In the late Sixties and early Seventies several experiments were begun to test whether or not a non-human primate could construct a sentence. Several species were involved in these various experiments including the chimpanzees
Washoe and
Nim, a gorilla named
Koko, and later in the Eighties work began with a bonobo named
Kanzi. While great progress was made in teaching these primates a vocabulary, it would be difficult to see any of these experiments as a success. And all of these projects raised important questions about the
ethics of such experiments.
[more inside]
posted by Toekneesan
on Aug 20, 2011 -
39 comments
Ventiçello is a miniature ceramic village sculpted and photographed by Steven Travis, who also invented a language and script called
Tapissary, inspired by American Sign Language, which appears on the images.
posted by Kattullus
on Aug 24, 2007 -
5 comments
American Sign Language Flash Video Dictionary is a high quality, free dictionary with a huge number of signs. It includes specialized dictionaries of religious signs, conversational phrases, and ASL for babies. Unfortunately it's not possible to link to specific signs, but if you look inside you'll find words from "Abbreviate" to "Zoom" and phrases such as "I cannot fasten my belt," "has he been neutered?" "I already took a bath," "are you married?" and "I need a better firewall."
posted by alms
on Jul 25, 2007 -
17 comments
Popular:
It's Like That,
Humble Neighborhood,
Son of a Preacher Man,
Beautiful,
Barbi Girl,
Truly Madly Deeply,
I'm Alive
Indie:
Blister in the Sun,
Across the Sea,
Tom's Diner,
Zombie; Classics:
The Rose (
more, also
without lyrics),
Revolution,
Hotel California
Rap/Hip Hop (some comedic):
Baby Got Back,
Ice Ice Baby,
Music (
more),
Paul Revere,
Grillz,
White and Nerdy,
Where'd You Go
Non-English songs:
Film Dust,
Comme Elle Vient;
Pseudosign:
Torn (
again),
Sweet Home Alabama
Instructions:
general tips,
religious songs, and how to sign "
rock & roll"
posted by jessamyn
on Mar 14, 2007 -
27 comments
Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. is a liberal arts college and graduate school for the deaf (there's also a
high school and primary school).
In 1988, Gallaudet students protested when a hearing person was chosen as university president, and until today,
I. King Jordan has served. Recently, a new president was chosen--
Dr. Jane K. Fernandes, the school's Provost, who was born deaf but grew up speaking thanks to new therapies and technologies. A varied, vibrant student body never afraid to make their "voices" heard
has spoken (with photos). Last night,
so did a majority of the faculty, but Dr. Fernandes says she will stay.
posted by bardic
on May 9, 2006 -
163 comments
In the US there are three major forms of manual communication
ASL (American Sign Language,
PSE (Pidgin Signed English or Contact), and
SEE (Signing Exact English). Translating from English to any one of these is hard enough. That's not stopping
this team from trying taking on the added challenge of a machine translation. I can't imagine them doing half as well as
this man's efforts at live translating rap, switching between all three variants (video, with voice over).
posted by plinth
on Apr 18, 2006 -
9 comments
Bar Signs. Modern Drunkard has posted a handy guide for the alcoholic in us all, a set of gestures to communicate your needs when it's too loud to hear, or just because, as the site says, "when words come out, whiskey can't get in."
posted by jonson
on Dec 16, 2002 -
21 comments
