Name: Language, Media, and Meaning: Making Sense of the World
Start: 2026-05-20T19:00:00
End: 2026-05-20T21:30:00
Location: 99 Mary St

How do we make sense of the world through words and stories? This session examines the power of language and media in shaping understanding. Trace how meanings change over time through large-scale linguistic data, and explore the vital role of journalists reporting from conflict zones. Together, these talks highlight how information is produced, communicated, and trusted today.

Programmed and produced by Faith Ogechi Ekwuribe and Myrtle Ziwei Zeng from the University of Sheffield

astrology - astronomy: Same same but different?

Penelope Nguyen (Postgraduate Researcher, Digital Humanities)

Centuries ago, ‘astrology’ and ‘astronomy’ were used interchangeably, but now, they’re as different as black and white. How did this split happen? Using a powerhouse computational method scanning over 60,000 historical books, I’ve mapped the exact trajectory of how this celestial marriage collapsed. Join Penelope to uncover the linguistic data behind our modern blind spots and see how we can detect a “proto-sense” - the DNA of a word before its meaning changes forever.

Media and War: Why do we need war correspondents?

Antonia Assersen-Skadberg (Postgraduate Researcher, Information, Journalism and Communication)

What do war correspondents do and why we need journalists on the ground to cover the events of war? Learn about the role of war correspondents, the threats they face while in conflict zones, and the potential lacking legal protections of war correspondents today.

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