Archive for March, 2016
Top Language Learning Excuses and How to Beat Them Posted by Malachi Rempen on Mar 30, 2016 in Archived Posts
That’s right, my peanut-shaped drawing of an Italian waiter: in Italy, there’s never a good reason not to eat. The same is true for language learning! There are plenty of excuses we dream up for why we can’t or shouldn’t or won’t learn a foreign language. Believe me, I’ve heard them all before, mostly because I’ve said them…
6 Reasons to Love the Word of the Day Courses Posted by meaghan on Mar 28, 2016 in Archived Posts
If you’re anything like me, you subscribe to one of our Word of the Day emails, but you haven’t actually learned a new word each day. Don’t get me wrong—I open them, every day. I read the phrase and listen to the audio, and it’s a good start. But then I close my email and…
Why Every Language Learner Needs a Library Card Posted by Transparent Language on Mar 23, 2016 in For Libraries
According to a 2013 Pew Research Center survey, 61% of Americans have a library card, though only 48% have visited a library in the last 12 months. More surprisingly, in the digital age, is that only 30% have visited a library website in the last 12 months. This tells us that Americans, language learners in…
The Linguistic Origins of ಠ_ಠ and Other Unusual Internet Faces Posted by Malachi Rempen on Mar 21, 2016 in Archived Posts
Like me, you may have just recently starting bowing to internet pressure to put smileys in your e-correspondence – more and more, I get the feeling that without them, messages come off as overly serious. I hate myself for doing it 🙂 But in case you hadn’t noticed, the internet has long moved beyond colon-closedparenthesis to represent emotions in this…
Transparent Language Library Spotlight: Albert Wisner Public Library Posted by Transparent Language on Mar 16, 2016 in For Libraries, Library Success Stories
“A few years ago we heard how technology would make libraries obsolete. We have turned that on its head. Libraries have become the gateway to get access to technology. It has made libraries more necessary.” – Albert Wisner Public Library director Rosemary Cooper in an interview with Library Journal There’s a common misconception in America…
Language: As Convenient As German Recycling Posted by Malachi Rempen on Mar 14, 2016 in Archived Posts
I wrote this comic when I first moved to Germany four years ago. As you can see, I was quite…taken by the German obsession with proper recycling (I’ve since found that Switzerland makes the Germans look like filthy litterbugs). These days, I rather appreciate their green attitudes, and I wish more countries took on recycling programs…
5 Ways to Translate Your Language Skills into Online Earnings Posted by Jakob Gibbons on Mar 9, 2016 in Archived Posts
Last month we shared some tips on putting your languages to work on the ground, how to land in country X with nothing but a couple of bags and a few languages and start making money. But the really secret secret is that you don’t have to actually be anywhere to translate language skills into income. Globalization and the Internet…