I am investigating the functions of language—not communication—but the function in your brain, and how the meaning in your mind is reflected in grammatical structures. I predict that meaning influences the structure across languages, and the applications of this work is being picked up by dominating corporations looking to recreate these structures in technological applications. Google is hiring our linguistics students with Bachelors in Science; MIT is building a new college for studying artificial intelligence that will use linguistics and computer science to create AI that will not only respond, but interact. Linguistics is scientific.
Dr. Park is adamant that the preparation students receive in their collegiate career be reflective of the needs of the current and emerging job market, and that his courses respond to those needs: “Employers are looking for graduates trained in language, but who can also handle virtual machines, Python, and computer applications. Those are my students.”