communicationandconversation - Tumblr blog

[communicationandconversation]

this comic brought to you by my bachelors degree in linguistics

[communicationandconversation]

I keep seeing the "chat is a fourth person pronoun" post and it's getting increasingly hard to avoid starting discourse in the notes of it. chat I don't think they know what these linguistics terms they're using mean

[communicationandconversation]

[communicationandconversation]

opinion that shouldn't be controversial: a student shouldn't need a doctor's note to have access to free screen readers, audio copies of class content, physical copies of class content, accurate subtitles, unlimited doctor's appointments, their sensory needs met, etc etc. student's shouldn't have a medical barrier, which goes hand in hand with sexism, racism, classism, and ableism in general, to basic education.

[communicationandconversation]

The thing that pisses me off the most is that even if covid WAS over, disabled people still fucking exist and deserve to participate in things. The brief period of time in which everyone was doing virtual and hybrid events, people could work from home, social events were actually accessible...all it did was show that we could be doing these things, and just don't fucking care.

Hybrid events should be the STANDARD. Including people who can't leave their houses should be the STANDARD. Some basic fucking consideration for the disabled should be the STANDARD.

And it's just. Not.

[communicationandconversation]

[communicationandconversation]

New Open Access Publication: Communicating about linguistics using lingcomm-driven evidence: Lingthusiasm podcast as a case study

Films have behind-the-scenes commentary tracks, Lingthusiasm now has a behind-the-scenes research article (a DOI rather than a DVD).

This new Open Access article in Language and Linguistics Compass is an introduction to a variety of evidence-based practice from linguistics, education, and psychology we have drawn upon and further developed in the first seven years of creating Lingthusiasm. We introduce you to a lot of the ways we think about framing, jargon, metaphor and putting feeling into our favourite linguistics topics. We argue that this is not just the basis of our work on the podcast, but a way of formalising the contribution that lingcomm (linguistics communication) can make to the larger field of scicomm (science communication). We also share some results from our 2022 listener survey that illustrate how our audience is receptive to the work we're doing.

We hope that it provides a bit of an insight into how we do what we do, but also inspires other linguists to communication their research - whether that's in a 3 minute thesis competition, a blog post for your institution, or "trying out [lingcomm] explanations during relevant, natural occasions in local communities" (i.e., chatting with friends and family, which is where we come up with some of our best episode ideas!).

Abstract

Communicating linguistics to broader audiences (lingcomm) can be achieved most effectively by drawing on insights from across the fields of linguistics, science communication (scicomm), pedagogy and psychology. In this article we provide an overview of work that examines lingcomm as a specific practice. We also give an overview of the Lingthusiasm podcast, and discuss four major ways that we incorporate effective communications methodologies from a range of literature in the production of episodes. First, we discuss how we frame topics and take a particular stance towards linguistic attitudes, second, we discuss how we introduce linguistic terminology and manage audience cognitive load, third, we discuss the role of metaphor in effective communication of abstract concepts, and fourth, we discuss the affective tools of humour and awe in connecting audiences with linguistic concepts. We also discuss a 2022 survey of Lingthusiasm listeners, which highlights how the audience responds to our design choices. In providing this summary, we also advocate for lingcomm as a theoretically-driven area of linguistic expertise, and a particularly effective forum for the application of linguistics.

Citation

Gawne, L., & McCulloch, G. (2023). ‘Communicating about linguistics using lingcomm-driven evidence: Lingthusiasm podcast as a case study’, Language and Linguistics Compass, 17/5: e12499. DOI: 10.1111/lnc3.12499 [OA publication]

See also:

The Lingthusiasm website

LingComm website

[communicationandconversation]

(If you learned more than one, pick the one you learned the most or took for the longest time or enjoyed the most or whatever. Pick the one most meaningful to you.)

[communicationandconversation]

Ruthless blocking as self-punishment

CW: Extended mentions of aphobia and transphobia, very brief mention of ableism, general negativity around the internet and what could potentially be considered self-harm (deliberate exposure to upsetting materials).

You know how a lot of people say getting into arguments with trolls on the internet does nothing to change the troll's mind and is just detrimental to your mental health in the long run? I'd like to take that a step further if that's alright.

(Disclaimer: this isn't really focused on language but I will be focusing a lot of my experiences as a queer person and disability to some degree as well. It's also not me telling people not to block people, it's mainly me talking about my own experiences in hopes other people might be able to relate.)

Between my tumblr and twitter accounts I have over 800 people blocked. Some of the numbers may be a bit off given the amount of bots and people deactivating their accounts over the years but it's still a lot! The internet is a divisive place and everywhere you turn there's an argument you can join a side in. But, at the same time, it can also be incredibly easy to cultivate bad habits as a result of all of this discourse.

I originally joined Tumblr in 2016 as an aroacespec young person. Other people on those spectrums who have been here that long are probably plainly aware where I am going with this, but it was not a good time to be aroace on the internet then, especially when you're just starting out in those spaces. Arguments around "cishet aceys" taking up too much space in the community and giving it a bad rep with our microlabels and flags was rife. A lot of our culture was kept quieter and quieter - the rings, the cake, the dragons - because it was considered too cringy. "Mogai hell" was enough of a phrase to send anyone packing.

So what do you do when it feels like people on the internet hate your existence? You try to fight it or barracade yourself in. Arguing or blocking, both have their merits and downfalls. When you're arguing with people about belonging in a space, chances are that the person you're arguing with won't change their mind; if anything, they're just going to dig their heels in further or twist your argument to support theirs. But at the same time, there is a chance that other people with the same identity and/or experience will see you fighting and feel less alone.

On the other hand, blocking takes away some of the satisfaction on both sides. People trying to get a rise are just getting ignored rather than recieving attention, good or bad, but you're also still aware that they're out there on the internet saying all of these horrible things, even if you yourself can't see them. For some, this is where the cycle ends, but I tried to take it even further, even if I didn't argue with anyone at any point.

"Ace discourse" had taken over all of the main tags, plus a few (see "Mogai hell") were even more direct in showing you how much people hated your aroacespecness. So, I would go on those tags frequently, find those blogs saying horrible things and go through their posts, blocking other people they reblogged from and then blocking them at the end. I told myself it was a good thing. It meant I was becoming increasingly aware of all of the main aphobic talking points and was also preemptively blocking blogs before I could come across them naturally (despite the fact I might not have come across them at all if I hadn't actively searched them out). It didn't help though. There are always more blogs to block and always more hateful talking points to come across.

You know when they have those episodes of tv shows where people think they want their friends/family/partners to be completely honest with them about everything and then the other person says something that annoys them and it just makes the person who wanted that honesty feel more insecure with themselves? It's kind of like that. It just feels your head with people who don't deserve to be there rent-free, while they have no idea you even exist and wouldn't care if you did or not. People don't want to feel like they're being ignorant but honestly there's so much hate in the world already that living life without also harming yourself is more radical than scrolling through posts on the internet with the intention of blocking every single person who's written one.

It's easier in some cases than others. I see a lot less aphobia nowadays, probably both from me not actively seeking it out and from Tumblr culture moving past it being such a popular form of "discourse". I also have a rule for myself that I will scroll past any form of AITA reddit post that has mentions of autism or other disabilities in the title because the chances of seeing people being ableist on there just aren't worth it.

But at the same time I and other people I follow on Twitter do a lot of work around the rise in transphobia, so even tweets I encounter around trans joy at the moment are bombared with TERFs and other transphobes kicking up a fuss in the comments. Once again people are dedicating so much time to hating a group that just wants to live life happily and it's kind of pathetic. Part of the reason I wrote this though is because I can feel myself slipping back into those same unhealthy routines more and more, since it's so easy to click on a tweet, go to the comments or quote retweets and just start scrolling and blocking.

So in case anyone else has been having the same troubles, hello! You deserve much better than this and if it's not for work I'd advice moving away from following accounts that focus on the doom and gloom of prejudice for a bit. Follow some cute animal accounts, artists or silly novelty accounts! If you use apps rather than websites for social media, don't be afraid to have daily time limits on them, or move to browser-only so they're more of a hassle to get to everytime.

Constant negativity isn't a viable way to live and there's a difference between ignorance and healing. I'm wishing you all the best and hopefully we'll all be able to come out of this on the other side healthier and happier than ever before. Much love! <3

[communicationandconversation]

Hope you don't mind me peer-reviewing your tags but absolutely, thank you!

The fact that so much time and effort was put into making online learning feasible during the pandemic and we're now having to fight *so hard* to keep it going is ridiculous. Disabled people deserve a high standard of education just as much as able-bodied people, and in-person-only academia that many people can't consistently access is not a high standard.

For people who struggled with online lectures over the pandemic, I get it. I really do. Everyone works differently and some people need face-to-face interaction and a separate space from home to learn in and that's fair enough! But that's why hybrid learning is such an important fight to keep pushing.

Is it too difficult to leave the house, either because of a disability or even just an illness or a family emergency? You can still access everything online that you could've done in person!

Terrible weather? Train strikes? Cost of living crisis making it difficult to afford transport to all of your lectures? Thankfully, there's already a framework in place for meetings and classes to move online easily.

Plus, hybrid conferences? The coolest things ever! I've been able to attend various conferences over the last couple of months that I wouldn't have been able to otherwise because they're on the other side of the country.

When the framework and technology to make it a reality is there, hybrid learning is as simple as beginning a class or meeting by letting in-person attendees get settled, while you turn on Zoom or Teams or whatever you use and start welcoming people in online. And with the chat function and whiteboard apps within those programmes, engagement becomes so much easier as well!

Disabled Students UK has a report they conducted (link here) as a result of the pandemic to show universities how disabled students found lockdown and how they want them to improve going forward. It's quite long so feel free to go and read it in your own time but when asked, "What lessons do you hope that your university learns from the pandemic to become more accessible moving forward?”, the second most common answer was "listen to disabled students" (Westander et al. 2022: 3).

So please keep fighting for it! See if it's a conversation that people are already having within your institution and if not then start it up! Some people are favourable but haven't put much thought into it; some people are on the fence because it feels like a big thing and they need to talk about the logistics. Hopefully eventually we can make academia as accessible as possible for all!

Happy Disability Pride Month!

A few quick reminders/affirmations to share today, especially based around academia:

There are likely more disabled people in academia than you think. No, this does not mean you can slap a label of "high-functioning" on them and call it a day - it means you need to make any academic events and environments as accessible as possible.

Many disabled people are also queer. No, you cannot use this as a reason to discredit their experiences with queerness or the queer community as a whole. Disabled people deserve just as much autonomy and respect as everyone else.

Self-diagnosis is a valid form of disability. There are many reasons why someone may be unable to get a diagnosis: financial reasons, waiting lists, limitations to human rights, or a lack of understanding disability and intersectionality from medical professionals. Despite how the media may portray it, many self-dx disabled people have done extensive research into the disabilities they feel a connection with, and/or feel a strong connection to others in the community with similar experiences.

If you're in academia, consider looking into critical referencing practices! Many of them focus primarily on gender and race diversity in citations, which is also important, but a significant amount of disability research is done by able-bodied neurotypical researchers who are looking at disability from an external pov and see it as a deficit. By including disabled researchers more, we can make our conversations within research much more nuanced. Nothing about us without us!

If you're not sure how to make something more accessible, just ask! Maybe there's local communities/organisations you can get in contact with to ask for advice; you can look online to see if anyone's already given suggestions for something similar; or if it's something with a budget you could even hire an accessibility advocate to help. If you're enlisting the help of disabled people beyond basic advice, remember to make sure they're reasonably compensated for their time and labour.

Disabled people are allowed to feel pride for their identity! Disabilities have their pros and cons just like every other part of life, so those feelings of pride might not be there all the time, but that doesn't mean people need to feel ashamed. And if they do feel that pride all the time, good for them!

I hope every disabled person has a wonderful day/week/month/life and anything good that can happen does!

[communicationandconversation]

I Can Eat Glass

I Can Eat Glass was a linguistic project documented on the early Web by then-Harvard student Ethan Mollick. The objective was to provide speakers with translations of the phrase "I can eat glass, it does not hurt me" from a wide variety of languages; the phrase was chosen because of its unorthodox nature. Mollick's original page disappeared in or about June 2004.

As Mollick explained, visitors to a foreign country have "an irresistible urge" to say something in that language, and whatever they say (a cited example being along the lines of "Where is the bathroom?") usually marks them as tourists immediately. Saying "I can eat glass, it does not hurt me", however, ensures that the speaker "will be viewed as an insane native, and treated with dignity and respect".

[communicationandconversation]

Happy Disability Pride Month!

A few quick reminders/affirmations to share today, especially based around academia:

There are likely more disabled people in academia than you think. No, this does not mean you can slap a label of "high-functioning" on them and call it a day - it means you need to make any academic events and environments as accessible as possible.

Many disabled people are also queer. No, you cannot use this as a reason to discredit their experiences with queerness or the queer community as a whole. Disabled people deserve just as much autonomy and respect as everyone else.

Self-diagnosis is a valid form of disability. There are many reasons why someone may be unable to get a diagnosis: financial reasons, waiting lists, limitations to human rights, or a lack of understanding disability and intersectionality from medical professionals. Despite how the media may portray it, many self-dx disabled people have done extensive research into the disabilities they feel a connection with, and/or feel a strong connection to others in the community with similar experiences.

If you're in academia, consider looking into critical referencing practices! Many of them focus primarily on gender and race diversity in citations, which is also important, but a significant amount of disability research is done by able-bodied neurotypical researchers who are looking at disability from an external pov and see it as a deficit. By including disabled researchers more, we can make our conversations within research much more nuanced. Nothing about us without us!

If you're not sure how to make something more accessible, just ask! Maybe there's local communities/organisations you can get in contact with to ask for advice; you can look online to see if anyone's already given suggestions for something similar; or if it's something with a budget you could even hire an accessibility advocate to help. If you're enlisting the help of disabled people beyond basic advice, remember to make sure they're reasonably compensated for their time and labour.

Disabled people are allowed to feel pride for their identity! Disabilities have their pros and cons just like every other part of life, so those feelings of pride might not be there all the time, but that doesn't mean people need to feel ashamed. And if they do feel that pride all the time, good for them!

I hope every disabled person has a wonderful day/week/month/life and anything good that can happen does!

[communicationandconversation]

What does a dog and a marine biologist have in common?

One wags a tail and the other tags a whale

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Hey I made a video about queerness and time and language and so many blorbos, all of your favourite blorbos are here. https://youtu.be/di1aTOJUncM

[communicationandconversation]

“The queer who is happily queer still encounters the world that is unhappy with queer love, but refuses to be made unhappy by that encounter. I have argued that the risk of promoting happy queers is that the unhappiness of this world can disappear from view. To be happily queer can also recognize that unhappiness; indeed to be happily queer can be to recognize the unhappiness that is concealed by the promotion of happy normativity. ”

(..)

“To be happily queer is to explore the unhappiness of what gets counted as normal. It is as if queers, by doing what they want, expose the unhappiness of having to sacrifice personal desires, in the perversity of their twists and turns, for the happiness of others”

Sara Ahmed, The Promise of Happiness