Robert Ornstein's THE RIGHT MIND

When people think of language and the brain, they often refer solely to the left hemisphere of the brain because that is where the identified language centers reside (e.g., Wernicke's Area, Broca's Area). However, it would be a mistake for anyone to think that you need only the left hemisphere to communicate and use language. Robert Ornstein's book The Right Mind reminds us why we need the right hemisphere just as much--if not, perhaps, more--than we need the left hemisphere for things like using language and making logical decisions (both aspects associated primarily with the left hemisphere).

Ornstein's style of writing is not terminology-laden, so even people who have never studied cognitive science or anatomy or neuroscience or [fill in the blank with another relevant field here] will be able to pick up the book and read about the wonders of the right hemisphere. The chapters have fun names to go with the interesting topics like "The Run of Dichotomania," "Wit or Half-Wit?" and "An Avalanche in the Human Brain."

Throughout the book, Ornstein uses examples from psychological and linguistic experiments, patients with brain damage, and general observations to demonstrate that while the left hemisphere may be responsible for language at its core, the right hemisphere is necessary for being able to understand context, which allows us to form the "big picture" of our world. In other words, the left hemisphere helps us see the individual trees, but the right hemisphere allows us to see the entire forest. Through Ornstein's examples, you begin to see that a world without context is one without true understanding.

If you're interested in understand more about how our brains process language, I highly recommend getting your hands on a copy of The Right Mind.

John Olsson's WORD CRIME

If you are interested at all in Forensic Linguistics (or if you want to find out what it is), you should check out the Forensic Linguistics Institute website.  John Olsson is the founder of the institute and author of the three leading books on forensic linguistics (both are on the website).  I am focusing this blog on his latest book on forensic linguistics, Word Crime: Solving Crime Through Forensic Linguistics.

The inside book flap provides the following information about the book:

"Tell kids not to worry. sorting my life out. be in touch to get some things"

Instead of being a text message from one partner to another, this text message turns out to be crucial and chilling evidence in convicting the deceptive killer of a mother of two.  Sent from her phone, after her death, a few tell tale signs give him away to a forensic linguist... Rarely is a crime committed without there being some evidence in the form of language.

John Olsson is a world-leading expert in forensic linguistics, a science where linguistic techniques are applied to legal processes to solve cases and provide new angles on evidence.  Beginning with a description of exactly what forensic linguistics is, Olsson includes a survey of some of the high profile criminal and civil cases he has worked on where it has been used.  Including the much-discussed dispute between the publishers of The Da Vinci Code and the author of Daughter of God, there are a series of chapters where gripping cases are described--involving murder, sexual assault, hate mail, plagiarism, suspicious death, code deciphering, arson and even genocide.

This is fascinating reading for anyone interested in true crime, in modern, cutting-edge criminology and also about where the study of language meets the law.

Since 1996, John Olsson has operated a world-renowned forensic linguistics consultancy and training service at www.thetext.co.uk.  He is an Adjunct Professor at Nebraska Wesleyan University, USA, where he teaches forensic linguistics online.  He is also Visiting Professor of Forensic Linguistics at the International University of Novi Pazar in Serbia where he runs an annual summer school in Forensic Linguistics, and is a board member of the Language and Law Centre at the University of Zagreb, Croatia where he is also a Visiting Professor.

I am recommending this book instead of his others (which are texts focusing on how to do forensic analysis of language) because this one is split into cases so that one chapter equals one case.  It is a book you can pick and choose from--you don't have to read the chapters in order to understand the whole.  His other books are also interesting and great sources but are not as easily combed through--they work best being read beginning to end while practicing the skills he writes about in each chapter.  They focus on completing analysis instead of on cases.  Reading about the cases will allow you to see the many different applications of forensic linguistics, some of which may surprise you.

I think I need to propose a new TV show: CSI: Linguistics Division.  Any supporters?

Steven Pinker's THE STUFF OF THOUGHT

Let's say you're new to linguistics and would like to learn more about the subject but are turned off by all the texts out there that sling the "ling lingo" without backtracking and first explaining where all the terminology came from.  If this scenario sounds familiar, one author you might be interested in reading is Steven Pinker.

Steven Pinker's books offer insights into linguistics without immersing the reader in technicalities of linguistic study; in other words, his books are able to get people thinking about linguistics--even if they don't have a background in linguistics.  His latest book, The Stuff of Thought: Language as a Window into Human Nature, focuses on investigating a proposed link between our word choices and our brains.

Pinker explores our brains and the way we think through examining the words we choose:

... our words connect to our thoughts, our communities, our emotions, our relationships, and to reality itself.  It isn't surprising that language supplies so many of the hot potatoes of our public and private life.  We are verbivores, a species that lives on words, and the meaning and use of language are bound to be among the major things we ponder, share, and dispute. (24)

The premise of the book is fascinating, making readers ask whether our mental reality shapes our words or our words shape our mental reality.

Whether or not you agree with Pinker's conclusions, his book provides great fodder for insightful discussion.  Other books of his you might want to check out are Words and Rules and The Language Instinct.