
If we all spoke Japanese, Sars might not be half such a problem. Tuesday January 20, 2004 / The Guardian
...Dr Inouye devised a simple theory about a vexing public health problem. Her theory is this: the English language, when spoken by someone who normally speaks the Chinese language, can be lethal. Dr Inouye recently drove her train of logic through the pages of the medical journal the Lancet....
Here are the details of Dr Inouye's reasoning. They are subtle. They are breathtaking. They should perhaps be read silently.
· The disease called Sars seems to have originated in China....
· SOME American visitors (about 70 out of 2,300,000) got the disease, but NO Japanese visitors did.
· There must be a reason for that.
· The reason must be: language. In both Chinese and English, many sounds have a strong accompanying exhalation of breath - but Japanese has no such sounds...