• How often do you use e-mail to communicate with your friends and family?
• Would you rather meet with friends online or in person?
• Do you think there is a difference between the way men and women communicate on the Internet?

*****

The Internet has changed the way we communicate. Every day, billions of e-mail messages are sent and received. Instead of waiting a few days for a letter to arrive at its destination, you can send an e-mail that will get there in minutes or even seconds. But for some people, even e-mail is too slow. Today, more and more people – especially teenagers and college students – use an even faster method of communication: instant messaging (IMing).

The following is part of a conversation between two college students, Gale and Sally.

Gale:    hey g2g

Sally:   k

Sally    I’ll ttyl?

Gale:    gotta do errands

Gale:    yep!!!

Sally:   k

Sally:   J

Gale:    ttyl

Sally:   alrighty

Gale and Sally were IMing each other on their computers. (See page 54 for the full forms.)

Linguists are studying instant messaging, cell phone text messages and e-mails to try to understand how technology is changing the way we communicate. One group of researchers is fascinated by the interaction between language and the Internet. “The Internet is allowing us to explore language in a creative way,” says David Crystal, a linguist at the University of Wales. “This is a new branch of study. Like no other study of language change in history, the Internet allows us to follow the rate of change of grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary.”

Researches have a name for instant messages, cell phone text messages, and e-mail. They call it computer-mediated communication, or CMC. CMC is different from speech in a number of ways, Crystal says. For one thing, you can have multiple IM conversations at once, which you can’t have when you’re talking directly to people. However, with CMC, you lose the effect of emotion and tone of voice, no matter how many “smiley faces” you use.

Studying IM conversations can also be an interesting way to learn more about culture, relationships, and differences between men and women, says Naomi Baron, a linguist. In one study, she analysed 23 IM conversations between college students. In total, there were 2185 transmissions and 11718 words. She was surprised by what her data showed. The messages were far less sloppy than she expected. Students seemed to be careful about what they wrote, and they usually corrected their mistakes. Men tended to write in short phrases, while women tended to write in complete sentences. Baron concluded that messaging between women is more like writing than speech but messaging between men is more like speech than writing. From questionnaires, Baron learned that most young people have between one and twelve IM conversations going on at once.

In recent years, the rise in the use of Internet communication has been greatest among young people. English is used most of the time on international mailing lists because it’s the language that most people have at least some knowledge of. The wide use of English online makes many linguists worry that people are neglecting their own languages and cultures. It’s also true, however, that the Internet has opened up many possibilities for rapid communication across cultures.

CMC seems to be here to stay, says communications researcher Simeon Yates. The more we use IM, text messaging on our cell phones, and other new technologies, he says, the more they shape our lives and relationships. People can now manage their schedules from anywhere and change plans at the last minute. They can send text messages to each other over their phones without making a sound. People have even discovered ways to express complicated feelings and emotions in only a few words. A few generations ago, no one could have imagined that we would be communicating over computers in real time without ever speaking a word, Yates says. Now, people feel helpless without their e-mail and cell phones. “When I ask British college students what they would do if I took their cell phones away,” says Yates, “they say they couldn’t live without them.”

New technologies may open up additional possibilities in the future. So, keep typing away. Just remember that technology shapes you every time you use it. And that could be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on how you look at it.

IM Shortcuts 4 = for                               g/g or g2g = got to go bc or b/c = because            k = OK btw = by the way              lol = laughing out loud or lots of love CU = see you                    ttyl = talk to you later y? = why?                         2 = to

Choose the correct answer.

1.  Some language experts are worried that computers are

            A. too expensive for everyone to use                        

           B.forcing people to neglect their native languages                                       

            C. helping people learn the rules of grammar            

            D. helping rapid communication across cultures

2. Which of the following is not an example of computer-mediated communication?

            A. e-mail message                                          

            B. instant message

            C. handwritten letter                                      

            D. text message

3. CMC is

            A. different from speech and normal writing            

            B. similar to both speech and normal writing

            C. more similar to speech than to normal writing      

            D. more similar to normal writing than to speech

4. Naomi Baron was surprised that students she studied

            A. wrote sloppy IM messages                                    

            B. were careful about what they wrote

            C. wrote 2185 transmissions              

            D. did not correct mistakes

5. What is the difference between men and women in how they use IM technology?

            A. messaging between men is more like speech        

            B. messaging between women is more like speech

            C men usually wrote longer phrases                          

            D. women usually wrote shorter phrases

6. The article is about

            A. how the Internet has changed the way we communicate

            B. changes in the field of linguistics

            C. differences between IM and e-mail

            D. similarities in methods of communication

7. The article discusses

            A. only the negative effects of the Internet on communication

            B. the positive and negative effects of the Internet on communication

            C. only the positive effects of the Internet on communication

            D. none of the above

Decide if each statement is a Fact or an Opinion.

8. Every day, billions of e-mail messages are sent and received.

9. Studying IM conversations can also be an interesting way to learn more about culture, relationships, and differences between men and women.

10. CMC is different from speech in a number of ways.

11. In recent years, the rise in the use of Internet communication has been greatest among young people.

12. The Internet is allowing us to explore language in a creative way.

Mobile Phones

• Which mobile phone do you use? What are its features?
• Why did you choose this model?
• Compare your mobile phone with the one in the picture below.

*****

When Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1876, it was a revolution in communication. For the first time, people could talk to each other over great distances almost as clearly as if they were in the same room. Nowadays, though, we increasingly use Bell’s invention for e-mails, faxes and the Internet rather than talking. Over the last two decades a new means of spoken communication has emerged: the mobile phone.

The modern mobile phone is a more complex form of the two-way radio. The old two-way radio was a very limited means of communication. As soon as the users moved out of range of each other’s broadcast area, the signal was lost. In the 1940s, researchers began experimenting with the idea of using a number of radio masts located around the countryside to pick up signals from two-way radios. A caller would always be within range of one of the masts; when he moved too far away from one mast, the next mast would pick up the signal. (Scientists referred to each mast’s reception area as being a separate “cell”; this is why in many countries mobile phones are called “cell phones”.)

However, 1940s technology was still quite primitive, and the “telephones” were enormous boxes which had to be transported by car.

The first real mobile telephone call was made in 1973 by Dr. Martin Cooper, the scientist who invented the modern mobile handset. As soon as his invention was complete, he tested it by calling another scientist to announce his success. Within a decade, mobile phones became available to the public, but they were expensive.

In the mid-90s, cheaper handsets and cheaper calling rates meant that almost everyone had a mobile phone. And the giant plastic bricks of the 80s had become little objects that fitted easily into pockets and bags.

People’s timekeeping changed. Earlier, people made spoken arrangements to meet at a certain place at a certain time. Once a time and place had been agreed, people met as agreed. Somewhere around the new millennium, this changed. Going to be late? Send a text message! It’s the perfect communication method for the busy modern lifestyle.

Like e-mail before it, the text message has altered the way we write in English. The 160-character limit on text messages has led to a new, abbreviated English for fast communication. Traditional rules of grammar and spelling are much less important when you’re sitting on the bus, hurriedly typing “Will B 15min late - C U. Sorry! :-)”.

Mobile phones are now a vital part of daily life for a large number of people. From schoolchildren to retired persons, every section of society has found that it’s easier to stay in touch when you’ve got a mobile. Over the last few years mobiles have become more and more advanced, with built-in cameras, global positioning devices and broadband Internet access.

Alexander Graham Bell would be amazed if he could see how far the science of telephony has progressed in less than 150 years. If he were around today, he might write: “That’s gr8! But I’m v busy rite now. Will call U 2nite.”

Find words or phrases in the text that mean the same as the following.

1. ten years (para 1)

2. situated (para 2)

3. very simple; not developed (para 3)

4. to make known (para 4)

5. shortened (para 7)

6. developed (para 8)

7. very surprised (para 9)

Choose the correct answer.

8. Modern mobile phone technology is based on

            A. radio masts                                                

            B. global positioning devices

            C. two-way radio                                           

            D. the Internet 

9. More people bought mobile phones in the 1990s because

            A. they wanted to take photographs             

            B. traditional phones didn’t work

            C. mobile phones became a lot cheaper         

            D. they were bad at timekeeping

10. The first mobile phone call took place between

            A. Dr. Cooper and Mr. Bell                           

            B. two scientists

            C. two schoolchildren                                    

            D. two retired people

 Sources: