Development of second language phonetic and phonological categories

世界上大多数人会说两种或两种以上的语言，但我们对一个人如何适应多种语言知之甚少。为什么孩子们学习第二语言“像本地人一样”，而成年人总是会有明显的外国口音？这个项目调查了一个鲜为人知的事实-成年人的第二语言使用者也“听到”外国口音。随着澳大利亚越来越多地使用多种语言，提高我们对人类语言学习能力的理解将加强澳大利亚的社会和经济结构，从而改善教育做法，改善移民的工作前景，最重要的是，促进不同文化之间的理解。

The majority of the world's population speaks two or more languages, yet we know little about how multiple languages are accommodated within a single speaker. Why do children appear to learn a second language 'like a native' but adults invariably develop a clearly perceptible foreign accent? This project investigates a little-known fact - adult second language speakers also 'hear' with a foreign accent. As Australia becomes increasingly multilingual increasing our understanding of the human capacity for language learning would strengthen Australia's social and economic fabric by leading to improved educational practices, work prospects for migrants and, most importantly, understanding between cultures.