This year, I have a research fellowship at my university researching New and Emerging Media. I’ve thus been working on a number of different projects related to computational ways of looking at language and discourse (for example, this one). However, one of the things I’ve been tinkering with has been ways to use the social media platform Twitter to look at language, discourse, and variation. Read more ›
So here’s a weird story for you. According to this source (and others), Kentucky state Senator Robert Givens has proposed that, in order to promote computer literacy, high school students should be allowed to use courses in computer programming to satisfy foreign language requirements. New Mexico wasn’t far behind with a similar proposal. Read more ›
One striking aspect of contemporary life in the United States (and indeed in many other countries), is the level of material inequality that exists. Such blatant and materially important inequalities demand explanation. Questions like “why do I live in such wealth (or poverty) while others do not?” are ones that call out to be answered any time we are confronted with inequality. As a result, explanations circulate. Read more ›
In the field of linguistics, we tend to make a distinction between two ways of thinking about language and grammar: prescriptivism and descriptivism. Read more ›
linguistic pulse 