S1 Ep 11 - James McElvenny on Language and Science

Today on the podcast is Dr James McElvenny, historian and philosopher of linguistics, discussing the topic of language and science.As James points out in this episode, intersections between language, the language sciences and science are many and varied. For example, James introduces us to the ways in which the study of language and the study of science have interacted in history, in particular through famous figures in the philosophy of science such as Wittgenstein and Carnap. James also makes the important point that while there are many practical reasons to study language or science or HPS -  there is also much to be said about studying them for their inherent interest and their value in making us better-developed people, or as they say in Germany: ‘Gebildet’.As well as working and teaching in this space, James runs his own very successful podcast  - The History and Philosophy of the Language Sciences. The podcast and blog can be found via the website at https://hiphilangsci.net/Some links relevant to this episode can be found below:James McElvenny's personal website: https://www.jamesmcelvenny.net/James McElvenny's A History of Modern LinguisticsPodcast: History of Philosophy without Any GapsBook: Michael Gordin, Scientific Babel: How Science was done Before and After Global EnglishBook: Stephen G. Alter Darwinism and the Linguistic ImageHiPhiLangSci Ep5: On August Schleicher and comparative-historical linguisticsHiPhiLangSci Ep15: On Jakobson and the Prague CircleA full transcript of the episode can be found here: https://www.hpsunimelb.org/post/episode-11-transcriptThanks for listening to The HPS Podcast with your current hosts, Samara Greenwood and Carmelina Contarino. You can find more about us on our blog, website, bluesky, twitter, instagram and facebook feeds. This podcast would not be possible without the support of School of Historical and Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne. HPS Podcast | hpsunimelb.org