The Marginalian
The Marginalian

Reads tagged with “language”

The 11 Best Psychology and Philosophy Books of 2011
The 11 Best Psychology and Philosophy Books of 2011

What it means to be human, how pronouns are secretly shaping our lives, and why we believe.

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People Who Became Nouns: The Music Video
People Who Became Nouns: The Music Video

Boycott, Maverick, Guillotine, Shrapnel, Cardigan, Sandwich, Silhouette, Zeppelin, Leotard, Lamborghini.

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15 Years of Cutting-Edge Thinking on Understanding the Mind
15 Years of Cutting-Edge Thinking on Understanding the Mind

What mirror neurons have to do with Abu Ghraib, the science of religion, and how happiness flourishes.

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Brain Culture: How Neuroscience Became a Pop Culture Fixation
Brain Culture: How Neuroscience Became a Pop Culture Fixation

Debunking the phrenology of our day, or why self-help books offer the cognitive science equivalent of snake oil.

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Aftercrimes, Geoslavery & Thermogeddon: Lexicographer Erin McKean’s TEDBook on New Words
Aftercrimes, Geoslavery & Thermogeddon: Lexicographer Erin McKean’s TEDBook on New Words

How to spot wordishness when you see it, or what serendipity has to do with digital publishing.

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What Translation Reveals about the Human Condition
What Translation Reveals about the Human Condition

How to get a tarantula off your southwest leg, or what Astérix has to do with religion and the Manhattan grid.

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Culturomics: What We Can Learn from 5 Million Books
Culturomics: What We Can Learn from 5 Million Books

How to put your “beft” foot forward, or what the algorithm of censorship has to do with 1950.

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The Secret Life of Pronouns: Computational Linguistics and What Our Word Choices Reveal About Us
The Secret Life of Pronouns: Computational Linguistics and What Our Word Choices Reveal About Us

What the pronouns you use reveal about your thoughts and emotions, or how to liespot your everyday email.

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How Music and Language Mimicked Nature to Evolve Us
How Music and Language Mimicked Nature to Evolve Us

How auditory cheesecake was made with mother nature’s milk, or why our brains were not designed for reading.

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Shapes for Sounds: A Visual History of the Alphabet
Shapes for Sounds: A Visual History of the Alphabet

What the anatomy of your tongue has to do with ship flags and the evolution of human communication.

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