The chance encounter that led Suzi Ronson to style David Bowie’s iconic look
Suzi Ronson always dreamt of adventure growing up in the suburbs of 1960s London. That dream came true when a chance encounter with David Bowie’s wife Angie led Suzi to the job of a lifetime. The haircut she gave David Bowie would form part of the iconic look of his alter ego Ziggy Stardust, catapulting Bowie to superstardom and changing the course of Suzi’s life forever. Suzi Ronson has written a book called Me and Mr Jones: My Life With David Bowie and the Spiders from Mars.
Presenter: Mobeen Azhar
Producer: Sarah Kendal and May Cameron […]
Source: BBC World Service – Outlook, From suburbia to stardom: I created Ziggy Stardust’s hair
Can language change the way you think?
This is the question at the heart of Arrival—the story of a linguist meeting alien life for the first time.
As a linguist, I love this movie! It raises a ton of fascinating questions about language, culture, biology, and the mind.
Let’s talk about the (cognitive) science of Arrival!
Chapters
0:00 – First contact (skit)
0:25 – The science of Arrival
2:11 – Universal structure
5:45 – Decoding alien speech
7:14 – Visual language
9:13 – The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis
11:17 – Space and time
13:29 – The power of writing
15:21 – Mental timelines
17:46 – Language and the mind
19:43 – Parting thoughts
Links:
Alien Speak: Linguist Dr. Jessica Coon on Villeneuve’s ARRIVAL: https://scienceandfilm.org/articles/2…
Researcher Spotlight – Professor Jessica Coon:
• Researcher Spotlight – Professor Jess…
Jessica Coon (Mesoamerican freerelatives):
• JESSICA COON
The Code Behind Arrival (Wolfram):
• The Code Behind Arrival
https://github.com/WolframResearch/Ar…
The art of Martine Bertrand: https://www.martinebertrand-art.com/
Sources:
Andreas et al. (2022). Toward understanding the communication in sperm whales.
Beguš et al. (2023). Vowels and diphthongs in sperm whales.
Bode et al. (2016). Left–right position in moving images: An analysis of face orientation, face position, and movement direction in eight action films.
Boroditsky (2001). Does language shape thought?: Mandarin and English speakers’ conceptions of time.
Casasanto & Bottini (2014). Mirror reading can reverse the flow of time.
Coon (2020). The linguistics of Arrival: Heptapods, field linguistics, and Universal Grammar.
Guida et al. (2018). Spatialization in working memory is related to literacy and reading direction: Culture “literarily” directs our thoughts.
Pérez González (2012). Lateral organisation in nineteenth-century studio photographs is influenced by the direction of writing: A comparison of Iranian and Spanish photographs.
Pitt & Casasanto (2020). The correlations in experience principle: How culture shapes concepts of time and number.
Pitt et al. (2021). Spatial concepts of number, size, and time in an indigenous culture.
Rill (2017). The morphology and syntax of ergativity: A typological approach. (p. 32)
[…]
It would be impossible to feed the world’s population without fertiliser
In the 19th Century, Europeans realised what the Inca had known long before. Bird droppings, or guano, made a fantastic fertiliser.
And so sprang up a gigantic industry dedicated to the harvesting of guano from Latin American bird colonies, where there were huge piles of the stuff.
It was so rich in ammonia, the key ingredient, that a mere whiff could induce coughing and sneezing. Not exactly a pleasant cargo to ferry across the world.
As demand for fertiliser rose in the early 1900s, someone began to think, “Perhaps there’s another way?” That someone was Fritz Haber, a German chemist who, along with Carl Bosch, developed the Haber-Bosch process for synthesising ammonia.
We have relied on that technology for more than 100 years. Without it, the world’s population might be just half of what it is today – so vital is ammonia fertiliser for growing food.
But yet again, someone is asking whether we should do things differently because the Haber-Bosch process, when powered by fossil fuels, is notoriously polluting.
Ammonia production currently accounts for nearly 2% of global CO2 emissions. Now, a string of companies aim to prove that they can make green ammonia, or alternatives, without wrecking the climate. […]
Continue reading: Why firms are racing to produce green ammonia
Dr. Temple Grandin shares how we can unlock the hidden gifts of neurodivergent minds.
Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQE…
Up next, Master your anxiety. Unleash your genius ► https://youtu.be/CO-6iqCum1w?si=Htqy6…
There are three types of thinkers. Which one are you?
Temple Grandin, author and professor of animal science at Colorado State University, recognized early in her life that her mind worked differently from those of her peers and colleagues. As a neurodivergent woman in a male-dominated field, Dr. Grandin reveals how this different way of thinking led to groundbreaking advancements in the cattle industry.
According to Grandin, there’s a major problem with the modern day overgeneralization of the word “autism.” Those diagnosed are put in one single category with no distinction between each specific case, ultimately preventing neurodivergent people from discovering their passions and contributing their unique perspectives to society.
The best way to approach this problem, says Grandin, is to understand the 3 most common types of thinkers: visual thinkers like herself, pattern thinkers, and word thinkers. If educators and employers consider these different types of minds, they can create environments that maximize each individual’s intellectual strengths. By embracing this diversity, we together can build a society where every person has access to success; where everyone has the education, employment, and lifestyles that will help them thrive.
[…]
