Language and Math

I know language affects a lot of aspects of culture but I never realized how it could affect subjects such as math. I’ve heard the saying that Asians are better in math than Americans which proves to be true but always wondered why? Is there a reason why they are better at us in math? Well, writers such as Malcolm Gladwell think that their success in math is derived from their number system in the language.

"Take a look at the following list of numbers: 4, 8, 5, 3, 9, 7, 6. Read them out loud. Now look away and spend twenty seconds memorizing that sequence before saying them out loud again. If you speak English, you have about a 50 percent chance of remembering that sequence perfectly. If you're Chinese, though, you're almost certain to get it right every time." Gladwell wrote this is his book and explains that the English number system is more complicated than the Chinese one. His studies showed that it took our brains longer to remember our more complicated number system and sustain it in a memory loop that only lasted two seconds; however,  the Chinese number system is shorter so it took a fraction of the time to learn and remember their numbers so they would get it right almost every time. The Chinese number system is more logical and simpler to understand so it allows the people who speak it to understand math quicker. For instance our numbers after ten is eleven and twelve, two totally different words to represent numbers. You can see how this could get confusing. But in the Chinese number system these two numbers would be ten- one (+-) and ten-two(+=) which makes remembering it so much easier and adding, subtracting, dividing and multiplying easier as well. Think about the equation twelve times thirteen. In English we are comparing two numbers that sound totally different so it would take us a while to figure out that it equals 156 if we didn’t have that memorized. However, in Chinese this would be ten-two times ten-three so it would break up into ten times ten plus the ten times two and three plus the two times three which is 100+50+6=156. You can see how their number system is a more logical way in thinking and understanding numbers.

Language is a powerful thing that affects many aspects of a culture. Having a simpler number system in their language allows the Chinese people to understand math quicker than English speaking people showing yet another way language affects a culture.

Happy Endings

Why do we love to see Happy Endings? As humans beings who crave stories we always love to see the unrealistically perfect ending to a story. Maybe it’s the guy gets the girl or the couple can finally be together but in whatever genre we like happy endings. But have you ever wonder3ed why we like happy endings so much? Is it because we’re optimists?  Dreamers?  Or is it because we’re realists who know that life is filled with obstacles, some of which we can overcome and some we can’t, but we want our fiction to be filled with hope? Barbara Delinsky responded to this question and gave three reasons. One was we enjoy happy endings because we like read about positive outcomes so we can approach real life in a more constructive and hopeful way. The next was for mere entertainment, and the last one was for the feeling of getting completely drawn into a book. I completely agreed with all of these reasons because I feel that happy endings are the most entertaining and make me leave hopeful and optimistic after I’m done.

First, happy endings help you get a more hopeful approach to real life situations because seeing a positive resolution within a plethora of obstacles inspires you. I don’t know about you but I love seeing a happy ending and wish that could happen to me after I’m done watching it. After the movie or book, I just feel good about myself and feel more confident. On the other hand a sad movie makes you feel depressed and tired after your done reading it because maybe your favorite character died or had something tragic done to them. A happy ending makes you hopeful that maybe just maybe you might get your happy ending in life!

Next, we love reading happy endings because they are most entertaining and fun to read and watch. Happy endings offer a good escape from reality where everything is unpredictable and anything could go wrong at a second. It takes you to a world where good always prevails and dreams come true and as optimistic readers we love seeing a positive resolution for a change. In a world where a lot of wrongs and sad resolutions happen we are attracted to and amused by stories that offer the happy endings.

Lastly, we loved getting completely lost in books with happy endings because it is easy to have yourself drawn into the plot. In these books you associate yourself with the characters and feel what they feel. You go through the story hoping they get their happy ending. You feel the drama in their life and honestly hope for their happy ending and once they get it you get in such a happy and positive mood because something went right. As I mentioned before, this is escapist literature and gives a brief escape from reality which a lot of people enjoy.

There’s just something about happy endings that we love!

The Power of Words

Don’t underestimate the power of words. Words are nontangible things but can really affect you both positively and negatively. When used positively words can inspire, evoke emotions, and convince people to join you side; however, when used negatively it can put down, depress, and anger people.

A prime example of words used negatively is bullying. We always here that saying “sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.” This may be true physically but mentally and emotionally the words have the power to hurt you. Bullies use belittling, offensive, and mocking words to try and make you feel less than them and insecure. Words have the power to change your day in an instant because in just one mocking phrase your whole day could go bad. Words are very powerful things that should not be underestimated.

AS I mentioned before, words have the power to change your day in an instant but this could also make it for the better. An example of this is a compliment. If somebody goes out of their way to compliment you it makes you feel comfortable and confident. Compliments put you in a good mood and cause you to have a positive outlook on that day. Another prime example of using the power of words for good is in inspirational speeches. My favorite inspirational speeches are sport’s speeches because those are the ones I’m used to getting. Although the coach doesn’t say too much, the way he says the words and the emphasis he puts on certain words makes an effect that inspires you to play your best.  When used positively the power of words can inspire you and make you more confident which will always make anybody’s day.

Words are powerful things that can bring you down and pick you up, depress you and inspire you, and mock you and compliment you.  It is for this reason that the mastery of words can cause you to have a huge advantage in the world today.

Etymology of Words (Echo, Snob)

I know I’m probably taking something away from Why we Say It Wednesday but I’ve always been fascinated by the story or origin behind common everyday words. For example the word, echo has quite a story behind it. First off, the word echo is reverberation of sound due to sonic reflection from hard surfaces. Its origin is believed to come from the Greeks who had no way to explain the phenomenon of this reverberating sound. Therefore, like every other time you need to some reason or story to justify a phenomenon they turned to religion. The story goes that Echo was the name of a nymph who accompanied Zeus and his wife Hera. Hera, who was a not a fan of the nymphs to start out with, disliked the chatterbox. Zeus charged Echo with the responsibility of keeping Hera busy while he was doing things he ought not to. Enraged by this deception, Hera cursed Echo with the ability only to speak when spoken to, she could not keep silent when spoken too and she could only repeat that in which was spoken to her. After having this curse, she fell in love with a self-absorbed youth and later had her heart broken. It is said that Echo died in a cave, however, her voice is still present with us today and from this the word echo.

Another word that I found very interesting was the word, snob. A snob is a person who believes that some people are inherently inferior to them. The word snob was first believed to be used in the 1820’s in England but started in Scotland to describe a shoemaker or a shoemaker’s apprentice. In England, it is believed to come from the phrase sine nobilitate which means without nobility. This phrase was abbreviated s.nob and it was put next to ordinary people’s names to help distinguish them from the aristocratic peers. Then this term began to be used to mean a person with no breeding, both the honest laborers who knew their place and the rude social climbers who imitated the manners of the upper classes. Due to this change, the word or abbreviation snob began to mock people who acted in this way.

Etymology of words just fascinates me because I think it’s very interesting to know the stories of some of the common everyday words we use. It’s weird to think about how words came to be because we are so used to saying them so often that we tend to believe that they have always been used when in reality they haven’t been. I wonder what new words we are going to create in our lifetime and what stories they will have behind them.

Video games: The Evolution of Story

Over the course of mankind, story has constantly been evolving and so too has story-telling. Stories used to be passed orally, then through books and other written pieces, to the radio, to movies and now we see a whole new form of story... video games!

You’re probably thinking that video games impede our story-telling mind not stimulate it but I believe that it does just the opposite. Video games are actually expanding our story-telling minds allowing us to learn, imagine, and experience new stories. The best part about these stories is that they are interactive. Video games actually enable you to have input into your own story! They aren’t like books where you are reading somebody else’s tale, you are creating your own story! I know that you are thinking that a lot of video games have set stories that you must follow but that isn’t necessarily true. For example, in The Sims or in Minecraft there is no set campaign or story mode you have to follow. In both of these video games you are able to create your own story within the virtual world. You can roam and create your own life in the video game realm. Having the ability to create your own story within these games isn’t blocking our imagination and story-telling minds but in fact adding to it. It allows us to experience scenarios that we would never be able to experience or be ready for in the real world which will help you in the future. In addition to allowing us to create our own stories they also offer cultural/life lessons as well. In most games, they reward skill, courage, and honor. Eventually these traits are ingrained in our brains and causes us to show these traits in real life. Also, video games helps you learn strategy and planning as a result of the many ways you can accomplish or overcome the obstacles in the game.

Some people argue that sitting in front of the TV screen all day sucks the imagination from your head, but actually these games are offering more stories and are in fact helping our imagination. Studies have actually shown that kids who play video games are more creative than kids who don’t.  The study of 491 12-year-olds was conducted by lead researcher Linda Jackson, a professor of psychology at Michigan State University, as part of the Children and Technology Project. The study showed that the more kids played video games, the more creative they were in tasks like writing stories and drawing pictures, as gauged by the figural version of the Torrance Test of Creativity. The test uses picture exercises to measure mental characteristics like originality, elaboration, and emotional expressiveness. The study shows that contrary to popular belief, video games stimulate our story craving minds and offer a new form of story that we can interact with. Video games prove that story is constantly evolving and adapting itself to find new ways to be experienced and spread. Who knows how story will evolve next?

Music and Story

As humans we crave music just as much as we crave story. It’s an integral part of our everyday lives and can evoke sadness, joy, serenity, awe, or excitement. The reason for this is deeper than just pleasure; music has both an intellectual and emotional impact on our brains. Listening to a good song doesn’t just bring out an emotional response but also gives you an intellectual reward.

One way music affects story is the effect melodies and catchy rhythms have on the mind which allows us to remember the information a lot quicker than usual. I’m not sure if you have ever noticed but do you wonder why you can remember song lyrics so easily? Most times without even realizing it we will learn and memorize an entire song in a matter of minutes. This is called automatic memory which means you remember information that is appealing or interests you. This is why we are able to retain song lyrics and remember these stories so well. Songs were a way people passed on traditions and stories over time as well like the ABC’s, nursery rhymes, The Odyssey, and even advertising jingles.

 Every song tells a story and every time we listen to it we take part in that story. We visualize scenarios where the music would apply and imagine or make a story about our events. Music is another form of story for our story-craving minds. For instance, in Passenger’s song, Let Her Go, we hear a soft calming melody and experience different scenarios in our head about what the song is about.

 Only miss the sun when it starts to snow

 Only know you love her when you let her go

 Only know you've been high when you're feeling low

 Only hate the road when you're missing home

 Only know you love her when you let her go

And you let her go

The lyrics above cause the listener to get many different images in their head. You can picture a man who took some girl in his life for granted and now is forced to watch her leave, a man who tried so hard for someone only to watch them fall for someone else, or some other form of lose. Music has the power to evoke emotions and help you learn and create a story in the process.  Music and melody have an effect on the human brain and allow us to really immerse ourselves in a scene or song. This is exactly why in movies we hear different types of music in movies because they have an effect that draws out different emotions. For example, in Jaws you know exactly when the shark is coming because the music starts playing, you get those butterflies in your stomach when you hear a romantic song while watching a couple fall in love and feel their pain and heartbreak in a sad song when they are separated. The music is there for a reason and adds to the effect of the story on us. The need for music in our lives is a result of our story-craving minds because songs are just another form of story.

Here's Passenger's song Let Her Go

 

Here's one example from a famous movie where music played an important role in the scene:

Nursery Rhymes

 “Ring around the rosie, a pocketful of posies. Ashes, ashes, we all fall down!” I’ve heard this nursery rhyme thousands of times and never thought twice about it but has anyone very wondered if these fun little rhymes actually had a meaning? Of course, nursery rhymes have a nice flowing rhythm that makes them easy to read and appealing to the ears and minds of younger children; however, is that the true purpose of nursery rhymes?  Are they just enjoyable rhymes with no purpose? Nursery rhymes although thought to be just for fun might actually serve as a tool to remember occurrences, events, and people throughout history. The nursery rhyme “Ring around the rosie,” is said to have derived from the England’s Great Plague where the “ring” describes the rash one would get with the plague, the “pocketful of posies” symbolizes the herbs that would dispel the smell of the disease, and the “we all fall down” part symbolizes the people succumbing to the plague. Also, there might be a hidden meaning in the fun little rhyme, “Jack and Jill.” When it says “Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill came tumbling after” it might actually be referring to actual people in history not just a couple who slipped getting water. The rhyme actually might represent King Louis XVI who actually lost his crown and his Queen, Mary Antoinette, who fell with him during the French Revolution. Nursery rhymes are perfect tools to remember historical events because of their rhythm and rhyme which appeals to the reader or listener. These rhymes have such a catchy rhythm that remembering the words are easy, so using these enjoyable rhymes to pass on an event throughout history would make so much sense. So are nursery rhymes really just pointless rhymes we tell children for fun or is there actually a historical meaning to it?