Episode 25 - Language

This week, Ben is joined by Dr. Tahnee, a teacher of ESL, to discuss the word language.  Tahnee talks about teaching English and her love of languages.  Ben talks about the origins of the Sims game franchise and tries to answer Tahnee’s questions about the development of the Simlish language. 

00:00:20 - Ben and Tahnee introduce themselves
00:01:00 - Tahnee talks about where her interest in language started
00:03:31 - The Mango and Bash love Tahnee mic sounds, and the school system in Brazil 
00:07:34 - How cats communicate with humans, and “The Secret Life of Cats” documentary 
00:09:04 - Creativity, sentences, syntax, and context  
00:11:05 - “…different parts of your brain” and differences in learning 1st and 2nd languages
00:13:43 - Ben hears it but can’t roll it, and Tahnee talks about differences in written and verbal learning
00:17:59 - Learning styles and discussing Japanese 
00:19:57 - Say no to banning cursive writing!
00:24:03 - Not all language courses are the same, and structuring coursework to standards
00:28:20 - The subject, the predicate, how to make sense, and “a lot more 20 letter words.”
00:31:22 - The profound end of the pool 
00:34:21 - A pitfall of learning a second language
00:36:29 - Ben’s hot take on people correcting grammar 
00:39:20 - Tahnee is more objective in English, and she talks about conceptual metaphors 
00:42:22 - Syntax, nuance, and using the passive voice 
00:45:57 - Tahnee anticipates her student’s needs based on their native language
00:48:04 - Research on interactive video games as a language learning aid 
00:52:21 - Ben explains “The Sims” franchise development and history 
00:55:34 - Ant not aunt simulator, and William’s tragedy inspires him 
00:59:40 - Tahnee has lots of questions and thoughts about Simlish 
01:02:42 - Originally, Simlish was entirely improvised
01:05:12 - Tahnee’s professor brain has questions, "The Jabberwocky," and the word baby in Simlish 
01:11:16 - Applying nonsense in a systematic way
01:14:59 - Katy Perry songs in Simlish, and Ben’s misunderstanding
01:17:46 - Tahnee’s brain starts looking for patterns… and so do players 
01:20:11 - The constraints of languages, and consonant clusters 
01:22:50 - Phonetics, Phonology, and baby talk (in all languages)
01:26:56 - Ben’s Sims story, have a wonderful life, and go learn a second language!