Words Don't Do JusticeMost Indian Languages Lack the Words to Express Gender Identity. This Complicates Queer People’s Access to Mental Health. "Language as a system is codified in gender binary, and is therefore exclusive and violent." By Geet
Civil Obedience‘Sexual Harassment’ Is Listed as an Unparliamentary Term, Eroding Accountability The Centre this week released a new list of Unparliamentary words ahead of the monsoon session -- leading to sexual harassment being left without a vocabulary to articulate it in lawmaking spaces. By Amlan Sarkar
A Hoo and a BarkScientists Discover a ‘Hidden Language’ by Analyzing Chimpanzee Vocals Chimpanzee communication is much more sophisticated than previously thought, providing new clues to origins of language in humans too. By Saumya Kalia
Default HumanityGender‑Neutral Words like ‘People’ Are Still Interpreted to Mean ‘Men,’ Shows Analysis A new study shows society’s idea of “person” prioritizes men over women — suggesting a “fundamental bias in our species’ collective view of itself.” By Saumya Kalia
Truth Be ToldThe Enduring Power of Clichés, Explained Clichés have earned a bad rep, but they reflect essential truths familiar to all of us. By Saumya Kalia
Lost In Translation. Not.Emojis Could Bridge Crucial Doctor‑Patient Communication Gaps: Experts "Emojis could help treating children, disabled patients with communication impairments, and bridge language barriers." By Devrupa Rakshit
Tell Me About ItScience Backs People Who Use Filler Words Like ‘Um’ And ‘You Know’ People who use inflections are more likely to be more conscious of who they are talking to and what they are saying, note experts. By Saumya Kalia
Politics of AngerAngry Political Speeches Are ‘Contagious,’ Cause Voters To Mimic the Outrage: Study "Anger is a very strong, short-term emotion that motivates people into action" with negative implications in the long term, researchers say. By Saumya Kalia
Mind Your WordsAppropriate Language Can Reduce Mental Health Stigma, Improve Access to Treatment: Experts Researchers identified 250 common words and labels such as "disturbed" or "confused" that discourage people to seek professional help. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Hidden DiversityAs Indigenous Languages Die, India Loses Vital Means of Preserving Biodiversity Local languages and rare vocabularies hold invaluable knowledge about the environment, nature, and history. By Saumya Kalia
Lost In TranslationHindi Isn’t India’s National Language. Why Does the Myth Continue? As a nation, we are familiar with false memories. Cricket is not our national sport. The lion is not our national animal. And Hindi, one of India's regional languages, is not our national language. By Saumya Kalia
All OutESPN’s Cricket Site Announces It Will Use Gender‑Neutral Sports Terms The term 'batter' will replace 'batsmen,' and the 'man of the match' will now be called 'player of the match.' By Saumya Kalia
Diverse VoicesNew Education Policy Will Promote Mother Tongues Through Bilingual Teaching Officials say the policy will broaden access to education, but critics worry it discourages the English skills needed in a globalized world. By Aditi Murti
Lie Detector?Facebook Will Fact‑Check Content in Regional Languages To Spot Misinformation During Assembly Elections The platform has previously come under fire for boosting content favorable to the ruling BJP during and after elections. By Saumya Kalia
Speak NowHow Can We Understand a Language, but Not Speak It? Separate parts of the brain are responsible for understanding and reproducing a language, making the two activities mutually exclusive. By Aditi Murti
Falling ShortStreaming Platform Twitch Withdraws Use of ‘Womxn’ After Criticism From Transgender Communities "With womxn you're just separating them more, you're not being inclusive, you're excluding them from women.” By Saumya Kalia
Narrow ScopeHow Google Scholar Sidelines Research in Non‑English Languages Research written in languages other than English rank lowest in the academic search engine's results, no matter how applicable it is. By Satviki Sanjay
Talking DNAIn India, People Who Speak the Same Language Have Similar DNA: Study A new study of India's genetic diversity flies in the face of previous, Euro-centric research that held the closer people live to each other, the more similar their genomes. By Devrupa Rakshit