Spotlight on Linguistics - Joe Devney

Joe Devney

TechProse consultant Joe Devney, a technical writer for many years, traveled to Amsterdam to give a presentation at a Linguistics conference. The event's sponsor was the International Association of Forensic Linguists, an organization concerned with all areas in which linguistics intersects with the law. Joe's topic was jury instructions, the vehicle a judge uses to explain to jurors how they must apply the law in their deliberations. Joe saw this as a technical communication issue: what is the best way to make the law understandable to non-lawyers?

His audience, which included linguists, lawyers, and law professors, seemed to appreciate the insights from a different field, and asked insightful questions during the Q&A session that followed his presentation.

Linguistics is a new area for Joe. He has always been interested in language, and that is a big part of the reason he moved into technical writing in the mid-1990s. But he decided it was time for a change, and took a sabbatical starting in summer 2007 to go back to school. He earned a degree in Linguistics from Georgetown University, the Master's in Language and Communication degree. (Joe is the only person to ever complete this program in only two semesters!)

Today Joe is trying to establish his niche in linguistics, and finds forensic linguistics, the intersection of linguistics and the law, especially interesting. But the switch to a new career will not happen overnight, and he expects to continue to do technical writing at least part time for a while yet.

TechProse Consultant is also an Actress

Photo by Lee Basham

TechProse consultant, Bobbi Fagone, stars as the vain and villainous actress, Irina Nikolayevna Arkadina, in The Notebook of Trigorin, at the Hillbarn Theatre in Foster City. The play is Tennessee Williams' adaptation of Anton Chekhov's The Sea Gull.

Bobbi is enjoying her stint as a villain after years of playing the good girl. "She's just so evil, "Bobbi says of the character she channels in the play. "You wouldn't want her as a friend, but she's really fun to watch."

It doesn't hurt that Irina also boasts the best wardrobe of any of the characters in the play. Her flamboyant character flaunts authent, period chiffon and satin 1890s gowns, topped with feathered and flowered hats that seem to defy gravity.

Photo by Lee Basham

Theater is Bobbi's "serious hobby" and she enjoys participating in several Bay Area productions each year. Last summer she also wrote, produced and played the title role in THUNDERBABE in a month-long engagement at Theatre on San Pedro Square in San Jose. Well received and attended, the San Jose Mercury News applauded the comedy, action-adventure stage play as "a spunky little show about finding your inner super girl."

The Notebook of Trigorin is Bobbi's second Tennessee Williams' play. She previously played the tortured nymphomaniac, Blanche, in A Streetcar Named Desire at Coastal Repertory Theatre in Half Moon Bay. It is Williams' treatment of Irina, as the grandiose, utterly self-centered diva, that Bobbi says makes the character so much fun to play. "Checkhov's Irina was not as out there," she says. "Williams really fleshes her out (in his adaptation). He does a great job with his female characters. They are always very interesting and have so much depth."

TechProse Client Travels to Kenya, Fulfills Life's Dream

Last summer, Karen Spicer, executive assistant to Cisco's Brian Jeffries, traveled to Kenya, where she spent two weeks volunteering with the Africa Development Consortium (AFRIDEC).

Each day, Karen walked from where she stayed with a host family to an orphanage called Motherly Care, a facility for children 16 years and younger. Motherly Care is a community-based organization that works with orphans who have lost their parents to HIV/AIDS, children from poor families in the neighborhood, and children who have been molested or sexually abused.

"My main focus was the orphaned children, "Karen says. "I was there to be a mentor, and taught English, math, and sign language. I was also there to be a mother - to listen and provide a sense of security and much-needed love. I also wanted to create some fun. We played lots of jump-rope, hop scotch, and soccer."

Karen's trip to Africa taught her about the world - and herself.

"In the end, I learned I had this hidden bond with my country that I would not have come to realize had I not made this trip, "Karen says. "Secondly, we are so privileged to have been born in such a rich country with opportunities presented to us daily. The children in East Africa are born into poverty, yet have the same goals and dreams as we do!"