Albert Costa

An enjoyable canter through the current academic literature on the potential benefits of bilingualism. I found the descriptions of the experiments done on people who are bilingual to be particularly interesting and the finding that bilingual people tend to make objectively better decisions when presented with problems in their second (non-native) language. It’s clear that there is much more research needed to identify the benefits, but this is a great introduction to the field. Given that AI translation has improved a lot it may become rarer that students even bother learning a second language. That would be a sad outcome and leave us all culturally poorer, and maybe neurologically poorer also?… (mehr)

A fascinating and illuminating book, that examines the advantages - and bilingualism seems to come with no disadvantages - of having a brain that is comfortable with more than one language. It can comfortably sort out differences, even before babies gain the ability to speak. It can aid empathy and perspective-taking. It can even delay the onset of dementia. While generally clear while discussing scientific discoveries in this area, I was left occasionally bemused. But Costa's light, and personal touch carried me forward, and his use of anecdotes illuminated ideas that might otherwise have been difficult to absorb. A good read.… (mehr)