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Linguists Find Proof of Sweeping Language Pattern Once Deemed a 'Hoax' (scientificamerican.com)
10 points by pseudolus 63 days ago | hide | past | favorite | 2 comments



Laura Martin (1986) "Eskimo Words for Snow": A Case Study in the Genesis and Decay of an Anthropological Example" American Anthropologist, New Series 88(2): 418-423, https://www.jstor.org/stable/677570?casa_token=KsX4yPgs1YIAA...

versus

Temuulen Khishigsuren, Terry Regier, Ekaterina Vylomova, and Charles Kemp (2025) "A computational analysis of lexical elaboration across languages" PNAS 122(25) e2417304122 https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.2417304122


Linguists using the word "hypothesis" when nothing they have ever pondered, proposed, or published has ever been even close to a "testable and reproducible prediction about reality" really tickles my pickle.

Also their use of the word "proof".

And "science".




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