Why do some people pick up accents without even trying, while others can live in another country for decades without ever losing the sound of their mother tongue?
It’s a question that's been bothering CrowdScience listener Monica who, despite 45 years of living in the US, is still answering questions about where her accent is from. Presenter Marnie Chesterton sets off to discover why learning a new language is possible but perfecting the accent is so much harder.
Marnie speaks to a linguist about how we learn language and develop our first accent, and what we can - and can't change - about our accents. A phonetician explains to Marnie the difficulty of even hearing sounds that are not from our mother tongue, let alone replicating them. And Marnie enlists some expert help to learn some of the pitch sounds of Japanese – with mixed success.
Finally Marnie asks why people so dearly want to change their accents when doing so is such hard work. She hears from a sociolinguist about stereotypes and the impact of accent bias, and Shalu Yadav reports from the front line of Delhi call centres where workers experience prejudice about their accents regularly.
Presented by Marnie Chesterton
Produced by Lorna Stewart for the BBC World Service.
Contributors:
Yosiane White - Assistant Professor of Linguistics at University College Utrecht in the Netherlands
Jane Setter - professor of phonetics at the University of Reading in the UK
Akiko Furukawa - Reader in Japanese and Applied Linguistics at SOAS University of London in the UK
Erez Levon - professor of sociolinguistics at the University of Bern in Switzerland.
Shalu Yadav - BBC reporter in Delhi, India.
[Image: woman with written words coming out of mouth. Credit: Getty images]
Snap fell 30% and took other social media and advertising stocks down with it.
(0:30) Emily Flippen and Ron Gross discuss: - Pinterest, Meta Platforms, and Alphabet getting dragged down by Snap's bad news - American Express shares falling despite increased full-year guidance - Boston Beer's strong 3rd-quarter report - The latest from Microsoft, Netflix, Tesla, and Tractor Supply
(19:15) Emily and Ron dip into the Fool Mailbag and discuss: - Medical device pure-plays - Investing books they recommend - Surprising economics of pumpkin spice - The latest from McDonald's and Keurig Dr. Pepper - Stocks they're more bullish on - Two stocks on their radar: ASML Holding and Blackstone
Got a question about investing? Email podcasts@fool.com
The most valuable crypto stories for Friday, Oct. 21, 2022.
"The Hash" hosts discuss today's top stories, including the latest report that Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon is on the move and has transited to an unknown destination via Dubai. This comes after Do Kwon appeared on Laura Shin's podcast acknowledging that the TerraUSD (UST) project failed.
This episode has been edited by Nia Freeman.. Our executive producer is Jared Schwartz. Our theme song is “Neon Beach.”
ZenGo crypto wallet is an on-chain crypto wallet with no private key vulnerability, leveraging advanced cryptography called MPC. Get started at ZenGo.com/HASH and use code HASH to get $20 back on your first purchase of $200 or more. Terms and conditions apply. See site for details.
On today’s episode, NLW gives the latest in his recurrent theme on “post-narrative institutionalization” – the idea that during the 2022 bear market institutional actors have not only not abandoned the crypto industry but increased their stake with a look forward to the next bull run.
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Nexo Pro allows you to trade on the spot and futures markets with a 50% discount on fees. You always get the best possible prices from all the available liquidity sources and can earn interest or borrow funds as you wait for your next trade. Get started today on pro.nexo.io.
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Circle, the sole issuer of the trusted and reliable stablecoin USDC, is our sponsor for today’s show. USDC is a fast, cost-effective solution for global payments at internet speeds. Learn how businesses are taking advantage of these opportunities at Circle’s USDC Hub for Businesses.
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“The Breakdown” is written, produced by and features Nathaniel Whittemore aka NLW, with today’s editing by Eleanor Pahl and research by Scott Hill. Jared Schwartz is our executive producer and our theme music is “Countdown” by Neon Beach. Music behind our sponsors today is “War” by Enoch Yang and “The Life We Had” by Moments. Image credit: Malte Mueller/Getty Images, modified by CoinDesk. Join the discussion at discord.gg/VrKRrfKCz8.
The likelihood that Republicans may win the House has triggered concerns in Ukraine. Last month, most House Republicans voted against a funding package that included billions earmarked for Ukraine.
Now in the bear market, we are approaching the potential for a secure, privacy-preserving Web3.
Why is it so important or even possible to have a truly portable identity now more than ever?
On this episode of “Money Reimagined” hosts Michael Casey and Sheila Warren speak with Greg Kidd, a serial entrepreneur, investor, and the founder of the Hard Yaka investment group. As an early investor in companies such as Twitter, Square, Ripple, Coinbase, and Twilio, Gregg also started a digital identity company called GlobaliD.
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This episode was produced and edited by Michele Musso with announcements by Adam B. Levine and our executive producer Jared Schwartz. Our theme song is “Shepard.”
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NEAR is a simple, revolutionary Web3 platform for decentralized apps, created by developers for developers. More than 700 projects are now building on NEAR’s fast, secure and infinitely scalable protocol, from DeFi apps to play-and-earn games, NFT marketplaces and more. Start your developer journey now by visiting NEAR at near.org.