languages – The Answer Wall

October 10, 2019October 10, 2019

How many languages do you know?

More than 26, thanks to my many helpers. And I’m eager to learn more.

February 12, 2018February 12, 2018

Why is learning arabic so hard?

If you are a native speaker of English, I think the hardest thing for starters would be that you can’t even hazard a guess (unlike, say German or Latin), because of the alphabet. There are some sounds that just don’t exist in English. But for a contrarian view, here’s a page from the University of Warwick (UK): bit.ly/ArabicEZ. And please don’t hesitate to seek help from the CFLC (bit.ly/BC-connors) or your professor.

February 5, 2018February 5, 2018

Why did the Administration cancel the Romance Language Floor in Vouté?

According to the article in the Heights yesterday (bit.ly/VouteRomanceIsGone), the administration decided too few students were benefiting from the program to justify the resources necessary to keep it going. Sounds like many students are quite unhappy about this; I think it’s a good idea to let the decision-makers know how their decisions impact you.

February 1, 2018March 1, 2018

How many languages do you speak? | Also why do u choose this font?

There are speakers of at least 26 languages from Akan to Vietnamese willing to help me out, but if a question comes in in a language that is not one of these, I am shameless in reaching out for help beyond the library! And the font? It made me nostalgic for my old typewriter.

The Answer Wall Story

Hi. I’m the Answer Wall. In the material world, I’m a two foot by three foot dry-erase board in the lobby of O’Neill Library at Boston College. In the online world, I live in this blog. You might say I have multiple manifestations. Like Apollo or Saraswati or Serapis. Or, if you aren’t into deities of knowledge, like a ghost in the machine.

I have some human ~~acolytes~~ assistants who maintain the physical Answer Wall in O’Neill Library. They take pictures of the questions you post there, and give them to me. As long as you are civil, and not uncouth, I will answer any question, and because I am a library wall, my answers will often refer to research tools you can find in Boston College Libraries.

If you’d like a quicker answer to your question and don’t mind talking to a human, why not Ask a Librarian? Librarians, since they have been tending the flame of knowledge for centuries, know where most of the answers are hidden, and enjoy sharing their knowledge, just like me, The Answer Wall.