Tag - language

 
 

LANGUAGE

Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 22, 2015
Violence speaks louder than words in Ukrainian film 'The Tribe'
Obscurantism; noun: The practice of being deliberately obscure or vague. If that represents a new genre in art cinema, then Ukrainian director Myroslav Slaboshpytskiy may be its leading proponent. His film "The Tribe," which garnered some attention at Cannes last year, features deaf actors communicating...
LIFE / Language
Apr 20, 2015
'Vague' Japanese language can be maddeningly specific
For a supposedly vague language, Japanese can be incredibly specific when it comes to personal pronouns, the law and the family, for example.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Apr 20, 2015
Cheap cancer detection method developed
Japanese researchers have announced an economical cancer detection method using roundworms that can identify cancer patients by sensing odors in urine.
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Apr 20, 2015
Whether or not to use ka-dō-ka
Today we will introduce the proper use of Xu304bu3069u3046u304bY and Xu304bY, which mean 'Y whether or not/if X (or not).'
EDITORIALS
Apr 11, 2015
University of Tokyo failing non-Japanese students
With enrollment of foreign students declining, the University of Tokyo needs to work on making its program for English-language coursework more attractive.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Mar 25, 2015
Frenemies, screenagers, kidults — kondo your English with these trending terms
How up-to-date is your English vocabulary? New words reflect a changing society and, as a result, new words are coined every day. Reading English newspapers and media from around the world can help you keep up with the changes. Here are some words I picked up recently on my travels.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Mar 24, 2015
Indonesia to withdraw local language plan for foreign workers
Indonesia will withdraw a plan that would force foreign workers to take local language proficiency exams after protests from investors, two government officials said.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues
Mar 22, 2015
University teachers in Japan work under the shadow of a falling ax
For most teachers, their job is more than an economic exchange of time for money — it is a vocation. Concern for students' educational development is genuine, as is a deep belief in the value and importance of education, and a regard for the institution's reputation and welfare.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Mar 15, 2015
First impressions count for ALTs meeting their new Japanese colleagues
Fostering a good vibe early in the new school year can pay huge dividends, making the next 12 months easier for the both of you.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Mar 14, 2015
Examples of linguistic gap between South, North Korea
AP — After 70 years of separation, people in North and South Korea speak in increasingly different ways. South Koreans have incorporated many English words and phrases into their language while isolated communist North Korea has eliminated words with foreign origins and created homegrown substitutes....
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 8, 2015
Osaka educators yank Hashimoto references from English-teaching program
The Osaka Prefectural Board of Education revealed Thursday that it extracted some of the content of online English teaching materials for junior high school students after determining it was forcing political views on young readers by using the name of Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jan 3, 2015
Novelist Mizumura fights to arrest fall of Japanese literature
The abiding belief among some native English speakers in Japan is that Japanese people need to use more English instead of sheltering in the comfort of a mother tongue barely spoken beyond their archipelago.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / BLACK EYE
Dec 17, 2014
Japan and others gain from Jamaican brain drain
In the last part of this series on Jamaicans in Japan, Baye McNeil speaks to a teacher, author and poet in Yokohama and an attorney in Tokyo.
WORLD
Dec 16, 2014
U.S. dictionary Merriam-Webster picks 'culture' as word of year
Whether popular, corporate or entitled, "culture" was named word of the year by U.S. dictionary Merriam-Webster on Monday as a flexible catch-all that can easily identify a subject, idea or issue.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Dec 5, 2014
Nagoya YWCA offers language classes with day care
The Nagoya YWCA School of Japanese Language in Aichi Prefecture has added a "Bambina" course to its curriculum.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Nov 28, 2014
Flash cards help foreign children learn kanji
An elementary school teacher from Aichi Prefecture has developed a unique new way for foreign children to learn Japanese from flash cards.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 26, 2014
Renowned interpreter Masao Kunihiro dies
Masao Kunihiro, a former Diet member and renowned interpreter who conducted simultaneous interpretation during the live TV broadcast of the Apollo 11 mission to the moon in 1969, died of natural causes Tuesday evening at a Tokyo nursing care facility. He was 84.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 25, 2014
Japan's English conversation schools are adapting their classes to specific requirements
Some English conversation schools are increasingly tailoring classes for students who want specific training, such as dealing with customers or full immersion in American culture.
WORLD
Nov 21, 2014
Oxford chooses 'vape' as word of the year for 2014
The Oxford English Dictionary named "vape" — the word used for drawing on an electronic cigarette instead of a burning stick of tobacco — as its 2014 word of the year.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / BLACK EYE
Nov 19, 2014
Jamaican sisters come bearing victuals and vibes
Baye McNeil profiles two Jamaican women who have built thriving careers for themselves in the Land of the Rising Sun, half a planet away from the Land of Wood and Water.

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'