So I was thrilled to learn that the 2011 annual conference of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) had a session on bilingualism. It was titled ‘Crossing Borders in Language Science: What Bilinguals Are Telling Us About Mind and Brain.

Recent research by neuroscientists is starting to reveal some surprising facts about the basis of bilingualism in our brains. I’ll have more about these findings in upcoming episodes of my Science Podcast, which you can subscribe to from here. For now, here are the best bits from yesterday’s session.

“Bilinguals are mental jugglers,” says Judith Kroll, a psychologist at Penn State University and the organizer of the session.

Every time a bilingual person speaks or hears a language, they do more mental math than their monolingual friends. It turns out that a second language is always active in a bilingual’s brain. (more on that here) Even for simple tasks like naming an object, a bilingual’s brain has to choose between two options.  As several researchers described it, this leads to a “conflict” between the two languages in a bilingual’s brain.

That ‘conflict’ has become more apparent in my own life lately. Growing up in urban multilingual India, I switched back and forth between languages, and borrowing words from one language when speaking another. In other words, I often spoke Hinglish (Hindi+English), or Hindali, or Bengdi (Hindi + Bengali) or Benglish (Bengali + English). (Note: My father coined those terms out of frustration that my brother and I didn’t speak Bengali without mixing it up with Hindi and English) But once I moved to the U.S., I was stuck with one language – English. Even though I speak it fluently, I sometimes find myself at a loss for words. And when I do, my brain throws Bengali, or Hindi words at me. Unlike when I lived in India, I now have to ignore those words and continue to look for the right word in English.

So how does the brain of a bilingual or multilingual person resolve these conflicts? Well, that’s something that researchers are starting to figure out. (you can read more in this Science magazine article) But one thing that they do know now is that all this mental juggling comes with some advantages.

As York University’s Ellen Bialystok said during her presentation, bilinguals exercise parts of their brains involved in higher functions, like attention, multitasking and problem solving. As a result, bilinguals are often much better at problem solving than monolingual people. (Phew! At least there are some benefits to the battle of languages inside my brain.)

Bialystok’s more recent work also suggests that being bilingual can protect us against the cognitive decline that comes with ageing. It can even push the onset of dementia by 4-5 years. So, if you are considering learning a new language, remember doing so can come with a lifetime of benefits.

Blogger: Rhitu Chatterjee
More on language in The World’s Science Podcast:
Click Languages in Podcast 100
Clues to Bilingualism in Podcast 29.
Evolutionary Roots of Language in Podcast 88.

This week: The simian version of HIV is more lethal than scientists knew. The 40th anniversary of the first moon landing, from a Russian perspective. A Chinese take on the solar eclipse. Plus: a Neanderthal murder mystery, tracking a huge dust storm as it travels the globe, and a close analysis of a click language.

Chimp AIDS: Scientists believe that the human AIDS virus, HIV, evolved from a virus called SIV, which infects monkeys and chimpanzees. Researchers had thought that SIV was relatively harmless, but a new study has found that SIV-infected chimpanzees in Tanzania are dying of an AIDS-like illness. The finding could change approaches to AIDS treatment in people.

Guest: Dr. Beatrice Hahn of the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Moon Landing: For almost two decades, the U.S. and the Soviet Union raced to be the first to the moon. The race obsessed both countries, and cost tens of billions of dollars (and rubles). Russians therefore have a different perspective than Americans on this 40th anniversary of the first lunar landing.
Report: By Jessica Golloher in Moscow.
Guest: Roald Sagdeev, former director of the Soviet Space Institute.

Solar Eclipse: The longest total solar eclipse of the 21st Century took place this week in Asia. It lasted more than six minutes. In China, the eclipse held deep cultural meaning.

Report: By Bill Marcus in Shanghai.

Elsa’s favorite science stories of the week:

• Scientists implicate an anatomically modern human in a Neanderthal murder attempt. (The study.) Here’s that novel we mentioned on the podcast.
• Researchers track a Chinese dust cloud as it circles the globe. (The study.)
• Linguists unpack the multiplicity of click consonants in an endangered language, N|uu. (The study and the press release.) At this site, you can hear more N|uu words, recorded by linguist Amanda Miller and colleagues.

Music:

• Moonwalk, by Pee Wee Ellis
• Total Eclipse of the Heart, by Bonnie Tyler

A Masai Mara giraffe.

[player] Download MP3

This week: We psychoanalyze a world leader from afar. We hear about big problems in a famed African wildlife reserve. And we talk to a linguist with a daring scientific vision.

The Dream: Linguist Derek Bickerton studies creole languages, which are hybrids of two or more languages.  For years, he dreamed of putting a bunch of people who spoke different tongues on an island to see what kind of language they would create. What happened?
Report: By The World’s Patrick Cox.

Wildlife Decline: In Kenya, the Masai Mara Reserve is famous for its charismatic megafauna, including wildebeest, zebras, impalas, giraffes, and lions. A new study says many of the animals are in trouble.
Guest: Robin Reid, Colorado State University.

The Head Case: Over his two years in office, French president Nicolas Sarkozy has made an impression on the public. “Sarko,” as he’s called, likes attention. We offer a psychological profile.
Report: By The BBC’s Emma Jane Kirby

Next week: We talk to Jonah Lehrer, author of “How We Decide,” a new book on the neuroscience behind decision-making.

Also next week: We roll out our interactive forum. You can talk about Jonah’s book and your own take on decisions. And best of all, Jonah will check in, comment, and respond to what you say.

Send us your questions for Jonah Lehrer.  And check back next week to join the forum.

Useful links:

Derek Bickerton’s site

The Center for Collaborative Conservation, where Robin Reid works.

Jonah Lehrer’s site

Songs:
Chubby Carrier & The Bayou Swamp Band, Creole Two Step

Victor Green, Creole Girl