smidgy • The Bilingual Advantage

The Bilingual Advantage - NYTimes.com

An interview with Ellen Bialystok, a cognitive neuroscientist and an expert on bilingualism. Much more than just helping you with finding a job/showing off at parties/impressing that cute girl at your local pub, learning more than one language beefs up your brain’s capacities in dramatic ways. Among Bialystok’s findings: bilingualism can actually delay the onset of Alzheimer symptoms and improve multitasking capabilities. So yes, if your one of those people that just has to text, sing, eat and check out the view while driving, and you speak two languages, the odds of dying in a horrific crash are slightly reduced. Slightly.