Sublime
An inspiration engine for ideas
Geiger, on the other hand, realized that the relation between the perception of color and its expression in language was an issue in need of addressing. “What could be the physiological state of a human generation,” he asked, “which could describe the color of the sky only as black? Can the difference between them and us be only in the naming, or
... See moreGuy Deutscher • Through the Language Glass
The German polymath Wilhelm von Humboldt (1767–1835), brother of the famous explorer Alexander von Humboldt, likewise tried to develop a universalist and philosophical approach to the study of languages. The central fact of language is that speakers can make infinite use of the finite resources provided by their language. Though the capacity for
... See moreBill Mayblin • Introducing Linguistics
You and Your Research
Are Blockchains Decentralized? Unintended Centralities in Distributed Ledgers
That makes global claims of this sort (claims about our language defining our world) untestable even in principle. It’s not a scientific hypothesis; it’s a rather strange (and in my view implausible) metaphysical claim that no one can ever confirm or refute. That is part of why linguists are so much less intrigued by global Sapir–Whorf-style claims
... See moreGeoffrey K. Pullum • Linguistics: Why It Matters
Standard English as it is presented by grammarians and pedants is a dialect that is based on a mostly fictional, static, and Platonic ideal of usage.