Articles tagged with Sign Language
A crowdsourcing site has compiled a new lexicon of signs for scientific and technical terms in American Sign Language (ASL). The ASL-STEM Forum, launched by the University of Washington, allows members of the deaf and hard-of-hearing community to build their own guide to the evolving lexicon of science.
A study on young children's use of British Sign Language found that iconic signs were comprehended and produced more by younger children, with the benefit increasing for older children. This suggests that iconicity may play an important role in language acquisition, providing a mechanism for early sign learning.
Deaf individuals experience higher rates of mental health disorders due to communication barriers and lack of specialized services. Specialist training and sign language interpreters are crucial for improving access to mental health care for this population.
New research shows deaf people are quicker at recognizing and interpreting body language than hearing non-signers. This ability may be due to the daily use of sign language, which enhances their visual system's processing capabilities.
A recent study by Penn State researchers found that sign language users can process both English words and American Sign Language (ASL) signs concurrently. When word pairs were matched with similar signs, reaction times were faster and accuracy rates improved compared to control group bilingual speakers.
Researchers found that deaf people in Nicaragua who used self-developed gestures, called homesigns, had difficulty understanding the value of large numbers. In contrast, those who acquired conventional sign language as children were able to learn the meaning of large numbers.
Research shows that certain types of metaphors are difficult to convey in sign language due to the iconicity of a form constraining possible metaphorical extensions. Sign languages exhibit rich metaphorical use, but clashes between form and meaning components can render some metaphors impossible.
A new study on British Sign Language found that signers make different mistakes in the sign and in mouthing, indicating separate brain processing for hand and lip movements. Researchers suggest that this suggests the signer is processing two languages simultaneously.
A new device can transmit American Sign Language over US cellular networks, allowing for fast and reliable communication. The tool has been tested by deaf and hard-of-hearing students, who found it to be a game-changer for their daily lives.
Research shows that deaf children in Nicaragua create their own gesture systems, combining with homemade signs to form a new language-like system. This homesigning enables them to develop Nicaraguan Sign Language, a complex communication system that surpasses conventional spoken languages.
Deaf individuals can invent simple gestures called 'homesigns' in a family setting, which may eventually develop into conventional sign languages. Researchers will discuss the emergence and evolution of these language systems at the AAAS Annual Meeting.
A team of US engineers has successfully developed software that enables deaf and hard-of-hearing Americans to communicate using American Sign Language (ASL) over mobile phones. The breakthrough allows for real-time video communication, making it a significant improvement over text messaging, which can convey emotion but is slower.
Studies of 40 speakers from four languages show consistent use of subject-object-verb order in gestures, contradicting linguistic assumptions. This natural ordering suggests that humans may shape language through nonverbal thought processes.
Historical records show the evolution of signing and interpreting in court proceedings from 1725 to 19th century, highlighting the role of education and community in shaping British Sign Language. As deaf people gained access to education, their status in courts declined paradoxically.
Researchers analyzed Al-Sayyid Bedouin Sign Language (ABSL), a community of 3,500 deaf and hearing people, revealing a distinct grammatical structure that establishes systematic relations among words. ABSL follows a Subject-Object-Verb order, differing from English and other languages in the region.
A study by Daphne Bavelier and her team found that visual information is less effective at holding seven items in short term memory compared to auditory information. However, a new test design revealed that both sight and sound are equally important for cognitive ability.
Researchers found that 6-month-old hearing infants consistently preferred American Sign Language to pantomime. The infants spent more time looking at ASL than pantomime, even when given the freedom to look elsewhere. This study expands on previous findings of infants' sensitivity to spoken language and may indicate a universal preferen...
Researchers found that children who learned ASL before puberty exhibit distinct brain activity patterns when reading sign language, while those who learn it after puberty show reduced right hemisphere activity. This study highlights the importance of early language exposure in shaping neural systems for language.
Dr. Rachel I. Mayberry's research indicates that there is a critical period for sign language acquisition, guiding the learning of all first languages. This critical period emphasizes the importance of early childhood exposure and language acquisition in order to achieve optimal comprehension.
A new sign language called thumbcode allows users to type 30 words per minute, compared to 60 words per minute for touch typists. The device-independent language uses hand positions to represent characters and can be used with gloves or video cameras.