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Episode 119: Hearing and Sound Localization, the Alien Way — A Quiet Place (2018) with T.R. Brooks
Join Alex and returning guest Dr. T.R. Brooks as they try to survive the post-apocalyptic invasion of blind aliens with really good hearing in the film A Quiet Place (2018). The film was directed by John Krasinski, starring himself, real-life wife Emily Blunt, deaf actress Millicent Simmonds, and child actors Cade Woodward and Noah Jupe. We follow a family trying to survive this invasion, trying their hardest to not make any sounds ever, but these pesky aliens have some wild hearing abilities in spite of their blindness. Topics focus on hearing, sound localization, and the attention required to figure out the sounds one is making while trying not to make any.…
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Episode 115: Linguists Rejoice! A Movie about Language — Oh, it’s Aliens? Arrival (2016) With Jeff Punske
Join Alex and Dr. Jeff Punske as they explore the linguistic and cognitive aspects of Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi masterpiece, Arrival (2016). The film stars Amy Adams as Dr. Louise Banks, a renowned linguist, and Jeremy Renner as a renowned theoretical physicist. Together, they must decipher an extremely complex language from newly-arrived extraterrestrials, referred to as the heptapods. But as Louise begins to learn their language, she begins to experience time differently! Alex and Jeff explore the nature of cognition and language and discuss how the film uses the Sapir-Whorf hypotheses to explain how Louise ultimately experiences her life during this time and afterward… or was it beforeward?…