Asian American / Asian Research Institute
The City University of New York
As a musical form without the distraction of a melody but a well-defined beat, rap offers an opportunity to explore the rhythmic and musical aspects of a language. An interesting case study is rap in Japanese, which has completely different syntax, vocabulary, accent patterns, and phonemes from English. Several pioneers of Japanese rap initially thought … Read more
Established in 1945, the United Nations is comprised of 191 countries committed to the preservation of peace through international cooperation and collective security. As members of the world meet one another to discuss international policies, and conflict resolutions, language has become crucial commodity in today’s globalized society. Mr. Hung Jung Lee will share his experiences … Read more
The establishment of dual language programs and schools is one of the new initiatives of the New York City Department of Education. The speaker will discuss the implications and challenges of dual language pre-collegiate programs/schools for institutions in Higher Education, such as the City University of New York. Online Notes
The familiar debate over language and thought rears its head again with the publication of William C. Hannas’s controversial book, “The Writing on the Wall: How Asian Orthography Curbs Creativity” (University of Pennsylvania Press). In brief, Hannas contends that the writing systems of China, Japan, and Korea are inherently deterrent to abstract construction and those … Read more