Humanities

Come curious. Leave inspired. We invite you to connect with us this November through a rich and varied schedule of more than 30 events, exhibitions, podcasts, and more. From chamber opera premieres and public lectures to Indigenous storytelling and poetry celebrations, theres something to spark every curiosity. Expect boundary-pushing performances, thought-provoking dialogues on memory and...

Several Asian countries adapted the Chinese writing system—the oldest writing system still in use—for their own languages. In a new book, Professor Zev Handel shares how that happened.

New faculty books from the University of Washington include those from Asian languages and literature, applied mathematics and the Jackson School of International Studies.

Derek Sheffield, ’90, ’99, a poet and English teacher, was appointed Washington State’s Poet Laureate in April by Governor Bob Ferguson. A passionate naturalist known for co-editing the best-selling “Cascadia Field Guide: Art, Ecology, Poetry” with Elizabeth Bradfield, ’94, and CMarie Fuhrman, Sheffield is “always packing” binoculars and hand lens and birds by ear—often in the woods near his home in Leavenworth. He has butterflied alongside Robert Michael Pyle, ’69, ’73, the lepidopterist, and once exchanged letters with Pulitzer-winning biologist E.O. Wilson.

"Is AI going to take over the world? Have scientists created an artificial lifeform that can think on its own? Is it going to replace all our jobs, even creative ones, like doctors, teachers and care workers? Are we about to enter an age where computers are better than humans at everything?" writes Luke Munn research fellow at the University of Queensland. Emily M. Bender, professor of linguistics at the UW, is quoted.

Brain-computer interfaces, or BCIs, can help people with severe injuries or impairments regain the ability to communicate or move their arms and legs through robotic substitutes. The devices, which are about the size of a dime and are implanted on the surface of a persons brain, serve as a communication link between the brains neural...

Imagine sitting in a movie theater watching a film youve been anticipating for months. Suddenly, the screen goes blank. It only lasts a second, but thats long enough to disrupt the experience. Its also long enough, says Mal Ahern, to remind you of the physical infrastructure behind what we so often see as an immaterial...

Recent faculty books from the University of Washington include those from linguistics, Slavic languages and literature and French. UW News spoke with the authors of four publications to learn more about their work. Scrutinizing and confronting AI hype Emily M. Bender, UW professor of linguistics, co-authored The AI Con: How to Fight Big Techs Hype...

Virtual assistants, such as Apples Siri, can perform a range of tasks or services for users and a majority of them sound like white women. Golden Marie Owens, assistant professor of cinema and media studies at the University of Washington, says there is much to learn about a person from how they sound. The...

Speculative fiction author Anselma Prihandita (PhD, language and rhetoric, 2025), a Nebula Award winner, finds that her creative writing bolsters her scholarly work in unexpected ways. 

Emily M. Bender, professor of linguistics at the UW, and Alex Hanna share five key insights from their new book,"The AI Con: How to Fight Big Techs Hype and Create the Future We Want." This bookis an exploration of the hype around artificial intelligence, whose interests it serves and the harm being done under this umbrella.

Imagine an art class where you only did paint by numbers, or a music class where you werent allowed to play a song until you practiced scales for 20 years. This is often what its like to take a math class, where students spend most of their time learning to solve problems that have already...

"Unfortunately, the goal of creating artificial general intelligence isnt just a project that lives as a hypothetical in scientific papers. Theres real money invested in this work, much of it coming from venture capitalists," co-writes Emily M. Bender, professor of linguistics at the UW.

Since 2014, The European Union has been crafting policy on the rights of disabled people with independent living as a key element. Officials noticed the law wasnt being followed in countries like Malta, so they moved these young people into their own apartments. But these were pretty much the only people in their 20s who...

The kingdom of Aksum was one of the most powerful empires in the world in the fourth century. It played a major role in the histories of Egypt, Persia and Rome, as well as the early days of Christianity and Islam. But Aksums accomplishments have long been overlooked because they are recorded in the ancient...