cognition

The Case for Compounding

Behold the German word Donaudampfschifffahrtsgesellschaftskapitän. Far from being a chaotic jumble of letters, this linguistic titan is a masterclass in…

3 weeks ago

The Semiotics of a Warning Siren

Ever wonder why a rising and falling wail universally signals an emergency? This post breaks down the semiotics of warning…

3 weeks ago

Linguistic Exaptation Explained

Did you know that your brain never evolved to read? Instead, it brilliantly repurposed areas meant for object recognition to…

3 weeks ago

The Phonology of Brand Names

Ever wondered why so many successful brands have names that just *sound* right? From Google to Pepsi, the secret often…

3 weeks ago

Auditory Masking in the City

Ever wondered why a distant siren can slice through city noise, but you can't hear a friend talking right beside…

3 weeks ago

The Speech of Second Selves

When a shaman or ritualist speaks in a 'spirit language', it isn't random babbling but a fascinating sociolinguistic performance. Even…

3 weeks ago

The Typo That Survives Extinction

A scribe's error in a single manuscript can be so influential it gets copied for centuries, becoming the "correct" version.…

3 weeks ago

AI’s Sign Language Problem

We've taught AI to understand our spoken words, but sign language presents a far greater challenge that goes beyond tracking…

3 weeks ago

How the Deaf Read Lips: A Feat of Phonetics

Contrary to Hollywood depictions, lip-reading is less like a superpower and more like a high-stakes puzzle with most of the…

3 weeks ago

The Logic of Back-Formation: From ‘Editor’ to ‘Edit’

Which came first: the editor or the edit? The answer reveals a fascinating linguistic process called back-formation, where we reverse-engineer…

3 weeks ago

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