【Scholarly keyword】Blink and phrase
Felix mentions that deaf and sign language studies are very broad, “I study whatever I find interesting.” Her research interests include euphemisms in sex-related signs in Asian sign languages, incorporation of gestures of hearing people into sign language, sign language assessments, documentation, whether learning sign language helps the elderly to improve cognition and spatial recognition, etc.
Facial expression, posture and eye contact are essential elements in communication between deaf individuals. “Eye contact is especially important as the breaking of it means disengagement. When they quarrel, they simply face away.”
“They blink to indicate the break of a sentence. I have published interesting findings in related studies. But analysing large amount of blinking data in signing video is a daunting task,” Felix smiles wryly.
