The Times looks at how deaf scientists and students are using video sharing to create and standardize new signs for scientific concepts. It’s a fascinating examination of how technology can influence the development of a language. not all of the signs being circulated will be adopted, but the standardization of even a few dozen scientific terms could be of immense help to deaf people wishing to pursue scientific careers. The article also illustrates how sign language is already particularly well-suited for scientific discourse:
“If I wanted to indicate mass, I would probably hold up a balled fist,” said Kate Lacey, an interpreter at George Washington University who often works with science students. “Then, to indicate weight, I’d drop that fist toward the floor.” The implication is that weight represents gravity’s effect on mass, which is about as clear a definition as one is likely to find.
Such elegant personifications of tricky scientific concepts leave some deaf students feeling sorry for those who rely on their ears. “One of my students was telling me recently that she can’t imagine the difficulty that hearing instructors must have in describing concepts through spoken English, because of the linearity of spoken language,” Dr. Braun said.
