I was thrilled to interview Dr Ana Ines Ansaldo today during New York’s Bilingual Fair organized by FrenchMorning. She is a professor at the University of Montreal and a researcher working on neuroplasticity in brain trajectory and on the different factors that can impact a brain throughout life including bilingualism. She wowed us all with her insight on the bilingual brain. Thank you French Morning for making this talk available online.
A few days ago, I was very fortunate to spend time with Ana Ines Ansaldo, who kindly visited me in Willsboro, on beautiful Lake Champlain, where I am working on my book, The Bilingual Revolution. Dr. Ansaldo is a professor at the School of Speech Therapy and Audiology at the University of Montreal where she heads the Language, Communication, and Aging Laboratory. She is also the Director of Teaching at the Geriatric Institute of Montreal. Her research focuses on the aging brain and language processing. She combines functional magnetic resonance imaging with tools from cognitive neuropsychology and communication sciences and disorders, so as to study neuroplasticity mechanisms supporting the recovery of language abilities, disrupted by stroke or dementia. Continue reading
What’s the best age to start and master a new language? Are bilingual students smarter? Does knowing two languages offer advantages in learning how to read, write and do math? Does being bilingual have an impact on our personal and emotional development? These themes, and many more, were addressed during the daylong conference, Living with Two Languages: the Advantages of Being Bilingual, at the Lycée Français de New York on Saturday, April 13. Experts from the United States, France and Canada, including renowned researchers, Ofelia García and Ellen Bialystok, author Karen Le Billon, and chef Eric Ripert, explored bilingualism from the perspectives of education, sociology, psychology and gastronomy. Continue reading
Fabrice Jaumont 