Nicholas Evans is Distinguished Professor of Linguistics and Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for the Dynamics of Language (CoEDL) at the Australian National University’s School of Culture, History & Language. His work bridges fieldwork-based language documentation with theoretical questions in typology, cultural evolution, and social cognition. Focus on endangered Australian and Papuan languages Director of ARC Laureate Project on 'The Wellsprings of Linguistic Diversity' Co-leader of SCOPIC (Social Cognition Parallax Corpus) study Collaborator in global linguistic diversity initiatives His research explores how micro-level community multilingualism shapes macro-level linguistic diversity, with fieldwork spanning seven years in remote Indigenous communities. Recent projects include PARABANK (paradigm syncretism analysis) and Southern New Guinea language studies, particularly Nen and Yam family languages. Scientific recognition includes the Ken Hale Award (Linguistic Society of America), Anneliese Maier Forschungspreis, and fellowships in the Australian Academy of Humanities, Australian Social Sciences Academy, and the British Academy.
Jean Oh is a Researcher at the Robotics Institute of Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) , leading the interdisciplinary Bot Intelligence Group (BIG) . Her work focuses on developing persistent robots that co-exist and collaborate with humans in shared environments, emphasizing continuous improvement through training, exploration, and human interaction. Education: Ph.D. in Language and Information Technologies, CMU M.S. in Computer Science, Columbia University B.S. in Biotechnology, Yonsei University Oh's research integrates vision, language, and planning systems in robotics, with applications in human-robot teaming , self-driving cars , disaster response , eldercare , and creative robotics . She has pioneered projects like socially-compliant robot navigation in human crowds and AI-driven robotic painting systems. Recent publication trends highlight her work in vision-language planning , social navigation , computational creativity , and human-robot collaboration . Notable contributions include the StyleCLIPDraw algorithm for text-to-art generation and Social-PatteRNN for human-like trajectory prediction. Scientific Awards: Best Paper Award in Cognitive Robotics (ICRA'18, ICRA'15) Best Systems Paper Finalist (HRI'25) Best Oral Paper Finalist (Humanoids'24) Best Paper in Entertainment (IROS'24) Argoverse Challenge Winner (CVPR'24) Best Student Paper (AIAA'24) Best Demo Finalist (RoboSoft'24) Oh mentors a diverse team of PhD, MS, and undergraduate students from CMU departments including Robotics, Computer Science, and Mechanical Engineering. Her research is funded by US Army Research Lab , DiDi Chuxing , and DARPA , with collaborations across industry and academia .
Bernard Comrie is a Research Professor Emeritus in Linguistics at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), affiliated with the College of Letters and Science. He previously served as Director of the Department of Linguistics at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig (1998–2015) and held a Distinguished Professorship at UCSB (2002–2021). His career includes teaching positions at the University of Cambridge, University of Southern California, and leadership roles in major research institutions. Comrie’s research focuses on Language universals and typology Historical linguistics Languages of the Caucasus, New Guinea, and Great Andamanese He emphasizes fieldwork-driven cross-linguistic analysis of topics like tense/aspect, transitivity, numeral systems, and prehistoric migration studies through collaborations with archaeologists and geneticists. His recent publications explore morphosyntactic variation (e.g., verb indexing in Asian languages, reflexivity in Tsez), language contact (Kanashi prehistory), and numeral system typology. Articles often bridge theoretical linguistics with empirical data from understudied languages. Notable contributions include the World Atlas of Language Structures and foundational work on Nakh-Daghestanian and Andamanese languages. He advocates for interdisciplinary approaches to reconstructing prehistoric human movements via linguistic evidence.
Anna Berge is a Professor of Linguistics at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, directing the Alaska Native Language Archive. She holds a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley (1997), specializing in the documentation, description, and historical analysis of Eskimo-Aleut languages, particularly Unangam Tunuu (Aleut). Her research integrates linguistics with archaeology, genetics, and environmental studies to explore prehistoric language contact and divergence patterns along the North Pacific Coast. Her work focuses on morphosyntax, discourse analysis, and language revitalization for highly endangered languages. She teaches courses in Morphology, Field Methods, Community Language Documentation, and Eskimo-Aleut Linguistics, emphasizing practical skills for language preservation. Berge's multidisciplinary approach addresses Aleut language divergence from Eskimoan branches, leveraging data from multiple disciplines to reconstruct linguistic prehistory. She actively collaborates with Indigenous communities in Russia, Alaska, Canada, and Greenland to archive linguistic materials and support language maintenance initiatives.
Angel Xuan Chang is an Associate Professor at Simon Fraser University's School of Computing Science, affiliated with labs including 3DLG, GrUVi, SFU NatLang, SFU AI/ML, and VINCI. He holds a Canada CIFAR AI Chair and was a TUM-IAS Hans Fischer Fellow (2018-2022). His research bridges natural language processing (NLP), 3D scene understanding, and embodied AI, focusing on language-grounded 3D generation and biodiversity monitoring via DNA barcodes. Recent work includes NuiScene (unbounded outdoor scene generation), ViGiL3D (3D visual grounding dataset), and CLIBD (vision-genomics biodiversity analysis). He advises students in projects like BIOSCAN-5M insect dataset and embodied AI navigation. His 2025 highlights include multiple ICCV and ICLR papers, workshops at ICML and CVPR, and a CRV invited talk. Education: Ph.D. in Computer Science from Stanford University (2014), advised by Chris Manning. Previous roles include visiting research scientist at Facebook AI Research and researcher at Eloquent Labs.
Dr. Doyle D. Calhoun serves as University Assistant Professor of Francophone Postcolonial Studies within the Department of French at the Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics, University of Cambridge, where he is also a Fellow of Peterhouse College. His scholarly profile spans African and Caribbean literary studies, cinema analysis, and historical sociolinguistics with a focus on resistance narratives. His educational trajectory includes a Ph.D. in French from Yale University (2022), an M.A. in Linguistics from KU Leuven, and undergraduate studies in Linguistics and French Literature at Boston College. Additional academic development occurred through residencies at Fondation Camargo (Cassis) and Bibliothèque Marmottan (Paris). Calhoun’s research centers on Francophone postcolonial resistance, particularly suicidal acts against French colonialism as documented in The Suicide Archive (2024). His work excavates silenced histories of Atlantic slavery, abolition movements, and Négritude philosophy through literary and cinematic archives, emphasizing Senegalese and Caribbean contexts. He explores how contemporary writers reconstruct erased narratives of enslaved resistance through transmedia practices. His recent publications reveal a methodological convergence between literary analysis, historical recovery, and decolonial theory. Articles frequently address archival silences in colonial documentation while examining how contemporary artists reimagine resistance through linguistic innovation, cinematic storytelling, and embodied protest. Key thematic clusters include the weaponization of silence, subversive uses of missionary linguistics, and the politics of memory in postcolonial contexts. 2024 Malcolm Bowie Prize (Society for French Studies) 2024 William R. Parker Prize (Modern Language Association) 2021 Ralph Cohen Prize (New Literary History) 2016 Vivien Law Prize (Henry Sweet Society) Calhoun actively mentors graduate students in African/Caribbean literatures and cinema studies, with current projects including Africa after 1848 and Florence . His grant history features academic residencies at Fondation Camargo and Bibliothèque Marmottan, alongside a 2021 scholarship from the latter institution. Public engagement includes the 2025 La Noire de... film symposium and contributions to Los Angeles Review of Books and Salon . He contributes to the Cambridge Language Collective and Polyglossia Magazine while organizing events through Peterhouse. His 2025 podcast appearances on Stegi Radio and New Books Network demonstrate active knowledge dissemination beyond traditional academic channels.
Andrew Ollett is an Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of South Asian Languages and Civilizations at the University of Chicago , where he has taught since 2019. His research focuses on the literary and intellectual traditions of South and Southeast Asia, particularly through works in Sanskrit, Prakrit, Apabhramsha, and Kannada from the first millennium CE. Co-founder and editor of NESAR (New Explorations in South Asia Research) Director of NEH-funded edition/translation of the Kavirājamārga (earliest Kannada literary manual) Expert in Prakrit and Kannada literary traditions His work explores the 'question of language'—examining how language choice shaped cultural production and change in premodern India. Current projects include a monograph on context-sensitivity in Indian language theories and a study of manuscript technology's impact on early South Asian knowledge communities. He has authored The Mirror of Ornaments (Naples: Unior Press, 2025) and Language of the Snakes (UC Press, 2017), and co-authored Lilavai (Harvard, 2021). Recent publications include interdisciplinary studies on: Sanskrit-Prakrit campū genre reevaluation Pragmatics in Mīmāṁsā interpretive concepts Manuscript literacy's influence on literary forms Historical linguistics of Middle Indic syllable reduction Philosophy of language in Śālikanātha and Kumārila Bhaṭṭa Awarded the NEH 'Scholarly Editions and Translations' grant , he teaches classical South Asian literature courses covering Sanskrit, Prakrit, and Tamil traditions. He maintains digital resources including a Prakrit Digital Texts Project and Mīmāṁsādigdarśinī digital text repository, and actively contributes to open-access scholarship.
Jeremy Rau is a Professor of Linguistics and Classics at Harvard University's Department of Linguistics, part of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. He currently serves as Director of Graduate Studies for Fall 2024 and is on leave for Spring 2025. His office is located in Boylston Hall, Cambridge, MA. Rau specializes in Greek and Latin historical linguistics with a particular focus on Homeric language, Indo-European linguistic systems, and Indo-Iranian comparative studies. His research explores ancient language structures, verb morphology, and diachronic phonological changes in pre-classical texts. Research Interests: Proto-Indo-European root analysis Mycenaean Greek linguistic features Homer's language and epic conventions Indo-Iranian comparative linguistics Verb derivation mechanisms Publications reflect deep engagement with ancient language structures, including studies on Mycenaean contract verbs, Homeric noun inflections, and Proto-Germanic lexicon. He has contributed to journals like Die Sprache , Glotta , and Historische Sprachforschung , as well as edited volumes such as Verba Docenti . Administratively, Rau oversees graduate programs and participates in departmental governance. His work bridges historical linguistics with philological scholarship, emphasizing systematic analysis of ancient language data.
Milad Abedi is a PhD candidate in Linguistics at the University of Zurich and Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales (INALCO), Paris, focusing on the cultural history of Sino-Iranian lexical contacts. He has taught Zoroastrian Middle Persian and Middle Iranian languages at the University of Zurich while conducting research on topics including language contact mechanisms and historical Persian grammar. PhD in Linguistics (2020–Present), University of Zurich & INALCO, Paris MA in Ancient Languages and Cultures of Iran (2015–2019), Allameh Tabataba'i University (Highest Distinction) BSc in Cellular-Molecular Biology (2010–2015), Islamic Azad University His research spans ancient Iranian language contact (Elamite-Iranian, Sino-Iranian, Arabic-Iranian), historical grammar of Persian, and Classical Persian literature. He has published on topics such as kinship term evolution, cuneiform epigraphy, and metonymic phrases in Achaemenid Elamite. Recent publications highlight his focus on lexical diffusion across Eurasia, with key works on donkey terminology in cross-cultural contexts and the origins of felt words in Iranian languages. His collaborative research with Wolfgang Behr and Samira Müller demonstrates interdisciplinary approaches combining linguistics and archaeology. 2021 Travel grant, University of Zurich 2016 Travel grant, Allameh Tabataba'i University 2016 Top student award, Allameh Tabataba'i University As a Lecturer at the University of Zurich, he has taught courses on Zoroastrian Middle Persian and historical linguistics. His digital humanities expertise includes ELAN software, GIS, and SQL for language documentation.
Viktor Golinets is a Professor of Hebrew Linguistics at the Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies , where he has held the Chair of Hebrew Linguistics since 2018. Previously, he served as a Junior Professor at the same institution from 2012 to 2018. His academic journey includes a PhD in Ancient Near Eastern Studies from the University of Munich (2010) and a Magister degree in Semitics from Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (2004). Education: PhD (Altorientalistik, LMU Munich, 2010), Magister (Semitics, LMU Munich, 1997-2004) Professional Roles: Professor (Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies, since 2018), Junior Professor (Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies, 2012-2018), Scientific Assistant (University of Basel, 2007-2012) Golinets’ research focuses on the linguistic and textual history of the Hebrew Bible , ancient Bible translations , and historical grammar of Hebrew . He specializes in Masoretic studies, Semitic epigraphy, and comparative analysis of Northwest Semitic languages like Amorite, Aramaic, and Ugaritic. His work addresses textual criticism, biblical hermeneutics, and the evolution of Hebrew from Masoretic to modern usage. His publications and articles reveal a strong emphasis on Hebrew onomastics , epigraphic analysis , and the role of language in Jewish cultural identity . He has contributed to international colloquia on textual criticism and Semitic philology. Memberships: German Oriental Society, European Association of Biblical Studies, International Association for Comparative Semitics, Association of Judaists in Germany, and others Golinets serves as Deputy Rector at Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies and has collaborated on projects like the Hebrew-Greek Text-Critical Synopsis of the Book of Jeremiah and the Biblia Hebraica Transkripta. His expertise in Hebrew manuscripts and Semitic languages informs both his teaching and research.
Jose Ignacio Hualde is a Professor at the University of Illinois, holding joint appointments in Spanish and Portuguese, Linguistics, French and Italian, the European Union Center, and the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies. His research focuses on synchronic and diachronic phonology, sound change, prosody, and Romance and Basque linguistics. He is affiliated with the Department of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese and maintains an office in the Foreign Languages Building. Research Interests: Phonological structure and historical evolution Basque linguistic typology and dialectology Prosodic systems in Romance languages Phonetic-phonological interfaces Recent Research Trends: His 2023-2025 publications emphasize Basque dialect analysis, Romance allophonic processes, and prosodic salience. Works combine experimental methods with diachronic reconstruction to address core questions in phonological theory. Professional Activities: Has delivered over 30 invited lectures (e.g., 1992-1996) and served on editorial boards like Folia Linguistica. Active in international scholarly networks with collaboration evidence across multiple countries. Labs/Teams: Engaged in interdisciplinary linguistic research through the Department's language programs and affiliated centers.
Dr. Lauren Emberson (she/her/hers) is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of British Columbia, Faculty of Arts. She directs the Baby Learning Lab, which is part of UBC's Early Development Research Group, a consortium focused on infant and child development. Prior to her position at UBC, Dr. Emberson was an Assistant Professor at Princeton University where she co-founded and co-directed the Princeton Baby and Princeton Kid Labs. Education: Postdoctoral Associate, University of Rochester (PI Aslin) Ph.D, Cornell University (PIs Amso, Goldstein, Spivey) B.Sc, University of British Columbia Dr. Emberson's research focuses on learning, perception (audition, vision, crossmodal or multisensory), language development, face/object perception, and attention in infants. She investigates these capacities using behavioral and neuroimaging techniques, particularly fNIRS (functional near infrared spectroscopy), working primarily with very young infants (birth through 1 year) and preterm/premature infants. Her work examines how infants' learning capacities contribute to rapid development of perception in ecological contexts, with implications for understanding how early life experiences affect later outcomes. Analysis of Dr. Emberson's recent publications reveals a consistent focus on infant perception, learning mechanisms, and neuroimaging methodology. Her work increasingly incorporates advanced fNIRS techniques while maintaining focus on fundamental questions about how infants learn from their environment. There's a growing emphasis on individual differences, cross-cultural comparisons, and applications to infants facing developmental challenges. Dr. Emberson serves on the editorial board of Infancy (journal of the International Congress of Infancy Studies) and is a consulting editor for the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience . Her research has been published in top journals including PNAS, Current Biology, Psychological Science, Cognition, Developmental Science, and the Journal of Neuroscience. Dr. Emberson has secured significant research funding from prestigious organizations including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, James S. McDonnell Foundation, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She collaborates with clinicians at BC Women's and Children's Hospitals to understand how different early life experiences impact learning and brain development. Dr. Emberson is currently accepting graduate students into her research program. The Baby Learning Lab, under Dr. Emberson's direction, is part of UBC's Early Developmental Research Group and collaborates with multiple institutions. The lab strives to provide interactive research experiences for infants and families while advancing scientific understanding of early cognitive development. The lab acknowledges that it operates on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people.
Ola Wikander is Senior Lecturer and Associate Professor in Old Testament Exegesis at Lund University 's Centre for Theology and Religious Studies, with affiliations to the Joint Faculties of Humanities and Theology. His work bridges Ancient Near Eastern languages with Indo-European studies through etymological poetics . Pro Futura Scientia Fellow (2017-2023) Visiting Scholar at Wolfson College, Cambridge (2021-2022) Member of Royal Physiographic Society in Lund Wikander's research focuses on: Philological analysis of Hebrew, Ugaritic, Hittite, and Luwian texts Interactions between Indo-European and Semitic linguistic cultures Historical phonology of Northwest Semitic languages Preservation of knowledge for nuclear waste communication Mythological motif transmission across cultures His scholarly output (69 items) covers: Ugaritic epic analysis Hebrew tense system typology Indo-European loanwords in Semitic Theurgical motifs in religious texts Hydro-philology intersections Comparative mythological studies Notable Awards Pro Futura Scientia Fellowship Eva och Lars Gårding Linguistics Prize August Prize Shortlist (2006) Carlo Landberg Foundation Award Academic Contributions include: Editorial board, Coniectanea Biblica Co-editor, Ugarit-Forschungen (2022-2024) Research projects on Semitic-Indo-European interactions Multi-year nuclear waste communication studies
Nikoletta Kanavou is an Associate Professor of Ancient Greek Literature at the University of Athens. She has taught at prestigious institutions including Oxford, Cyprus, Crete, Heidelberg, and the Cypriot/Hellenic Open Universities. Her research spans fictitious prose narratives, archaic poetry, comedy, literary theory, papyrology, epigraphy, and onomastics. BA, MSt, DPhil in Classics (Athens, Oxford) Recipient of IKY, Leventis, Voudouri, IPEP, Humboldt, and DFG fellowships Published 3 monographs, 2 co-authored books, and ~50 peer-reviewed articles Her work analyzes the intersection of Greek novel traditions, satirical elements, and legal narratives in antiquity. She explores intertextuality in Homeric adaptations and the evolution of comedic naming conventions. Scientific awards include: IKY scholarship A.G. Leventis foundation Lilian Voudouri foundation Humboldt fellowship DFG fellowship
Professor Richard Dance serves as Professor of Early English in the Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic (ASNC) at the University of Cambridge's Faculty of English, and is a Fellow of St Catharine's College where he holds positions as Director of Studies in ASNC, Praelector, and Clerk to the Governors of the Skerne Exhibition Foundation. He joined the university in 1997 after completing his studies at Oxford and has established himself as Cambridge's principal teacher of Old English, lecturing and supervising extensively in Old English language and literature and Germanic Philology for the ASNC Tripos. His research focuses on Old and Middle English language and literature with particular emphasis on Germanic Philology, English etymology, and the profound influence of Old Norse on early English vocabulary and poetic style. His work spans critical editions of texts like 'Ancrene Wisse' and 'Sir Gawain and the Green Knight', extensive etymological surveys of Scandinavian loanwords, and investigations into medieval multilingualism. His publications reveal consistent engagement with historical semantics, dialectology, and the linguistic interface between Norse and English during critical transition periods. Dance's scholarly impact is evidenced by major awards including the British Academy's 2021 Sir Israel Gollancz Prize for 'The Gersum Project' and the University of Cambridge Pilkington Prize for Excellence in Teaching (2023). His editorial roles include Secretary of the Early English Text Society, Council membership in The Philological Society, and etymological consultancy for the Oxford English Dictionary. As Principal Investigator for The Gersum Project (2016-2020), he led significant research into Scandinavian influence on English vocabulary, securing substantial academic recognition. British Academy's 2021 Sir Israel Gollancz Prize University of Cambridge Pilkington Prize for Excellence in Teaching (2023) Editorial Secretary, Early English Text Society Consultant for Oxford English Dictionary (etymology) International Advisory Committee member, Dictionary of Old English Dance maintains active leadership in academic communities through roles on the British Academy/Royal Historical Society Joint Committee on Anglo-Saxon Charters and as Series Editor for Exeter Medieval Texts and Studies (2008-24). His supervisory work encompasses graduate students in Old English language and literature, while his departmental responsibilities include Director of Studies for multiple Cambridge colleges. Current projects indicate ongoing research into medieval multilingualism, with several forthcoming publications addressing etymological methodology and lexical evolution in the medieval period.
