I'm not surprised at the language selection here, just surprise that other languages were not included in the translation as well. Will the focus of oil and gas terminology translation become primarily Russian and Chinese?

Indeed, when world energy leaders gathered in Houston last week to dissect industry issues, their remarks were translated from English into only two other languages -- Russian and Chinese.

Daniel Yergin, chairman of conference sponsor Cambridge Energy Research Associates, said the language selection "just reflects the force of globalization." So did the delegates' list: 55 countries were represented at the influential energy conference, including a large contingent from Russia.

Is this article about American preferences for movie fare indication that there is an openness to other forms of media and entertainment that is first offered in a language other than English?

If more proof is needed that global borders are being wiped away in film, one needs only to watch tonight's Oscar broadcast. With numerous nominated movies produced multinationally, set in far-flung locations and spoken in polyglot, Hollywood looks more willing than ever to break from domestic chauvinism and embrace a view of the world as an actively integrated place.

The question of language extinction comes up quite frequently as technology and communication infrastructures have rapidly made inroads into regional language populations. What do you think? Should humans bother preserving languages as the globe gets smaller, or should we all speak variations on the top three or four that rise up to be the most oft-used? Or, will new subcultures emerge to create and evolve completely different languages from the top three or four?

This article poses the question and argues that it does matter.

This article argues that it does matter in a much more practical, scientific way:

Many animals and plants threatened with extinction could be saved if scientists spent more time talking with the native people whose knowledge of local species is dying out as fast as their languages are being lost.

Potentially vital information about many endangered species is locked in the vocabulary and expressions of local people, yet biologists are failing to tap into this huge source of knowledge before it is lost for good, scientists said.

The Dave Porter Weblog mentions an important step the U.S. Senate is taking. Do you agree that "strengthening national security should not be the only reason for improving the country’s language proficiency?"

A Subcommitte of the US Senate Committee on Homeland Security and and Governmental Affairs held a hearing on 1/27/07 to examine "examine the government's efforts to increase foreign language education to meet our federal workforce, national security, and economic competitiveness needs." The hearing was titled "Lost in Translation: A Review of the Federal Governments Efforts to Develop a Foreign Language Strategy."