What is the plural of ‘computer mouse’?
August 1, 2014
It’s an old question- what is the plural of “computer mouse”- is it “mouses” or “mice”? My 1996 Collins dictionary says it’s “mice”, while my 2010 Oxford Learner’s dictionary says either. A number of websites suggest avoiding the issue altogether, and calling them “pointing devices”. There is a theory that mouse is an …
Whose time are we talking about?
July 1, 2014
What is time? Or more precisely, what is your perception of time? Does time pass in a line? Or in cycles? Can you know the future? Can you know the past? It seems like a simple question, but in fact the perception of time is part of a deep cultural imprint which we may rarely …
Is “adorkable” a word?
June 19, 2014
There is a recent TED video, in which Anne Curzan, a Professor of English from Michigan University discusses how words move from being neologisms to established words. It’s witty, informed and well worth a watch. One of the most interesting points she makes is that people often say that it is a legitimate word if …
Once it’s gone, you can’t get it back.
June 12, 2014
How many languages are spoken in the world? It’s quite a hard question to answer, because of definitional issues a between language and a dialect, but the answer is probably around 6,000 – 7,000. One thing is very certain, however. As shown in a piece in the Guardian, this number is dropping. Language death is …
EAP in the MOOC age?
May 19, 2014
It sometimes seems that you can’t move without tripping over a MOOC, or another form of online learning. Rightly or wrongly, online learning is taking more and more space in the HE curriculum. An EAP (English for Academic Purposes) syllabus will typically have features that reflect a traditional university experience- reading, listening, writing essays and …
Does language influence thought?
March 22, 2014
There is a TED video where a second generation Vietnamese immigrant suggests that his view of life is different to his parents because Vietnamese doesn’t have a subjunctive, and English does. This allows him the luxury of speculating and imagining, as well as adding layers of subtlety to his language, whereas his parents speak directly …
Pushing the envelope
February 25, 2014
In Michael Rosen‘s recent book, he talks about how he was taught to address envelopes when he was a schoolboy in the 50s and 60s. He describes in great deal the care that had to be taken with the placement of commas, the alignment of the text, and the fact that it was obligatory to end a man’s (not …
A Vicious Cycle
November 13, 2013
One of the CELE staff teaching , Yan Lai Peen reflects on the teaching of English in Malaysia, and the human capital it can provide…….. In the previous blog entry, the writer considers the gaps in the recent EF English Proficiency Index, in which Malaysia ranks 11th in the world. However, merely two months ago, …
What is “Proper” English? Part Two
September 10, 2013
In the previous post, I asked the question “What is proper English”? The English spoken around the world differs in many ways- Americans write “color” and pronounce the final “r”- the English write “Colour” and the “r” is silent. There are also plenty of examples of similar differences between Malaysian English and British English- grammatical …
What is “Proper” English?
August 27, 2013
It would seem obvious to say that in an International University such as Nottingham, students and staff should use correct or proper forms of English- and even students and staff who do not have English as their first language should strive towards speaking “better English”. The term “proper English” is often used as a badge …