Dr. Lera Boroditsky explains the mechanics involved in the transmission of ideas (interpretation, conveyance, etc.) She explains how language affects differences in direction/space, time, quantity, gender, events, consequence, and so forth.

She concludes: "The beauty of linguistic diversity is that it reveals to us just how ingenious, and how flexible, the human mind is. Human minds have invented - not one cognitive universe but 7,000. There are 7,000 languages spoken around the world....I want to leave you with this final thought. I've told you about how speakers of different languages think differently, but of course, that's not about how people elsewhere think. It's about how you think. It's how the language that you speak shapes the way that you think. And that gives you the opportunity to ask, 'Why do I think the way that I do?; 'How could I think differently?' And also, 'What thoughts do I wish to create?'" 

Consider a misunderstanding you've directly experienced.

To what degree was that misunderstanding affected by these ideas? Give examples!

How might the concepts presented in this talk prevent/correct this misunderstanding?

In what way(s) might you use language to think differently?

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