English as a journal language
FWIW, I offer the following ongoing story: I've been invited to a Latin language country to spend 2 days this June teaching how to write "international" journal articles. I was surprised at first. I was told that the scholars in this country have basically been writing reports for the government and NGOs, or for their own journals -- not much refereeing. So it appears that it is not the language I am teaching, but how to write for journals in the North American traditions. (Note "s" at the end of the word). And while I have the floor, an apology to the guy whose name I spelled wrongly the other day. It wasn't that I was putting him down, as he too-quickly charged, it is that when I respond to the digest, other names are not easily visible to me. I did want to respond to misleading information that was being put out about AOIR in Toronto, but I also had "Connected Lives" page proofs due that day (all 50 pp!), the phone was ringing (archaic instrument that I keep around), and I was fighting the clock. Time stress is the explanation, and not an effort to put down by sloppy spelling. When I put some one down, I do it up front. BTW, while I find the linguistic discussion interesting, is it really an AoIR issue? Barry _____________________________________________________________________ Barry Wellman Professor of Sociology NetLab Director wellman at chass.utoronto.ca http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman Centre for Urban & Community Studies University of Toronto 455 Spadina Avenue Toronto Canada M5S 2G8 fax:+1-416-978-7162 To network is to live; to live is to network _____________________________________________________________________
On Mar 23, 2006, at 3:14 PM, Barry Wellman wrote: [editorial trimming of the post down to one sentence]
BTW, while I find the linguistic discussion interesting, is it really an AoIR issue?
until the day the net is beamed directly into our brains like in the Matrix or Ghost in the Shell, I vote a happy yes! ^_^ ndp...
Barry _____________________________________________________________________
Barry Wellman Professor of Sociology NetLab Director wellman at chass.utoronto.ca http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman
Centre for Urban & Community Studies University of Toronto 455 Spadina Avenue Toronto Canada M5S 2G8 fax:+1-416-978-7162 To network is to live; to live is to network _____________________________________________________________________
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--------------------------------------------- Nathaniel Poor, Ph.D. www.umich.edu/~natpoor Visiting Assistant Professor Communication Studies Dept. Albion College http://www.albion.edu/commstudies
Dear all Thursday, March 23, 2006, 8:58:49 PM, Nathaniel Poor wrote:
until the day the net is beamed directly into our brains like in the Matrix or Ghost in the Shell, I vote a happy yes!
I think two thing should be done: 1) Empirical and theoretical research into non-English 'internets'. Gradually, this occurs. "Internationalizing Internet Studies" workshop and edited collection can serve an example. (See for detail: http://www.capstrans.edu.au/resources/conferences/2006/conferences-2006-inet...) This can provide insights into how the Internet is adopted, appropriated, used and interpreted in various cultural contexts. 2) Translation of the studies about linguistically and culturally specific 'internets' written in national languages into English (perhaps with commentaries on some obscure terms and realities). This could help to integrate non-English Internet scholarship into the common (English-language) framework of Internet research and to introduce ideas, concepts and approaches that might be quite original/weird. This, in turn, could help to get rid of overgeneralisations found in English-language Internet/cyberculture studies and give lots of food for though. However, both (1) and (2) require some institutional framework and funding. I think it can be a good idea to establish an organization or a programme dealing specifically with the issues of the 'other' Internet. The English language would remain lingua franca for Internet research but other languages and cultures would be covered and integrated rather that ignored. Eugene Gorny PhD candidate Goldsmiths college, University of London http://www.zhurnal.ru/staff/gorny/
Internet exists because it lets us communicate. We communicate using language. How could we escape the discussion? Jarek
From: Barry Wellman <wellman@chass.utoronto.ca> Reply-To: air-l@listserv.aoir.org To: aoir list <air-l@aoir.org> Subject: [Air-l] English as a journal language Date: Thu, 23 Mar 2006 15:14:26 -0500
FWIW, I offer the following ongoing story:
I've been invited to a Latin language country to spend 2 days this June teaching how to write "international" journal articles.
I was surprised at first.
I was told that the scholars in this country have basically been writing reports for the government and NGOs, or for their own journals -- not much refereeing.
So it appears that it is not the language I am teaching, but how to write for journals in the North American traditions. (Note "s" at the end of the word).
And while I have the floor, an apology to the guy whose name I spelled wrongly the other day. It wasn't that I was putting him down, as he too-quickly charged, it is that when I respond to the digest, other names are not easily visible to me. I did want to respond to misleading information that was being put out about AOIR in Toronto, but I also had "Connected Lives" page proofs due that day (all 50 pp!), the phone was ringing (archaic instrument that I keep around), and I was fighting the clock. Time stress is the explanation, and not an effort to put down by sloppy spelling. When I put some one down, I do it up front.
BTW, while I find the linguistic discussion interesting, is it really an AoIR issue?
Barry _____________________________________________________________________
Barry Wellman Professor of Sociology NetLab Director wellman at chass.utoronto.ca http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman
Centre for Urban & Community Studies University of Toronto 455 Spadina Avenue Toronto Canada M5S 2G8 fax:+1-416-978-7162 To network is to live; to live is to network _____________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________ The air-l@listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org
Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/
Barry, you ask
BTW, while I find the linguistic discussion interesting, is it really an AoIR issue?
I think that if you frame language as just a "linguistic discussion" then you *might* wonder what it has to do with Internet Research. But if, as in your story about English as a journal language, the issue of language is a social one; if it's about how people make sense of the Internet and social relationships through the Internet; if language shapes and is shaped by our Weltanschauung (world view) and if language helps create categories in our minds and influence our construction of reality - then how could it not be an AoIR issue? What's that old quote from Sapir? “No two languages are ever sufficiently similar as to be considered as representing the same social reality. The worlds in which different societies live are distinct worlds, not merely the same world with different labels attached.” Many of us are living and operating in (at least) two languages. My identity as (qualitative) researcher is totally tied up in navigating between languages. My data is in Portuguese, my narrative(s) mostly in English and also in Portuguese, to people from the "international" and the Portuguese context. The multiple layers of complexity in inter-languaging and negotiating meaning between worldviews, contexts and narratives are compounded to the nth degree in internet research. At least, that's how it is is for me. Cheers Beverly Beverly Trayner Web page: http://btrayner.info Blog: http://btrayner.blogspot.com
participants (5)
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Barry Wellman -
Beverly Trayner -
Eugene Gorny -
J. J. -
Nathaniel Poor