出版社：Department of Linguistics, University of Toronto
摘要：Originally published in Glot International 3, 4, page 9, April 1998. Most of us agree that linguists should try harder to make our field better known to the broad public, and to make current research in linguistics more comprehensible and accessible to nonspecialists. Bridging the gulf between scientific and popular approaches to language is a good thing in itself, and could also be of some practical benefit, in view of the increasing pressures on universities and granting agencies to explain what they are spending the public’s money on. But too much concern with popular appeal can also be harmful to the field. In my country, there are some who take the position that any research report that contains technical language they do not understand is gobbledygook; that only research projects that promise to make a profit for somebody should be funded; and that only popular subjects should be taught.
