Many people spontaneously use the word (or sound) “Um” in conversation, a phenomenon which has prompted a considerable volume of academic attention (some of which we discussed recently). A question arises though, can someone be induced to say “Um” by chemical means – say with the use of a powerful anaesthetic? Like, for example Ketamine? [Note: […]
Tag: Uhm
The uses and meanings of “Um” revisited
Back in 2010, we partially examined the oeuvre of Emanuel A. Schegloff, Professor Emeritus at the Department of Sociology, University of California, Los Angeles. Specifically his work on the meaning of “Uh(m)”s. Perhaps now’s the time to revisit “um” in academia? So may we also recommend the following papers, all of which can be read […]
Filled pauses at the Supreme Court
Following our Improbable article on ‘Laughter at the Supreme Court‘, we turn now to the implications of ‘Filled Pauses’ at the same institution. A Filled Pause (FP) can be uhm, ah, uh, &etc. The questions are: how often do they crop up, and which of the court’s Justices make the most use of them? And, perhaps […]
The many meaning(s) of “Uh(m)”s
What does “Uh(m)” mean? Professional linguists from a selection of highly respected international academic instituions have pondered the question in some detail over the years, but now a new paper from Emanuel A. Schegloff, Professor Emeritus at the Department of Sociology, University of California, Los Angeles, goes considerably further towards consolidating the answer(s). As the […]