I started to learn foreign languages very young and by 20, I was able to use 5 foreign languages apart my mother tongue of Chinese – English, German, French, Russian and Esperanto, among them, only German and Russian was learned from classes while the rest – French, English and Esperanto were totally my own initiative. Since then I have never stopped learning these languages over the long long period.
I have special enthusiasm for German, German literature, science and the German nation. I am reading German daily and particularly those books written by famous German novelists such as Thomas Mann, Günther Grass and of course Goethe and Schiller.
And since 2007 I have even added two other languages to my competence list – Greek and Latin. I have superb learning capacity. I have also learned Hebrew a little to prepare for my theological studies.
Nevertheless English is now my working language, much more oftener used than my mother tongue of Chinese, for almost all scientific literature and works are published in English.
Ironically though, I didn’t like foreign languages at all at the beginning of my university days, but some time around the early 80’s, suddenly I found foreign languages very fun, and ever since I have been keeping learning these languages – English, German, French and Russia – occasionally also some others – till now. It’s part of my life now.
And now my foreign language level has even become a sign to differentiate me frommy fellow friends and collegues, as a character of mine. Each time I am introduced to new friends, they always say oh Mr Chen can speak several languages, great! And they wonder how I can manage the many languages without confusion.
However, I have now shifted my concentration from languages to sciences, therefore I would not main competencies in all the languages I have learned before. At the moment I only keep reading English novels and other materials, with some exception of French and German, in fear that they might be useful in one way or other. I read English novel every day, and as a result I've read most of the classics. Because I might go to a French exam, therfore I am now also listening some French videos to improve my French oral skills. I am also watching German youtubes to renew my German knowledge, but I've stopped reading German literature, science and newspapers. |
Current Reading
Current English reading:
Continue reading Eliot Middlemarch p1193.
Finished reading Ellison Invisible Man p451.
Finished reading of Dickens Great Expectations p685
(actualy a continuation of interrupted reading)
Finished reading of James' "The Portrait of a Lady"
Current French Learning:
Listening to various online French courses and practising videos, reading some French news portals such as Figaro, Lemonde etc. French novel reading is stopped.
Current German Learning:
Watching youtube German videos for 20 mins or so.
Current Learning of Other Languages:
Resumed Chinese literature reading:
RED CHAMBER 红楼梦
Explanation of Red Chamber, more than 3500 pages 红楼梦典藏版套装共8册
Stopped |
Since long I have been also providing some kinds of linguistic services to the industries, businesses and also my friends with my language skills. Now I am more or less focusing on IT related linguistic services, that is globalization and localization of websites, software, databases, multimedia and other forms of IT related materials. Pure textual translations are now too cheap to undertake, therefore, unless the price is reasonably fixed to compenstae for my talents, I don't involve in pure translations any more.
Earlier Language Services
For my earlier language services please also consult the following sites:
http://neolingo.atwebpages.com/
http://neolingo.batcave.net/
http://neolingo.myartsonline.com/
http://neolingo.mygamesonline.org/
http://neolingo.mypressonline.com/
http://neolingo.mywebcommunity.org/
http://neolingo.scienceontheweb.net/
http://neolingo5.scienceontheweb.net/
http://neolingo.sportsontheweb.net/ |
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