Rory Turnbull
@roryturnbull.bsky.social
Senior Lecturer in Phonetics and Phonology at Newcastle University ✦ Bahá’í ✦ Scottish ✦ he/him ✦ I like bikes, network science, R, and Linux
Uhh, that's actually my emotional support chocolate
November 13, 2025 at 7:18 PM
Uhh, that's actually my emotional support chocolate
My students always oooh and aaah when I teach them the phonetics of vowels
November 12, 2025 at 10:04 AM
My students always oooh and aaah when I teach them the phonetics of vowels
Incidentally also _cappuccino_ comes from this same source!
It's some fairly well known etymology that we owe some everyday words to Martin of Tours (d. 397).
The most famous episode of his life is when he selflessly cut his cloak (in Latin: 'cappa') in two. That cloak was later venerated in Frankish lands, from which come the words 'chapel' and 'chaplain'.
The most famous episode of his life is when he selflessly cut his cloak (in Latin: 'cappa') in two. That cloak was later venerated in Frankish lands, from which come the words 'chapel' and 'chaplain'.
Since today is Saint Martin's Day, here's a humble image of the popular saint that I recently encountered on Veliki Brijun, Croatia. Carved for a church in Senj c. 1330, it has "Sveti Marъtinъ" written in Glagolitic letters around the saint's head – part of Croatia's long tradition of Glagolitic.
November 11, 2025 at 12:52 PM
Incidentally also _cappuccino_ comes from this same source!
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
Actually, you’re being pedantic
August 26, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Actually, you’re being pedantic
Tweeting "happy Eid" and "there is no God but God" is apparently "undermining Islam" and deserves a five year prison sentence in Qatar, if you are a Baha'i.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/08...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/08...
Qatar: Five-Year Sentence for Baha’i Dignitary on Abusive Charges
A Doha court sentenced the chair of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is in Qatar to five years in prison on August 13, 2025, based solely on exercising his rights to freedom of speech and r...
www.hrw.org
August 19, 2025 at 9:02 PM
Tweeting "happy Eid" and "there is no God but God" is apparently "undermining Islam" and deserves a five year prison sentence in Qatar, if you are a Baha'i.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/08...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/08...
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
On the left is a rabbit. On the right is an elephant. But guess what: They’re the *same image*, rotated 90°!
In @currentbiology.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & I show how these images—known as “visual anagrams”—can help solve a longstanding problem in cognitive science. bit.ly/45BVnCZ
In @currentbiology.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & I show how these images—known as “visual anagrams”—can help solve a longstanding problem in cognitive science. bit.ly/45BVnCZ
August 19, 2025 at 4:32 PM
On the left is a rabbit. On the right is an elephant. But guess what: They’re the *same image*, rotated 90°!
In @currentbiology.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & I show how these images—known as “visual anagrams”—can help solve a longstanding problem in cognitive science. bit.ly/45BVnCZ
In @currentbiology.bsky.social, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & I show how these images—known as “visual anagrams”—can help solve a longstanding problem in cognitive science. bit.ly/45BVnCZ
Does anyone have a sense of the origins of the term "Standard Southern British English" (SSBE)? It seems to have developed as an alternative to "RP" but I'm not sure who popularised it (if anyone).
June 16, 2025 at 1:33 PM
Does anyone have a sense of the origins of the term "Standard Southern British English" (SSBE)? It seems to have developed as an alternative to "RP" but I'm not sure who popularised it (if anyone).
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
Keep your cats indoors and switch to Linux.
June 13, 2025 at 11:48 AM
Keep your cats indoors and switch to Linux.
New paper out, just accepted to Interspeech! We find that acoustic measures of similarity between English and French only weakly correlate with human judgements.
roryturnbull.github.io/papers/Turnb...
roryturnbull.github.io/papers/Turnb...
roryturnbull.github.io
May 28, 2025 at 3:23 PM
New paper out, just accepted to Interspeech! We find that acoustic measures of similarity between English and French only weakly correlate with human judgements.
roryturnbull.github.io/papers/Turnb...
roryturnbull.github.io/papers/Turnb...
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
While English is undeniably vital for accessing opportunities & fostering community cohesion, it's essential to recognize the UK's rich linguistic tapestry. Languages like #Welsh, #Scots #Gaelic, & others are integral to our national identity & cultural heritage.
🔗 tinyurl.com/4mte5vae
#langsky
🔗 tinyurl.com/4mte5vae
#langsky
Starmer says migrants should speak English – but all of the UK’s languages are important for integration
As the UK government doubles down on English as the sole route to integration, it shouldn’t mean leaving other languages behind.
theconversation.com
May 22, 2025 at 12:27 PM
While English is undeniably vital for accessing opportunities & fostering community cohesion, it's essential to recognize the UK's rich linguistic tapestry. Languages like #Welsh, #Scots #Gaelic, & others are integral to our national identity & cultural heritage.
🔗 tinyurl.com/4mte5vae
#langsky
🔗 tinyurl.com/4mte5vae
#langsky
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
Do caregivers exaggerate vowels when talking to infants? Prior findings are inconsistent () & the mechanisms unclear. We meta-analyzed 35 studies across 10 languages to disentangle systematic cross-linguistic and methodological variation. Paper: osf.io/preprints/ps... 🧵
May 21, 2025 at 1:46 PM
Do caregivers exaggerate vowels when talking to infants? Prior findings are inconsistent () & the mechanisms unclear. We meta-analyzed 35 studies across 10 languages to disentangle systematic cross-linguistic and methodological variation. Paper: osf.io/preprints/ps... 🧵
Come to Glasgow on May 28 for Phon-UP 3 (Phonetics/Phonology Unconference on Pedagogy)!
Attendance is free. Please repost for reach!
blogs.ncl.ac.uk/phon-up/
Attendance is free. Please repost for reach!
blogs.ncl.ac.uk/phon-up/
Phon-UP | Phonetics/Phonology Unconference on Pedagogy
blogs.ncl.ac.uk
May 14, 2025 at 2:22 PM
Come to Glasgow on May 28 for Phon-UP 3 (Phonetics/Phonology Unconference on Pedagogy)!
Attendance is free. Please repost for reach!
blogs.ncl.ac.uk/phon-up/
Attendance is free. Please repost for reach!
blogs.ncl.ac.uk/phon-up/
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
This is a terrible misunderstanding.
Your Pope-name is the last thing you ate IN LATIN, + the number of letters in your last name (in roman numerals of course)
signed
Pope Pirum XIII
Your Pope-name is the last thing you ate IN LATIN, + the number of letters in your last name (in roman numerals of course)
signed
Pope Pirum XIII
Your Pope name is: Last thing you ate + number of letters in your first name. POPE GINGER IV.
May 9, 2025 at 9:52 AM
This is a terrible misunderstanding.
Your Pope-name is the last thing you ate IN LATIN, + the number of letters in your last name (in roman numerals of course)
signed
Pope Pirum XIII
Your Pope-name is the last thing you ate IN LATIN, + the number of letters in your last name (in roman numerals of course)
signed
Pope Pirum XIII
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
can we get human rights for the humans first please?
“Can ChatGPT experience joy or suffering? Does Gemini deserve human rights?” our tech columnist asks. “Many A.I. experts I know would say no, not yet, not even close. But I was intrigued.”
Should We Start Taking the Welfare of A.I. Seriously?
As artificial intelligence systems become smarter, one A.I. company is trying to figure out what to do if they become conscious.
www.nytimes.com
April 24, 2025 at 7:52 PM
can we get human rights for the humans first please?
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
A new CV section for UNINVITED talks. List of instances I’ve accidentally lectured in unwanted contexts
April 22, 2025 at 5:27 PM
A new CV section for UNINVITED talks. List of instances I’ve accidentally lectured in unwanted contexts
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
TODAY is the LAST day to submit an abstract to SLRF! If you research L2s in ANY capacity: submit a 250-word abstract and join us in Flagstaff, AZ, this September for an unparalleled experience discussing the latest work with leading researchers in the field. sites.google.com/nau.edu/slrf...
March 31, 2025 at 7:00 AM
TODAY is the LAST day to submit an abstract to SLRF! If you research L2s in ANY capacity: submit a 250-word abstract and join us in Flagstaff, AZ, this September for an unparalleled experience discussing the latest work with leading researchers in the field. sites.google.com/nau.edu/slrf...
They're only formants if they come from the supralaryngeal region of the vocal tract. Otherwise they're just sparkling harmonics.
March 7, 2025 at 10:02 PM
They're only formants if they come from the supralaryngeal region of the vocal tract. Otherwise they're just sparkling harmonics.
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
this was published yesterday
On the responsibilities of intellectuals and the rise of bullshit jobs in universities
You may never have considered yourself to be one. Why would you? But if you’re reading this, there is more than a likelihood that you are one. If you’re a
academic.oup.com
March 7, 2025 at 2:56 PM
this was published yesterday
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
mathematicians are wizards
March 3, 2025 at 8:07 AM
mathematicians are wizards
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
what's wrong babe? you've barely touched your rarohire rochi terochichimomo
February 26, 2025 at 12:29 AM
what's wrong babe? you've barely touched your rarohire rochi terochichimomo
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
Two Weeks In The Death Spiral Of Cardiff University, by an anonymous academic.
This is truly shocking read.
The Cardiff executive board should hang their heads in shame.
voice.cymru/two-weeks-in...
This is truly shocking read.
The Cardiff executive board should hang their heads in shame.
voice.cymru/two-weeks-in...
Two Weeks In The Death Spiral Of Cardiff University -
Reading Time: 4 minutesBy an anonymous academic. Cover image by Adwitiya Pal On the second day of classes…
voice.cymru
February 21, 2025 at 3:42 PM
Two Weeks In The Death Spiral Of Cardiff University, by an anonymous academic.
This is truly shocking read.
The Cardiff executive board should hang their heads in shame.
voice.cymru/two-weeks-in...
This is truly shocking read.
The Cardiff executive board should hang their heads in shame.
voice.cymru/two-weeks-in...
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
Me, working on my little articles and book projects in February 2025:
February 17, 2025 at 5:20 PM
Me, working on my little articles and book projects in February 2025:
Reposted by Rory Turnbull
I love having a wander around the shops on 13th February. So many anxious-looking men scurrying around. So many men rushing into Card Factory with a debit card and terror in their eyes. So many men trying, with an air of panic, to figure out what their partner actually likes. Just delightful.
February 13, 2025 at 4:46 PM
I love having a wander around the shops on 13th February. So many anxious-looking men scurrying around. So many men rushing into Card Factory with a debit card and terror in their eyes. So many men trying, with an air of panic, to figure out what their partner actually likes. Just delightful.
Finally finished reading Douglas Stuart's (2020 Booker prize-winning) _Shuggie Bain_. It's been described as "Dickensian" - it's unashamed to show poverty and suffering but has a compassionate emotional core that differentiates it from "poverty porn" that typifies a lot of literature about Scotland.
February 13, 2025 at 10:11 AM
Finally finished reading Douglas Stuart's (2020 Booker prize-winning) _Shuggie Bain_. It's been described as "Dickensian" - it's unashamed to show poverty and suffering but has a compassionate emotional core that differentiates it from "poverty porn" that typifies a lot of literature about Scotland.