What Is Going On August Awesomeness |
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| The August 15th Deadline for Papers and Proposals is Almost Upon Us! Language, Listening, Literacy, & Algorithms Symposium To be held in conjunction with the 74th Alfred Korzybski Memorial Lecture October 2nd to 4th, 2026 New York City We welcome papers and proposals that fit any aspect of the symposium theme or that otherwise relate to the topics of general semantics, linguistics and semiotics, media ecology, communication and culture, science and the empirical method, epistemology and phenomenology, cybernetics and systems theory, technology and society, art and perception, cognition and consciousness, evolution and emergence, health and human potential, etc. Send papers, proposals, & inquiries by August 15th to Lance Strate via President at GeneralSemantics.org |
| Registration is Now Open for theAKML and SymposiumOctober 2-4 in New York Cityfeaturing the 74th AnnualAlfred Korzybski Memorial Lectureto be delivered byTed Chiangon «No Machine Has Passed the Turing Test «It is now commonly asserted that the Turing Test is no longer a useful metric because current LLMs easily pass it. In this talk, Ted Chiang will offer a different interpretation of Turing’s paper and what Turing actually meant by a thinking machine. Linguistic fluency of the type that Turing described is a very high bar, one so high that not only have we not achieved it, but we should arguably not even be aiming for it. |
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| Ted Chiang is an American science fiction writer. His work has won four Nebula awards, four Hugo awards, six Locus awards, and the PEN Malamud Award. His novella “Story of Your Life” was the basis of the film Arrival (2016). His most recent short story collection, Exhalation (Knopf, 2019), was listed as one of the Top Ten Books of 2019 by The New York Times, and included in President Barack Obama’s 2019 reading list. In 2023, he was named one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in AI. |
| In addition to the dinner and lecture,the October 2nd AKML eveningwill also feature a performance/presentation fromRea Beaumont |
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| Dr. Rea Beaumont is a pianist, composer, educator, and author. She is a member of the University of Toronto Faculty of Music, and is a recent recipient of the King Charles III Coronation Medal for achievements in music, art, and culture. |
| Please Note that Registration is forIn-Person Attendance Only! IGS members in good standing will be given access to a livestream of the AKML and Symposium. Information on how to access the livestream will be provided by email shortly before the event. |
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| And That’s Not All!!!Join Us In New York City on Wednesday October 7thFor a Double Book Launchsponsored by theNew York Society for General Semanticsand cosponsored by the IGS |
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| On Wednesday, October 7th the New York Society for General Semantics is hosting an unusual double book launch bringing together the pioneering work of writer, filmmaker, and IGS Trustee Nora Bateson and her late father, British-born thinker Gregory Bateson. Many of the ideas now familiar in conversations about systems, like «feedback loops», «differences that make a difference», and «orders of change», come from their work. The launch runs from 6 to 9 PM at the Players, 16 Gramercy Park South, NYC, 10003. It includes short readings from both books, conversation with Nora Bateson and editor Phillip Guddemi, and a signing. The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required for admittance. A cash bar serving wine and beer will be available.The launch introduces two new books, conceived half a century apart, both of which explore how we can live, learn and relate to one another and to the wider living world in a time of rapid change. Belly by Nora Bateson, is a collection of stories, essays, images, poems, and reflections about families, food, grief, celebration, and the ways we make sense of the world together. It invites us to notice the subtle patterns in our own relationships, homes and communities. This work requires us to rethink what it means to «make a change».Gregory Bateson’s ‘Ecology of Mind’: The Course, is based on a series of university lectures given in the 1970s.Gregory Bateson worked across anthropology, psychology and environmental thought, and was one of the early pioneers of systems thinking and cybernetics, the study of feedback and communication in living systems. This new volume presents his ideas in his own spoken voice, transcribed from the classroom and edited by his student, Philip Guddemi. |
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| Is There a Doctor in the House?The IGS is partnering with Universidad Panamericana in Mexico City to offer a doctoral program based on general semantics, systems theory, and media ecology. The initiative is led by IGS Trustee and Panamericana Professor Laura Trujillo-Liñán. As a PhD in Media Ecology, the program will be based in part on the curriculum developed by Neil Postman, Christine Nystrom, and Terence Moran, with added emphasis on general semantics and related fields and disciplines. For more information, click here. |
| Now Available for Viewingon the IGS YouTube ChannelThe recordings of our Discourse, Dialogue, and Democracy 2 Online Symposium, held via Zoom on April 25th, have now been posted on YouTube. To view the entire YouTube playlist, click here. |
| For Members OnlyIf you missed all or part of it, or simply want to review or relive it, recordings of the 4-part lecture series, Practical Fairy Tales for Everyday Living: General Semantics Fables to Improve Your Thinking and Communicating Abilities,delivered by IGS Trustee and Past President Martin H. Levinson on May 4-25, are now availble on our Online Lectures page. To access this page, you need to be logged in and a member in good standing of the IGS. |
| Our 2026 Summer Seminar, Meaning in Motion: How Words Become Worlds, held in London on July 14-17, was by all accounts a smashing success. To get a taste of what the 4 days were like, you can take a look at a slideshow video posted on the IGS YouTube channel, based on photographs supplied by Ricardo Meneses Calzada and IGS Trustee Laura Trujillo-Liñán. To view the video, click here. |
| Podcast UpdateOur July episode features author, financier, and IGS Trustee Christopher Mayer. In conversation with IGS President Lance Strate, they discuss his recently published book, The Unspeakable Level: Korzybski’s Razor and Other Ways of Revealing. |
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| You can listen to all of our podcast episodes via our host site, and they are also available through most major podcast platforms, so please subscribe. Additionally, they can be accessed via our YouTube channel. |
| IGS Books Our recent publications includeGeneral Semantics and Politics, edited by Corey Anton and Thom Gencarelli, with additional contributorsLance Strate; Chris Mayer; Martin H. Levinson; Etai Eshet and Eva Berger; Susan Drucker and Gary Gumpert; Joshua Clements; Jermaine Martinez; Ryan P. McCullough; Roy F. Fox; and Jefferson SpurlockThe Unspeakable Level: Korzybski’s Razor and Other Ways of Revealing, by IGS Trustee Christopher MayerSensible Thinking 3: The Adventure Continues by Martin H. Levinson.These and many other books are available in paperback and epub editions from the Institute of General Semantic Store (IGS members in good standing are eligible for a 15% discount on our offerings. Email us for the discount code). *******************************And coming up later this year:a collection of satirical writing by Marleen S. Barr entitled Doomsday Scenarioa new collection edited by Lance Strate and Bini Babu Sudha, entitled, Modeling Our Ways of Knowing: Examining and Evaluating the Structural Differentialan English version of IGS Fellow Isabel Caro Gabalda‘s Cómo Asumir La Incertidumbre: Una Perspectiva Psicoterapéutica translated by Orli Berger Kadima collection of satirical writing by Martin H. Levinson, entitled Dinner at the Woke Street Café: Satirical Food for Thoughtand more coming up very soon, so stay tuned! |
| In Local NewsIGS Trustee Laura Trujillo-Liñán is forming a new general semantics society in Mexico! For more information about joining and participating, please email her.The June 13th meeting of the Australian General Semantics Society featuring Jason Tremain’s talk, «Contemplations on Bois’s Book The Art of Awareness«, is now available for viewing on YouTube. David Hewson is scheduled to deliver a talk entitled «Creative Problem Solving—Unlock your Creative Potential» on Saturday August 15 Sydney time (Friday August 14th elsewhere). The New York Society for General Semantics led by IGS Trustee and NYSGS President Peggy Cassidy will host a book launch for the latest volume authored by IGS Trustee Nora Bateson, Belly, due to be published in July. The NYSGS event will take place on Wednesday October 7th.The Balvant Parekh Centre for General Semantics and Other Human Sciences in India is currently planning an anthology of poetry entitled After Word(s): Poems on Language and Perception. Submissions should be sent to bpcbarodaofficial at gmail.com by October 31st.There’s talk of a Pittsburgh Society for General Semantics being organized, as well as interest in forming a local society in the UK. Stay tuned for further developments! |
| Let Us Hear From You!Do you have news related to local general semantics organizations and programs that you would like to share with us? Are you interested in starting, reviving, or enhancing a local group or society? We would love to hear from you, and to help you in any way that we can. Please feel free to contact us at <president at generalsemantics.org>. |
| AffiliationsThe IGS is an affiliate of the International Communication Association, and held a session on AI and General Semantics at their annual conference on June 4th to 8th, 2026 in Capetown, South Africa. The program featured IGS Trustees Peggy Cassidy, Thom Gencarelli, Lance Strate, and Laura Trujillo-Liñán. The 2026 meeting of the Media Ecology Association took place in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada on June 25th to 28th. Among other claims to fame, Winnipeg was the hometown of general semantics pioneer S.I. Hayakawa, as well as media ecology maven Marshall McLuhan, and there were sessions devoted to both of them. The convention also featured an address from MEA President and IGS Trustee Laura Trujillo-Liñán.The 404 Festival of Art and Technology led by IGS Trustee Gina Valenti will take place in Newcastle, Gateshead, and Sunderland, England on August 26th to September 1st.The 84th annual conference of the New York State Communication Association will be held on October 16th to 18th at the Villa Roma Resort and Conference Center in Callicoon, NY, and will include a session deveoted to SI Hayakawa featuring IGS Trustees Peggy Cassidy, Susan Drucker, Thom Gencarelli, and Lance Strate. The IGS is also an affiliate of the National Communication Association, and as such will sponsor programming at the NCA’s annual meeting in New Orleans on November 19th to 22nd, 2026.The IGS is also an affiliate of the Eastern Communication Association, and was involved in several programs at their annual meeting on April 9th to 12th, 2026, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The 2027 ECA convention will be held on March 30th to April 4th in Reston, Virginia. Look for a call for papers at a later date. |
| Show Off Your Non-Aristotelian Style In Style!We are pleased to introduced a brand new lapel pin based on the IGS logo.Now on sale exclusively via the IGS store for only $10! |
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| Other Recent NewsThere are exciting new developments coming up later this year involving our publishing and educational initiatives. Stay tuned for more information! |
| Social Media Reminder: We have an official IGS Group on Facebook. To join, just search for the Institute of General Semantics, and ask to join. And look for InstituteofGS on X(Twitter), Instagram, and YouTube, to find, follow, and subscribe to us! And we are now on Bluesky! Look for @generalsemantics.org! |
| And Re-member-ship!Emails have been going out to renew or join anew. We appreciate and value each and every one of you, and we don’t want you to miss out on everything that we have to offer! So please activate your membership for 2026, and encourage others to join! It is easier than ever to join or renew online, or download our membership form if you would prefer to send a check or otherwise join by mail. IGS membership benefits includeSubscription to our journal ETC: A Review of General SemanticsDiscounts on books and other items at the IGS StoreAccess to the members-only pages of the IGS websiteFree admission for members and their guests to the annual Alfred Korzybski Memorial Lecture and dinner, and accompanying symposium (and exclusive access to the livestream)Discounts on other events, seminars, and coursesIf you are pleased with our efforts and want to show your support, please do so by joining and renewing your membership. And consider going above and beyond by joining on the Contributor, Supporter, Sponsor, or Time-Binder level. And please keep us in mind for charitable donations. The IGS is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation, so your donations are tax deductible. |
| You are receiving this message because your email is on file with the Institute of General Semantics. Please feel free to forward this email to others who may be interested in what we have to offer.If you want to sign up as a non-member to receive information and updates from us, click here.We will be sharing more exciting news in future editions of What Is Going On, so please be sure to stay subscribed for more updates and announcements. |
19,183 Institute of General Semantics: August Awesomeness
Blog de Octavio Islas 