I’m not sure I entirely believe in what is being called “The Girl Effect,” but this is a mean Flash video:
You’ll find the original on Girleffect.org. The idea is that investing in education of, specifically, girls rather than boys is the best way to improve the economies of developing countries (and so make the world [...]
Corinne McKay of Thoughts on Translation has touched a nerve with her post on “We just translateâ€â€¦or do we?” Translators have two often contradictory goals: accuracy of translation, and quality of language. She gamely mentions failing two translation tests in a row for different agencies, one on the grounds that her translation was “too faithful [...]
Tags: Language · Translating
A post on Talk Wordy to Me led me to an entertaining on-line etymology quiz which I recommend to language buffs. It is, as TW puts it, “freaking hard.” TW got 6 out of 10 right on two occasions before deciding enough was enough, and I am pleased to say that I got 7 out [...]
Tags: Language
Found on Overheard Everywhere (I run the feed from Overheard in the Office on the Whittle It page, but I love them all, even if many of the entries sound more scripted than accidentally eavesdropped on):
The Best Apples Don’t Go Into Applesauce. Or Teaching
English teacher (about Don Pedro in Much Ado about Nothing: “Don” [...]
Absence from the UK meant I had never seen Fry and Laurie until I caught a post on Jill Sommers’ blog, Musings from an Overworked Translator (here’s a hint, Jill – ease up). She posted the following language-related Fry and Laurie YouTube video which made me laugh out loud even though I don’t know who, [...]