TY - BOOK AU - Pullum,Geoffrey K. TI - Linguistics: why it matters T2 - Polity's Why it matters series SN - 9781509530762 PY - 2018/// CY - Cambridge, UK, Medford, MA, USA PB - Polity Press KW - Linguistics N1 - Includes bibliographical references and index; What makes us human --; How sentences work --; Words, meaning and thought --; Language and social life --; Machines that understand us N2 - "Linguistics applies the analytical methods of the sciences to a subject formerly thought to belong mainly to the humanities: language. Geoff Pullum offers a stimulating introduction to the many ways in which the study of linguistics matters. With its close relationships to other disciplines, the subject has a compelling human story to tell"--; Language is the medium in which we humans compose our thoughts, explain our thinking, construct our arguments, and create works of literature. Without language, societies as complex as ours could not exist. Geoffrey Pullum offers a stimulating introduction to the many ways in which linguistics, as the scientific study of language, matters. With its close relationships to psychology, education, philosophy, and computer science, the subject has a compelling human story to tell about the ways in which different societies see and describe the world, and its far-reaching applications range from law to medicine and from developmental psychology to artificial intelligence. -- From back cover ER -