Freedom of expression is again in the news.
Simon Tam has won his case before the US Supreme Court, allowing him to trademark the name of his all-Asian rock band, the Slants. But this ruling opens the door to …
Category: taboos (page 1 of 2)
Can our language tell us if we’re not well?
The words we use can reveal a lot of social information. But in the future, computers will examine our words to detect mental illnesses like dementia and motor neuron disease — even …
Is there anything that all human languages have in common?
With all the diversity in the world’s languages, a true universal is hard to find. But new research has unearthed a principle involving the distances between words, and this discovery …
Do you like long discussions or heavy conversations?
If you understood that, you’re good at metaphors. They help us express ourselves, and even understand things. But what’s happening in our brains when we hear them? And can metaphors change our …
Why do languages have the grammar they do?
For some Australian languages, grammar is shaped by the stuff you’re not supposed to say. Linguist Joe Blythe is finding out about the evolution of language, and challenging one of the biggest …
What’s the most common word in the world?
A research team finds that huh? is shared by languages around the globe. But is it really a word? What are words like?
We’re also talking to Simon Tam of the Slants, …
Can offensive terms be reclaimed by the people they’ve been applied to? Or are some words best left alone?
In a related issue, sports teams are facing pressure to change their racially-charged names. Should they?
Linguist Daniel Midgley looks at …
A conservative pundit has reignited the debate around the word retard by using it as a slur.
Advocates for people with intellectual disabilities are taking the opportunity to renew their call to “end the r-word”. Is it insensitive to use …
Do you read banned books?
It’s Banned Books Week — when we celebrate books that have been targeted for being obscene, indecent, blasphemous, and seditious. Banning (and sometimes burning) books is popular in the USA, but there’s plenty of censorship …
Blasphemy is the act of showing irreverence or contempt for religious deities or beliefs.
And it’s in the news, as Muslims around the globe are protesting a blasphemous film. Should some ideas be off-limits for criticism? Can blasphemy be constructive? …
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- CBAA Awards 2018: Best Radio Program — Talk
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- Talkley Award 2018
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