Comments on: One world… one language? http://futurismic.com/2009/11/03/one-world-one-language/ Presenting the fact and fiction of tomorrow since 2001 Sun, 21 Mar 2010 14:51:01 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: John http://futurismic.com/2009/11/03/one-world-one-language/comment-page-1/#comment-52837 John Thu, 05 Nov 2009 02:51:57 +0000 http://futurismic.com/?p=9439#comment-52837 I can't see this happening - the English language doesn't have words to describe certain things in other languages (and vice versa) - how will they fill these gaps? Coming from a Korean background, there are plenty of Korean words that I can not easily convert to English - first things to come to mind are adjectives to describe food & its taste, quite strongly integrated to its culture... But the same applies in reverse, there are English words that I can't translate to Korean without having a full sentence to describe 1 word... Also, we don't call elders/seniors by their first nor surname, and the word "brother" or "sister" is different depending on whether you're male/female, and if they are older or younger than you - and you don't call them by their name if older than you, but instead they're "old brother" or "older sister" - I really can't see these issues being resolved without completely changing a part of the culture. sorry, really bored at work atm :P I can’t see this happening – the English language doesn’t have words to describe certain things in other languages (and vice versa) – how will they fill these gaps?
Coming from a Korean background, there are plenty of Korean words that I can not easily convert to English – first things to come to mind are adjectives to describe food & its taste, quite strongly integrated to its culture… But the same applies in reverse, there are English words that I can’t translate to Korean without having a full sentence to describe 1 word…

Also, we don’t call elders/seniors by their first nor surname, and the word “brother” or “sister” is different depending on whether you’re male/female, and if they are older or younger than you – and you don’t call them by their name if older than you, but instead they’re “old brother” or “older sister” – I really can’t see these issues being resolved without completely changing a part of the culture.

sorry, really bored at work atm :P

]]> By: Babylon http://futurismic.com/2009/11/03/one-world-one-language/comment-page-1/#comment-52835 Babylon Thu, 05 Nov 2009 02:46:45 +0000 http://futurismic.com/?p=9439#comment-52835 I think it is important that a diversity of languages be preserved because language effects they way that people think. Different languages allow for different ways of thinking and there may arise situations where the mode of thinking that English creates will not be the one that is needed. I think it is important that a diversity of languages be preserved because language effects they way that people think. Different languages allow for different ways of thinking and there may arise situations where the mode of thinking that English creates will not be the one that is needed.

]]> By: GC http://futurismic.com/2009/11/03/one-world-one-language/comment-page-1/#comment-52676 GC Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:57:26 +0000 http://futurismic.com/?p=9439#comment-52676 If you were to extrapolate in a slightly longer term, you could imagine that the majority of languages will be protected from true extinction through technology, in the same way that there are gene banks for biological organisms. Since universal translation seems to be achievable fairly soon combined with the ever-expanding capabilities and reach of the internet, this opens the debate as to the need to protect cultural sovereignty at all. Cultures are mixing and merging and evolving in a new global culture that will contain and remix every single bit of information. Communication itself is bound to evolve in way we cannot even predict. In the past, cultural annihilation by a stronger force was total. This is not the case any longer, it a absorbed, integrated, and at the worst - archived for future use. If you were to extrapolate in a slightly longer term, you could imagine that the majority of languages will be protected from true extinction through technology, in the same way that there are gene banks for biological organisms. Since universal translation seems to be achievable fairly soon combined with the ever-expanding capabilities and reach of the internet, this opens the debate as to the need to protect cultural sovereignty at all. Cultures are mixing and merging and evolving in a new global culture that will contain and remix every single bit of information. Communication itself is bound to evolve in way we cannot even predict. In the past, cultural annihilation by a stronger force was total. This is not the case any longer, it a absorbed, integrated, and at the worst – archived for future use.

]]> By: docduke http://futurismic.com/2009/11/03/one-world-one-language/comment-page-1/#comment-52656 docduke Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:11:17 +0000 http://futurismic.com/?p=9439#comment-52656 Actually, there is an interesting compromise: EO+EN. It is proposed by the Declaration of International Communication, http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/intcom/ . For those who absolutely, positively don't want to give English precedence, let them learn Esperanto. Long ago in college, I was asked: How would you like to be speaking another language fluently in 10 weeks? Yea, sure, I thought, while I was struggling with Russian. But I tried it. Truly, I was speaking Esperanto after 10 lessons. A very big problem is the difficulty of learning English when coming from a non-romance language. A very regular, easily mastered second language can surmount that problem. Actually, there is an interesting compromise: EO+EN. It is proposed by the Declaration of International Communication, http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/intcom/ . For those who absolutely, positively don’t want to give English precedence, let them learn Esperanto. Long ago in college, I was asked: How would you like to be speaking another language fluently in 10 weeks? Yea, sure, I thought, while I was struggling with Russian. But I tried it. Truly, I was speaking Esperanto after 10 lessons. A very big problem is the difficulty of learning English when coming from a non-romance language. A very regular, easily mastered second language can surmount that problem.

]]> By: Jean-Marc Liotier http://futurismic.com/2009/11/03/one-world-one-language/comment-page-1/#comment-52653 Jean-Marc Liotier Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:00:51 +0000 http://futurismic.com/?p=9439#comment-52653 Do we really have that much control ? Language spreads along cultural influence. Diversity in language provides insight into social history and a wealth of interesting information about patterns of thought. But lowering the barriers to communication may be even more valuable. And anyway - when social groups form, they always form their own language too... So I'm not worried about languages dying and forming : it is the natural ebb and flow of cultures that manifests itself in this way. Do we really have that much control ? Language spreads along cultural influence. Diversity in language provides insight into social history and a wealth of interesting information about patterns of thought. But lowering the barriers to communication may be even more valuable. And anyway – when social groups form, they always form their own language too… So I’m not worried about languages dying and forming : it is the natural ebb and flow of cultures that manifests itself in this way.

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