstep with an ANTARTICA !:wink:

Have to go to Thailand first, though - in April. I'm trying to learn a little Thai before I go...but since I can't write it, it seems impossible. Seems I AM a visual learner when it comes to lanuguages. I wonder how difficult it would be to learn to write Thai... :?

LQ

Brazilian dude
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Postby Brazilian dude » Thu Nov 24, 2005 1:04 pm

Just remember to add crap to the end of every Thai sentence and you'll be fine.

Brazilian dude

P.S. Wait a minute! That's a man thing.
Languages rule!

Ladyquill
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Postby Ladyquill » Thu Nov 24, 2005 1:49 pm

Just remember to add crap to the end of every Thai sentence and you'll be fine.

Brazilian dude

P.S. Wait a minute! That's a man thing.
And you're actually admitting to this?

LQ

Andrew Dalby
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Postby Andrew Dalby » Fri Nov 25, 2005 8:54 am

I wonder how difficult it would be to learn to write Thai...
I did it, a few years ago now. I already knew Sanskrit script, which made it easier because the two work on the same principle and Sanskrit (devanagari) is more logical, but you can manage it without! I would say a few days of very hard work, after which it will seem easy.

It is useful to be able to read where the buses are going, if nothing else!

And it is a beautiful script ...

Andrew

Ladyquill
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Postby Ladyquill » Fri Nov 25, 2005 8:26 pm

That's cool! Do you know of someplace online that I might be able to get started?
LQ

Andrew Dalby
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Postby Andrew Dalby » Mon Nov 28, 2005 11:10 am

Sorry to have taken so long to reply. I was trying to remember what guides to Thai script I had used myself -- now that I come to calculate, it wasn't a few years ago but 22 years ago -- and, naturally enough, I can't remember. It wasn't the Web, anyway! But I just fed

thai script learn

into Google and got some interesting answers, including websites that give you some help and a CD-ROM that someone wants to sell you, as well as mention of a textbook by Gordon H. Allison (published by Tuttle) and this Allison has been around a long time ...

I hope some of this helps. Enjoy it

Andrew


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