iPhone Apps for the Needy

Being a foreign student both in high school and college in the U.S is not a simple task. Writing papers for classes and finding the right words to express my thoughts are always a struggle. However, since I got my iPhone, I do have a portable translator with me at all times. Thanks to the Hebrew Translator app, when I get stuck mid-sentence or when I come across an unfamiliar word during class, I have an immediate access to an answer.
Other than being a useful translator for foreigners, iPhone apps can be great “life-savers” to other groups in society. For example, an innovative application came out this month which helps drivers or bikers to find parking spots in big cities in the U.S and also gives them information about the parking space, the fee and the detailed timing of when the spot becomes free. This iPhone app is mostly used by tourists who are new to the city and not familiar with the city rules.
In addition to the hopeless newcomers, physically disabled people utilize multiple iPhone apps in order to perform their daily activities. A brand new app is now available for the blind which recognizes currency bills using the camera application on the iPhone and audio to announce the worth of the bill. Now, instead of folding bills in a certain way, blind iPhone users can simply rely on this magnificent technology to determine the bills’ values.
While people criticize the constant usage of smartphones and the negative consequences they have on future generations, some of us forget about the potential benefits they have on some groups in our society. Once again, the great power we have in our hands called “Technology” needs to be treated with a lot of care and be used with caution and reasoning.

Online Shopping Spree

You are driving to the mall, trying to find a parking spot in an endless lot, fighting over the one shirt in the right size at the crowded store, and finally, you are waiting in the infinite line for the fitting rooms. Why do all that when you can simply go shop online?
This is the new social trend which is taking over our shopping experience. Costumers feel more comfortable and efficient when they can click on the product they are interested in while sitting at home, and after couple of days get their purchase in the mail. It does not get more convenient than that. Or does it?
Wal-Mart, the world’s biggest retailer, came up with a new online program called “Pick Up Today” which is expected to increase online purchases and store sales as well. This program enables customers to choose from thousands of products online and receive a text message when their buy is ready for a pick up at the costumers’ local stores. This new marketing tool is handy for the shopper who gets free delivery to a close to home location, and is ultimately beneficial for the store as well. By requiring the buyer to physically enter the store, Wal-Mart increases the flow of customers and eventually increases its sales.
Interestingly enough, there is a paradox in this marketing method. Wal-Mart relies on customers to be constantly connected and shop online. Yet, Wal-Mart developed this application to enhance its at-the-store purchases in addition to the online buys. This recent marketing innovation represents the balance our society seeks of “old-school” habits and new technology. After all, every form of life on earth has to reach equilibrium at some point. As a society, we need to find a way to maintain our traditional life style while still pushing for higher life quality. This juggling around of events will eventually lead us to an ideal equilibrium.

The Internet: Combating Monolingualism Everywhere

Click on the following paragraph!

Yo pienso que el internet es un recurso fantástico para aprender otras idiomas. También, el internet ayuda communicación entre culturas y países, porque podemos traduzcar cualquier cosa que queremos con un clic. Este hace que la información está más disponible. Antes, cuando no podíamos usar traductores en línea, tuvimos que esperar que una person bilingue pasó mucho tiempo traduzcando cada página en nuestro idioma. Ahora, cada persona tiene el mismo nivel de aceso a información.

As you can see, the grammar of the translator is not perfect, as languages are incredible complex and nuanced. However, could you understand what I wrote? You can see that, although you may not speak Spanish, with the internet, you don't need to have studied a language for years to be able to understand foreign text. ¡Qué fantástico!

The implications of this ability are huge. This means that if a kid in China stumbles across our blog and wants to know what the post below me says, all he has to do is copy it into a translator, and bingo! If I need to decipher a scholarly article in Tagalog on the merits of hydroponic lettuce production for my PLS2 research paper, it's not a problem! This has a huge effect on the world, because people have infinitely more access to information and other cultures than they did before. This completely eradicates the language barriers that our species has faced for the entirety of its existence.

As far as real-life language barriers go, the internet helps in a few ways. What happens if I am speaking to a native Spanish speaker or reading a book in Spanish, and even though I have a good grasp of the language, I don't know the meaning of a word that is critical to understanding the meaning of a sentence? I can pull out my iPhone and type that word into my iTranslate app, and presto. No problemo.

All these abilities, however, still don't invalidate the importance of learning a language. Speaking another language gives you insight into points of views, cultures, and ways of thinking that are unavailable to you in your first language. When traveling or communicating face-to-face with foreigners around you, you have to have at least a basic understanding of their language. Luckily, the internet can help in this regard as well!

The internet has helped me in my endeavor to become bilingual by providing an incredible amount of access to language-learning resources. I can watch YouTube videos of subtitled animes in Spanish to improve my listening skills, or look up an article about why they sometimes use "the" in situations where we don't in English. I have instant access to multiple explanations by native speakers of complex grammar points, and different ways to say a complex phrase. I have also had the pleasure of making friends online with a girl in Mexico City who is studying English, which has been an invaluable resource for me. This gave me the ability to carry on a conversation with a native speaker who is happy to give me feedback on my grammar: something that otherwise is only available by visiting a country or conveniently having a friend in real life who speaks the language you're learning.

The effect of the internet on language barriers is huge. Don't shy away from communicating with people that speak other language, or using resources that aren't written in your native tongue. You might gain access to an interesting point of view that nobody from your corner of the world could have come up with.