Folium: How to Get By in a Foreign Country When You Don’t Speak the Language via Lifehacker

… Connect How to Get By in a Foreign Country When You Don’t Speak the Language via Lifehacker … The term “ugly American” is well known throughout Europe and perhaps in other countries around the world.  So what is an ugly American?  Urban Dictionary provides the following definition: “The tendency of American tourists visiting foreign […]

Folium: Why Do Pigs Oink, Boo-Boo, and Nöff-Nöff via The Guardian

… Connect Why do pigs oink in English, boo boo in Japanese, and nöff-nöff in Swedish? … Have you ever thought back to the animal noises that you used to make as a child? How a cat goes “meow meow,” a pig goes “oink oink,” and a cow goes “moo?” Did you ever think of […]

Folium: Can Travel Really Change You via HowStuffWorks

… Connect Can Travel Change You via HowStuffWorks … Everyday we are bombarded with stories from friends and family about trips that “changed their lives” but can travel really “change” someone? While the stories may be somewhat of an annoyance, there is much evidence that travel can, in fact, change you. Day to day living […]

Folium: How Does English Sound to Foreign Ears via MetroUK

… Connect How Does English Sound to Foreign Ears via MetroUK … A lot of times growing up, it was fun to mimic accents from different languages I heard, but really, I was trying to make sense of what I was hearing. One day I got to wondering how the English language sounds to non-English […]

Folium: How a Linguist Reads a Menu via Vox

… Connect How a Linguist Reads a Menu via Vox … A few years ago, I went out to dinner to celebrate the birthday of a friend. Someone ordered a round of champagne to toast the milestone. The birthday girl refused to join in. “I prefer not to drink my calories,” she told the group […]

Folium: Countries as Named in Their Own Languages via MentalFloss

… Connect Countries as Named in Their Own Languages via MentalFloss … Have you ever considered, looking at a map or globe, the names of the countries on it? They’re all in English; understandable to us in our own language. However, have you ever considered what the United States might be called on the map […]

Folium: How America Can Get Her Bilingual Groove Back via Huffington Post

… Connect How America Can Get Her Bilingual Groove Back via Huffington Post … I’d like to think that the language barrier in the United States could be broken simply by saying “hello”, but which “hello” do we say? In the United States, “We the people” come from a variety of language backgrounds. Our ancestors […]

Folium: Why “Mom” and “Dad” Sound So Similar in So Many Languages? via The Atlantic

… Connect Folium: Why “Mom” and “Dad” Sound So Similar in So Many Languages? via The Atlantic … Have you ever called your mom, mom? Or your dad, dad? Probably. So do people in other countries; imagine that! We might call our parents mom or dad slightly differently, after all, there is a language barrier. […]

Folium: 10 Things That Will Ruin the English Language via io9

… Connect 10 Things That Will Ruin the English Language via io9 … Mom was strict about the use of language. She constantly corrected us whenever what she considered misuse of the language crept into the vernacular. She hated slang.  I had a good friend in high school in the 1950’s. He was a cool cat. […]

Folium: How to Prepare to Study Abroad via Lifehacker.com

Folium: How to Prepare to Study Abroad via Lifehacker.com … Have you ever had any interest in taking a little trip? Maybe outside of your home country? Perhaps studying abroad? Well, if you do you not only have to research it but you also have to start planning eventually. Yes, you might just be getting […]