Episode Notes Language is the superpower that sets us, humans, apart from all the other animals. Only we can come up with plans for the future or fairytales in a galaxy far, far away. Put into perspective with the entire rest of the universe that is a thoroughly strange ability. Not surprisingly, all kinds of scientists and philosophers are interested in it. With the first episode of Fluke, however, I wanted to look past this very prominent mystery and focus on the other marvel of language that is hidden in plain sight: The ability of language to change the world. We all are so accustomed to it that we tend to overlook it: A sentence, a word or even just a noise can change what we do. And by making noises, words, and sentences we make other people do things every day. With episode 1 of Fluke I want to share my fascination with language. So, tag along on this rainy trip into the noises we hear and the words we speak. Yours, David Tweet at me: @dav_wegmann Music in this order: Ivy Lab - Oblique (VIP mix), Spectrasoul - No Doubt, Bop - White Nights Sound effects with a CC0 license from freesound.org were used in this episode.

Fluke

1 - The Language Superpower

We live in one big experiment, conducted by no-one experienced by all of us. The central question: What happens when you take humans out of their natural environment and set them free in a world overflowing with displays, cameras, and windows into the lives of others. This podcast is dedicated to our newfound powers of communication. Since the emergence of the internet the way we communicate and use media is in constant flux. What does that do to us, our minds? And what do we do with it? How do we shape society with media, and do we actually shape it for the better? Mind, media, and society are Fluke’s focus – philosophy, psychology and cognitive science its tools.

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1 - The Language Superpower