The Tower of Babel is being rebuilt. But this time, it’s not a bunch of Nimrods doing the heavy lifting.
Several news report came out today detailing the humble efforts of a few brave individuals. The stories crossed cultures and methods, but they revealed the innovative ways in which folks are learning to talk to one another (and other mammals).
In London, a translation firm has posted an ad on Craigslist seeking freelance translators. They’re not interested in Chinese, Italian or even Swahili speakers, though. They need people who speak Brooklynese. According to the New York Daily News:
The freelance gig pays up to $210 a day. It’s open to anyone who can decipher such Brooklynisms as “not for nothin,'” “cawfee” and “whatayagonna do?”
“We’re looking for someone who loves the dialect and is able to understand someone who has the heaviest Brooklyn accent,” said Mick Thorburn, spokesman for Today Translations.
Apparently, Brooklyners are having issues, too. As one Danny Calcaterra, a retired longshoreman, said: “I have a tenant from England and I can’t understand a f—–g word he says.”
It was probably something like, “Don’t mind the language gap.”
Meanwhile, current European Union President, and permanent Belgian, Herman Van Rompuy used a less conventional form of communication to relay his thoughts. Upon the conclusion of a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, Van Rompuy expressed his feelings in the most traditional Japanese way possible: he recited a Haiku.
The EU President is known as ‘Haiku Herman‘ and the lyricism of his words is powerful stuff. His Haiku, as transcribed by the poetry magazine The Telegraph went as follows:
The sun is rising / sleeping yet in Europe / but still the same sun
Next week, Van Rompuy will recite a lasting peace treaty between the Israelis and Palestinians.
The most amazing story of the day comes from The Daily Mail, which is reporting that a blind boy has acquired his “sight” by learning a different language. To be clear, the language is dolphin, but it’s still very cool:
Young Jamie Aspland utters tiny high-pitch clicks to rebound the sound off surfaces – and guide him round obstacles.
The four-year-old – who was born without his sight – was taught the ‘echo location’ technique as part of an exciting technique pioneered in the U.S to help the blind.
…
He copied the technique dolphins used to navigate their way through the murky depths – using high pitch clicks to penetrate objects and reflect off their internal structure.
Jamie is able to mirror that behaviour – which complements his use of a cane – by flicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth to mimic the porpoises’ underwater tones.
Little Jamie still hasn’t decided what he wants to be when he grows up. He’s narrowed it down either Dr. Doolittle or The Daredevil.