Multilingualism, Mission: Impossible (XIV)

Today, anyone who study linguistics don’t required to know something about mathematics, even the basic skill. I met a doctor of linguistics in http://www.lingforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6904  as I said that whenever the European Union hold a meeting the 24 official language required 500 translations, it is a huge cost with bad communication, unless a Lingua Franc can be accepted unanimously, this issue could not be solved. He insist, what I said is wrong, they don’t need 500 translations only 24 translations are required. This linguistic doctor said he had taught many student. It just like what an ancient Chinese philosopher said, “以其昏昏使人昭昭.”  （A stupid master trying make his disciple smart, is it possible?）

The association idea is, today, the translation army of European Union cost them 1.6 billion Euro each year, if the university keep sending such doctor to our society. In the future how can we guaranty the quality of the translation will not drop; the price will not soar?

It turned to be a rule that without innovation, a certain branch of study will going to be corruption. And this is what happened in linguistics today. Since the middle of last century, Chomsky’s generative grammar had made a seemingly new idea, until now, 60 years past, even Chomsky himself don’t know how to develop his theory. Gradually the linguistics turned to be a declining knowledge.  There are some editor complain that their magazines are hard to sell but none of them want change mind to think about why? And keep giving their audience old dogma.