[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,0:00:07.07,0:00:10.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Grammatical tense \Nis how languages talk about time
Dialogue: 0,0:00:10.27,0:00:12.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,without explicitly naming time periods
Dialogue: 0,0:00:12.73,0:00:17.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by, instead, modifying verbs \Nto specify when action occurs.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:17.01,0:00:20.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So how many different tenses are there\Nin a language like English?
Dialogue: 0,0:00:20.48,0:00:22.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,At first, the answer seems obvious:
Dialogue: 0,0:00:22.68,0:00:23.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,there's past,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:23.58,0:00:24.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,present,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:24.38,0:00:25.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and future.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:25.80,0:00:28.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But thanks to something called\Ngrammatical aspect,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:28.36,0:00:32.03,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,each of those time periods \Nactually divides further.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:32.03,0:00:34.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There are four kinds of aspect.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:34.14,0:00:36.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In the continuous or progressive aspect,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:36.56,0:00:39.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the actions are still happening \Nat the time of reference.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:39.88,0:00:43.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The perfect aspect describes actions\Nthat are finished.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:43.90,0:00:46.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The perfect progressive aspect \Nis a combination,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:46.44,0:00:49.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,describing a completed part \Nof a continuous action.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:49.97,0:00:52.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And finally, there's the simple aspect,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:52.45,0:00:55.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the basic form of the past, \Npresent, and future tense,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:55.94,0:00:59.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where an action is not specified\Nas continuous or discrete.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:59.94,0:01:03.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That's all a little hard to follow,\Nso let's see how it works in action.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:03.62,0:01:06.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Let's say your friends tell you\Nthey went on a secret naval mission
Dialogue: 0,0:01:06.83,0:01:09.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to collect evidence \Nof a mysterious sea creature.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:09.57,0:01:12.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The tense sets the overall frame\Nof reference in the past,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:12.59,0:01:15.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but within that, there are many options.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:15.07,0:01:17.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Your friends might say a creature\Nattacked their boat,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:17.66,0:01:20.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that's the past simple,\Nthe most general aspect,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:20.62,0:01:23.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which gives no further clarification.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:23.29,0:01:25.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They were sleeping when it happened,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:25.58,0:01:29.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a continuous process \Nunderway at that point.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:29.01,0:01:32.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They might also tell you they had departed\Nfrom Nantucket
Dialogue: 0,0:01:32.39,0:01:35.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to describe an action \Ncompleted even earlier.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:35.34,0:01:38.09,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That's an example of the past perfect.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:38.09,0:01:41.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Or that they had been sailing \Nfor three weeks,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:41.20,0:01:44.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,something that was ongoing \Nup until that point.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:44.39,0:01:48.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In the present, they tell you that \Nthey still search for the creature today,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:48.56,0:01:50.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,their present simple activity.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:50.84,0:01:55.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Perhaps they are preparing for their\Nnext mission continuously as they speak.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:55.71,0:02:00.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And they have built a special \Nsubmarine for it, a completed achievement.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:00.16,0:02:04.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Plus, if they have been researching\Npossible sightings of the creature,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:04.80,0:02:08.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it's something they've been doing \Nfor a while and are still doing now
Dialogue: 0,0:02:08.27,0:02:11.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,making it present perfect progressive.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:11.47,0:02:13.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So what does this next mission hold?
Dialogue: 0,0:02:13.72,0:02:18.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You know it still hasn't happened\Nbecause they will depart next week,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:18.14,0:02:19.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the future simple.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:19.60,0:02:22.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Your friends will be searching \Nfor the elusive creature,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:22.73,0:02:25.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,an extended continuous undertaking.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:25.90,0:02:30.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They tell you the submarine will have\Nreached uncharted depths a month from now.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:30.52,0:02:31.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That's a confident prediction
Dialogue: 0,0:02:31.99,0:02:35.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about what will be achieved \Nby a specific point in the future,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:35.72,0:02:39.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a point at which they \Nwill have been voyaging for three weeks
Dialogue: 0,0:02:39.06,0:02:41.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the future perfect progressive.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:41.41,0:02:44.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The key insight to all these \Ndifferent tenses
Dialogue: 0,0:02:44.01,0:02:47.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is that each sentence takes place\Nin a specific moment,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:47.63,0:02:50.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,whether it's past, present, or future.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:50.90,0:02:54.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The point of aspects is that they tell you\Nas of that moment
Dialogue: 0,0:02:54.16,0:02:56.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the status of the action.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:56.37,0:03:00.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In total, they give us twelve \Npossibilities in English.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:00.06,0:03:01.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What about other languages?
Dialogue: 0,0:03:01.94,0:03:03.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Some, like French,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:03.22,0:03:04.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Swahili,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:04.08,0:03:07.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and Russian\Ntake a similar approach to English.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:07.07,0:03:09.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Others describe \Nand divide time differently.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:09.81,0:03:12.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Some have fewer grammatical tenses,\Nlike Japanese,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:12.98,0:03:16.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which only distinguishes past \Nfrom non-past,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:16.73,0:03:18.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Buli and Tukang Basi,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:18.48,0:03:21.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which only distinguish future \Nfrom non-future,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:21.74,0:03:26.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and Mandarin Chinese \Nwith no verb tenses at all, only aspect.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:26.19,0:03:31.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,On the other hand, languages like Yagwa\Nsplit past tense into multiple degrees,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:31.62,0:03:35.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,like whether something happened hours, \Nweeks, or years ago.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:35.60,0:03:39.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In others, tenses are intertwined\Nwith moods that can convey urgency,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:39.59,0:03:40.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,necessity,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:40.71,0:03:42.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or probability of events.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:42.90,0:03:45.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This makes translation difficult\Nbut not impossible.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:45.97,0:03:50.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Speakers of most languages without certain\Ntenses can express the same ideas
Dialogue: 0,0:03:50.22,0:03:53.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with auxiliary words, \Nlike would or did,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:53.77,0:03:55.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or by specifying the time they mean.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:55.88,0:03:58.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Are the variations \Nfrom language to language
Dialogue: 0,0:03:58.08,0:04:01.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,just differents ways of describing\Nthe same fundamental reality?
Dialogue: 0,0:04:01.99,0:04:06.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Or do their diverse structures reflect\Ndifferent ways of thinking about the world
Dialogue: 0,0:04:06.62,0:04:08.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and even time itself?
Dialogue: 0,0:04:08.34,0:04:12.09,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And if so, what other ways \Nof conceiving time may be out there?