ivamtogozhe's Journal
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Thursday, January 25th, 2007
| Time |
Event |
| 1:44a |
* * * Всё сказано. Кому твоих эссе Сдалось занудство, рифм твоих стриптизы? По линкам, как бельчонок в колесе, Как в лабиринте скиннерова крыса, Как вестник чей геройский марафон В пример другим расписывают в красках, Беги отсюда и до тех времён Когда зелёный сменится на красный Вблизи реки не знающей моста (Её и не заметишь в дебрях духа). Смирись с собой. Блаженна немота Схоластов наделённых даром слуха. Раскинь мозгой, на что твоих писуль Пять капель в мировую тучу хуеву? Всё сказано, свидетельствует Гугль, И Яндекс подтверждает правоту его. Весь мир в двух кликах - это ли не рай - По ссылкам ли, по бабам исчисляя. Не пей вина. Не плачь. Не умирай. На самый крайний - выйди из вайфая. | | 11:46a |
Литературные конкурсы
Вы можете представить себе конкурс в котором биологи, физики, математики и т. д. соревновались бы все вместе между собой? Даже помыслить смешно. Никого, однако, не смешат многочисленные литературные конкурсы, в которых "состязаются" авторы с заведомо несопоставимыми эстетическими позициями.
Я всё понимаю. Как так, Сидоров уже устроил конкурс и в нём же выиграл, а я, Петров, ещё нет, что я рыжий что ли? Но неужель столь куцая овчина стоит выделки? Риторический, опять же, вопрос. Раз делают - значит стоит для кого-то. Это я, ленивый такой, не просекаю тему. Так и будет дальше, как миниумум, до тех пор пока литконкурсы не будут вызывать адекватную реакцию - смех до колик - как если бы препарирующий лягушек биолог соревновался с решающим дифференциальные уравнения математиком (а другие математики и биологи определяли простым большинством кто делает это лучше). А для этого, в свою очередь, надо сознавать: биологу - существование математики, а математику - существование биологии. В литературной среде подобное осознание отсутствует начисто, даже (и в первую очередь) среди тех кого постмодернистское самоопределение обязывает держать в голове что каждый автор есть своя эстетическая система. | | 10:40p |
Всеобщая англификация - национальные дискурсы вымирают Naturejobs
Published online: 24 January 2007; | doi:10.1038/nj7126-454a Lost in translation English is the language of science. So to what extent are researchers who are non-native English speakers at a disadvantage? Bonnie Lee La Madeleine talks to scientists hailing from Japan to Germany. Bonnie Lee La Madeleine
Language mastery, be it of one's native or adopted tongue, provides the communicative ease that says: "I am capable." In science, weak English hinders a successful career. Improve your English proficiency, and confidence will follow — or so the people of many non-English-speaking nations believe.
A recent study in South Korea estimated how much an English-dominated setting for science has cost that nation's scientific development. Kumju Hwang of the University of Leeds, UK, interviewed 15 Korean researchers and engineers working in the United Kingdom about their personal experiences in the international arena. All the respondents said that because of language issues they spend a large proportion of their time preparing presentations and papers, and practising language skills for discussion — and even then, they say, they still miss more than 50% of what they hear. Seven of the interviewees felt that this weakness contributed to Korea's status as a consumer of basic science, rather than a major contributor. Hwang also found evidence that the requirement for English in science communication shaped the way that the social hierarchy among scientists developed in Korea. Employers prefer to hire researchers who have studied or worked in English-speaking nations, rather than those who did their postdoctoral work in countries such as Japan or France.
Basic science in Japan is becoming increasingly 'English only', as Japanese-language publications dedicated to those subjects disappear. RIKEN, one of Japan's most comprehensive groups of research facilities, has announced that its scientists published just under 2,000 original reports in English in 2005, and only 174 in Japanese. In Japan, a nation where English is the current language of knowledge production, domestic science society meetings are also moving towards English.
"Insecurity in English is a widespread phenomenon," said Ulrich Ammon, professor of German linguistics at the University of Duisburg, echoing Takada's sentiment. "No one German is entirely comfortable speaking and writing in English."
Like Hwang's report, these essays argue that non-native English speakers working in science are disadvantaged. "Nationally, everything moves more slowly," says Ammon. "It takes longer to write, communicate and respond, and there is a higher risk of misunderstanding." The problem is exacerbated by a greater likelihood of being ignored if your English is poor, he says.
Social inequality Some European scholars have spoken out against the switch to English. A 2003 Finnish editorial warned that adopting English in Finland would alienate the lay people from theproducts of science. In this rallying cry, three Finnish academics contend that if university research focuses exclusively on the use of English, their own language will "gradually lose its ability to depict new concepts and phenomena and their subtle differences". They fear that this trend could create social inequality between those who can and cannot speak English.To build that communicative confidence, Japanese is slowly being eliminated from Japan's primary scientific content. Discussions in many of its newly established research institutes, and some university laboratories, are supposed to be conducted in English. According to white-paper reports of several Japanese institutes, as well as reports from Japanese ministries that oversee science and technology, this move to English aims to attract increased international attention and participation. For faster-paced interaction in competitive international settings, the increased exposure to English is beneficial — especially for younger researchers.For this reason, Japan's more ambitious science societies are also moving to English-only. It is a move that is reluctantly accepted. "There are members who do not support this change," says Kimura. "They argue that presentations and subsequent discussions in English at the Japan Neuroscience Society annual meeting are less active than those in Japanese."Society journals are also switching to English to make Japanese research accessible to scientists from other countries. This development, too, has its critics. Articles published in English only "may be good for Japanese scientists who are proficient in English, but this is not necessarily good for Japan", says Takada.Meanwhile, Japanese scientists must budget for translation costs and subsidized language and communication training to increase exposure to, and proficiency in, English. Editing companies charge researchers US$500 to $800 per manuscript. Language training can cost $2,000 for a ten-week course, or about $50 per hour for a private lesson. These costs are additional burdens, and slow down scientific activity in the laboratory. Yet some science facilities, most notably the three RIKEN institutes dedicated to life sciences, are adopting English in all scientific activities, including administration.Bonnie Lee La Madeleine is programme coordinator at RIKEN Brain Science Institute in Wakoshi, Japan. |
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