What Makes a Polyglot? And What do Polyglots Think About Language Learning? (Part 1)
by Antonio Graceffo. Many people wish to learn a foreign language. Unfortunately, like weight loss, playing the guitar, and earning a black belt in martial arts, mastering a foreign language is one of those dreams that people spend a lot of money on, but somehow never achieve. While the average person struggles to master a single foreign language, polyglots are those insane people who seek to...
Read MoreNative Tongue and Learning Vietnamese Language
When I started my Vietnamese intensive course, a lot of non-linguistists I talked to said that the Chinese students would have an advantage because they already speak a tonal language. It is true that some Westerners could be completely stumped by tones, and just not get the language at all. But, a person who already speaks a tonal language does not have an advantage over a Westerner or a Korean...
Read MoreNew Media: From “E-lebrity” to Financial Independence. Is it really possible?
by Antonio Graceffo Justin Halpern made a move from Twitter to network television, when his rants, entitled “Shit My Dad Says”, was picked up as a TV series. According to a recent report out of Japan, five out of the top ten Japanese best sellers in 2007 were novels written by texting on a cell phone. “The Last Messages”, a hit novel in Finland, is composed exclusively of roughly 1,000...
Read MoreTeaching English Pronunciation to Vietnamese Students
by Antonio Graceffo An ESL teacher in Saigon wrote me: “As you may have worked out already, the pronunciation of Vietnamese ESL learners is not great. I am looking at ways to try and improve the pronunciation of the learners at my school.” ”As a linguist, do you have any insights into spoken English and the difficulties that syllable-timed L1s (Vietnamese people) might have learning a...
Read MoreBrooklyn Monk in Asia Podcast Voted a “Mover and Shaker” on Podomatic
Even being nominated for an Academy Award is a great honor. Antonio Graceffo was never nominated, but he did win something: not an Emmy, not a Tony, not even a Soapy, but his podcast, Brooklyn Monk in Asia just received the Mover and Shakers award. It’s not an award exactly, it was a congratulatory email from Podomatic, the host of Brooklyn Monk in Asia podcast. “I am overcome with...
Read MoreMovie Stunt Fighting in 3D: Parts 1 through 3
Learning to fight in the movies! In Bangkok, Thailand, Antonio Graceffo finds John Ledalski, a veteran of more than 50 films. Sifu Ledalski is a martial arts master, an experienced stuntman, and a respected stuntman trainer. Antonio asks John to help him prepare for his upcoming work in TV and films. This episode of Martial Arts Odyssey is...
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Following his landmark decision to quit his job on Wall Street and become a martial arts student, Warrior Odyssey captures Antonio's ongoing adventure across the Far East.
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