Institute of General Semantics Jobs & Positions

IGS at ICA

Tue, 24 Jun 2025 21:28:32 GMT

Following the MEA convention and IGS summer seminar (see our last two posts), IGS Trustees Peggy Cassidy, Thom Gencarelli, Lance Strate, and Laura Trujillo-Liñán travelled to Denver, Colorado for the annual International Communication Association convention. As an affiliate of the ICA, the IGS organized a panel discussion devoted to the continuing relevance of Alfred Korzybski. Here are some photos from the program:

The ICA had a special photo booth set up for participants, and our IGSers took the opportunity to have a little fun:

And even in Denver there are reminders that the map is not the...

IGS Summer Seminar

Tue, 24 Jun 2025 20:57:18 GMT

The IGS held its 3rd summer seminar in recent years immediately following the 2025 Media Ecology Association convention (see our previous post), at Universidad Panamericana in Mexico City. The seminar was taught by IGS Trustees Mary P. Lahman, Lance Strate, Peggy Cassidy, and Thom Gencarelli, with additional support from Laura Trujillo-Liñán, and participation from Gina Valenti, IGS Fellow TC McLuhan, and New York Society for General Semantics Vice-President Terry Manzella. Here are some scenes from the 3-day learning experience:

IGS at MEA

Tue, 24 Jun 2025 17:54:57 GMT

The Institute of General Semantics was well-represented at the 26th annual Media Ecology Association convention, organized by IGS Trustee and MEA Vice-President Laura Trujillo-Liñán. The meeting featured an opening plenary session entitled Why General Semantics? with IGS Trustees Peggy Cassidy, Susan Drucker, Thom Gencarelli, Lance Strate, and Laura Trujillo-Liñán.

Also participating in the MEA meeting was IGS Trustee Gina Valenti, seen here on the pre-conference tour of the pyramids at Teotihuacan. IGS Trustee Mary P. Lahman also attended the convention.

Three IGS Fellows participated in the 2025 MEA convention in featured roles, including former Alfred Korzybski Memorial Lecturers Deborah Tannen and Lera Boroditsky, and author and filmmaker TC McLuhan.

Above, Deborah Tannen delivers her keynote. Below, Lera Boroditsky during Tannen's Q&A.

Below, Lera Boroditsky delivers her keynote.

TC McLuhan was also on hand to showcase her feature length documentary, The Frontier Gandhi, and answer questions about the film.

At the MEA's Awards Ceremony held during its banquet dinner at the Soumaya Museum, IGS Trustee Laura Trujillo-Liñán received the MEA's 2025 Louis Forsdale Award for Outstanding Educator,

IGS Trustee Peggy Cassidy received the MEA's 2025 Edmund S. Carpenter Award for Career Achievement in Editing,

IGS Fellow Lera Boroditsky received the MEA's 2025 Walter J. Ong Award for Career Achievement in Scholarship,

and IGS Fellow Deborah Tannen received the MEA's 2025 Neil Postman Award for Career Achievement in Public Intellectual Activity.

It was truly a night to remember, and an unforgettable conference!

IGS VP Corey Anton at “Ad Orbem Per Linguas/To The World Through Languages” Conference

Sun, 01 Jun 2025 22:32:40 GMT

On May 15th, IGS Vice-President Corey Anton gave a talk via Zoom on "Literacy and Meta-Cognition: Exploring Some Connections" on a plenary session for the International Scientific and Practical Conference “AD ORBEM PER LINGUAS. TO THE WORLD THROUGH LANGUAGES” which took place at Kyiv National Linguistic University in Ukraine. The Organizing Committee expressed their appreciation for his participation and looks forward to deepening academic cooperation between Kyiv National Linguistic University and the Institute of General Semantics.

May Podcast Episode

Tue, 27 May 2025 21:27:57 GMT

The thirty-third episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our May 2025 podcast features five of our IGS Trustees on the state of higher education in the United States today. The conversation is led by IGS President Lance Strate who teaches at Fordham University, and includes IGS Vice-President Corey Anton of Grand Valley State University, IGS Treasurer Thom Gencarelli of Manhattan University, and IGS Trustees Peggy Cassidy of Adelphi University and Susan Drucker of Hofstra University. Their freewheeling roundtable touches on a variety of topics, including the difficulties that students are facing, the challenges brought on by technological advances including AI, issues regarding administrators and financial problems, and the dangers of a hostile political environment.

You can access Episode 33 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

Videos from the Gumpert Memorial & McLuhan Screening

Wed, 21 May 2025 18:06:10 GMT

The videos from our Gary Gumpert Memorial and Marshall McLuhan Screening, held on April 29, 2025, are now available for viewing on the IGS YouTube channel. They can be screened individually or via a single playlist over on YouTube or right here:

Videos from the Communication, Consciousness, & Culture 2 Online Symposium Now Available

Wed, 07 May 2025 17:34:46 GMT

The videos from our Communication, Consciousness, & Culture 2 Online Symposium, held on April 19, 2025, are now available for viewing on the IGS YouTube channel. They can be screened individually or via a single playlist over on YouTube or right here:

April Podcast Episode

Tue, 22 Apr 2025 18:31:26 GMT

The thirty-second episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our April 2025 podcast features the return of author, financier, and IGS Trustee Christopher Mayer to discuss the current economic situation in the United States with IGS President Lance Strate. Their dialogue emphasizes how general semantics can help us to understand financial concepts such as the trade deficit, tariffs, inflation, and even money itself.

You can access Episode 32 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

March Podcast Episode

Sun, 30 Mar 2025 18:02:05 GMT

The thirty-first episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our March 2025 podcast features the return of author, scholar, and critic Marleen Barr to discuss her recently published anthology entitled, Jewish Women Science Fiction Writers Create Future Females, with IGS President Lance Strate.

You can access Episode 31 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

February Podcast Episode

Tue, 25 Feb 2025 19:48:14 GMT

The thirtieth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our February 2025 podcast features IGS President Lance Strate interviewing Gabriel Kennedy, aka Prop Anon, the author of Chapel Perilous: The Life and Thought Crimes of Robert Anton Wilson.

You can access Episode 30 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

January Podcast Episode

Fri, 31 Jan 2025 20:43:35 GMT

The twenty-ninth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our January 2025 podcast features IGS President Lance Strate interviewing computer programmer and activist Brianna Wu. Their conversation covers Gamergate, feminism, transexual issues, and politics and activism.

You can access Episode 28 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

Videos from the 2024 AKML & Symposium Now Available!

Fri, 31 Jan 2025 20:36:58 GMT

The videos from our 2024 Alfred Korzybski Memorial Lecture, featuring Maryanne Wolf, and our Communication, Consciousness, and Culture Symposium, held on September 20th to 22nd, are now available for viewing on the IGS YouTube channel. They can be screened individually or via a single playlist over on YouTube or right here:

December Podcast Episode

Mon, 30 Dec 2024 19:28:54 GMT

The twenty-eighth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our December 2024 episode features IGS President Lance Strate interviewing computer scientist and IGS Past President Jeff Mordkowitz. Their conversation covers the history of general semantics and the Institute, approaches to teaching general semantics, the importance of the non-verbal or silent level, and Mordkowitz’s Seven Simple Steps to Sanity.

You can access Episode 28 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

French Translation of Korzybski's Science and Sanity Now Available

Sun, 22 Dec 2024 00:29:07 GMT

Alfred Korzybski's

magnum opus,

Science and Sanity

in French Translation!

Patrick Hug's translation of the Sixth Edition of Science and Sanity features updated illustrations and diagrams, and a new index, and is available in hardcover, paperback, and ebook editions from the IGS store and other online booksellers.

New IGS Book: Not A, Not Be, &c

Sun, 08 Dec 2024 00:09:34 GMT

Newly published by the Institute of General Semantics:

Not A, Not Be, &c by Lance Strate

Available in paperback and ebook editions from the IGS store and other online booksellers.

Not A, Not Be, &c is not just another collection of essays on general semantics. Not that it is not exactly that, a collection of essays on general semantics specifically, and on what Neil Postman described as general semantics writ large, aka media ecology. This colorful collection of essays, complete with illustrations and indexes, cover topics related to human communication and the human condition, the contrast between alphabetic and electronic cultures, a new tree of life model, understanding different types of symbolic form (i.e., words, images, and numbers), problems and possibilities regarding the copula and conjunctions, the nature of imagination, and coping with and changing the world we live in.

Not A, Not Be, &c is a wonderful intellectual playground. Strate crafts complex systems of ideas into a delightful landscape that will be a joy for any curious mind to roam. ‒Lera Boroditsky, Professor of Cognitive Science, University of California San Diego

In this cryptically titled collection of essays, Strate shows how word play is a serious matter, maps are creative as much as accurate, and logic is often misleading. Despite the initially opaque title, the writing is clear and the argument compelling, demonstrating how language and media are central to the human condition. The book explains and extends upon the insights of Korzybski and general semantics and McLuhan and media ecology, tracing their influence and showing their contemporary relevance. ‒Chris Chesher, Senior Lecturer in Digital Cultures, University of Sydney

Not A, Not Be, &c invites you to rethink the very constructs that shape our understanding of existence, communication, and human potential. Strate challenges conventional thinking, guiding readers through a nuanced examination of symbolic communication, the limitations of language, and the profound impact of our conceptual frameworks on reality. ‒Heather Maloney-Stassen, Founding Dean, College of Arts, Sciences, & Education, Daemen University

Lance Strate reveals the relevance of general semantics for readers familiar with and new to the field and identifies its link with media ecology. Along the way, Strate establishes how the non-Aristotelian character of general semantics suits the speed and connectivity of our “E” world. The pages are packed with references to ancient wisdoms, scholarly insights, adages of public intellectuals, and pertinent practices of cultural icons—we meet Popeye indexed alongside Plato, Lady Gaga next to Alfred Korzybski himself. The text unsettles conventions, applying the disruptive energy of general semantics to show there is always more: etc. or “&c.” Once you read this book, you won’t hear the phrase “it is what it is” the same way—schooled by Strate to adopt Korzybski’s perspective where nothing is definitive, and more is resident and forthcoming. ‒Jaqueline McLeod Rogers, Professor & Chair, Department of Writing, Rhetoric, and Communications, University of Winnipeg

Lance Strate is without a doubt our foremost thinker and writer about general semantics and media ecology, and how these two thought systems are so wholly interconnected and overlapping. In this bold collection of essays, he again seeks to move our understanding a great leap forward with respect to what we know about both systems, and with his extensions of what Korzybski, McLuhan, Postman, Bateson, Ong, and so many others, as his giants, have taught us. With each superbly written chapter, he reminds us how his endeavor is nothing more and nothing less than understanding the nature of our human experience as the languaging and symbol-making species. ‒Thom Gencarelli, Professor of Communication, Sound & Media Arts, Manhattan University

Table of Contents: About the Author; Prolegomenon (Not Not An Introduction); Acknowledgements; Index of Proper Names; Subject Index; References; Part 1 Not A; Chapter 1 If Not A, Then E; Chapter 2 Word, Image, Number; Part 2 Not Be; Chapter 3 It Is What It Isn't; Chapter 4 Figments of a Fragment, or Fragments of a Figment; Part 3 &c; Chapter 5 So You Want to Change the World? A Hitchhiker's Guide to Subversive Thinking; Chapter 6 The And

November Podcast Episode

Fri, 29 Nov 2024 20:56:02 GMT

The twenty-seventh episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our November 2024 episode departs from our usual format as IGS President Lance Strate shares the Balvant Parekh Memorial Lecture that he recently delivered in India for the Balvant Parekh Centre for General Semantics and other Human Sciences. The lecture, entitled "The Message, the Meaning, and the Medium," ties together general semantics, behaviorism, information theory and cybernetics, and media ecology. You can access Episode 27 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

A New Edition of Korzybski's General Semantics Seminar Now Available

Wed, 27 Nov 2024 21:02:46 GMT

The 4th edition of Alfred Korzybski's most accessible book on general semantics, General Semantics Seminar 1937: Olivet College Lectures, is now available for purchase in the traditional softcover version, and in a searchable electronic (epub) format, via the IGS store and most major online booksellers.

The new edition includes a new foreword and a newly added index by IGS Vice-President Corey Anton.

The book consists of a transcription made from lectures given at Alfred Korzybski's seminar in general semantics at Olivet College in 1937. This is Korzybski "caught live." The text retains much of the warm, anecdotal flavor of his platform manner, with minimal editing. The text includes 14 lectures given to college students on general semantics theory, backgrounds, and applications.

October Podcast Episode

Thu, 31 Oct 2024 19:50:59 GMT

The twenty-sixth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our October 2024 episode features IGS Trustees Eva Berger, Corey Anton, and Lance Strate taking part a controversial discussion on some of the most recent developments in artificial intelligence and language models and their implications for the future, as well as their connections to general semantics. You can access Episode 26 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

September Podcast Episode

Mon, 30 Sep 2024 19:56:36 GMT

The twenty-fifth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our September 2024 episode features an interview with author, New York Law School professor, and former president of the American Civil Liberties Union, Nadine Strossen, conducted by IGS trustees Lance Strate and Susan Drucker. Their conversation centers on legal issues such as free speech in the context of contemporary American politics and culture.

You can access Episode 25 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

August Podcast Episode

Fri, 30 Aug 2024 19:51:54 GMT

The twenty-fourth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our August 2024 episode features Corey Anton and Thom Gencarelli discussing general semantics and politics, based on the recent special issues of the IGS’s quarterly journal, ETC: A Review of General Semantics. In conversation with Lance Strate, they talk about Corey Anton’s role as guest editor working together with Thom Gencarelli as ETC editor in chief, and their plans for publishing an anthology based on the two issues. Naturally enough, they also cover Alfred Korzybski’s historical development of time-binding and how general semantics has been and could be applied to politics. They also had much to say about contemporary American politics, media and technology, and the current presidential election campaign.

You can access Episode 24 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

July Podcast Episode

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 21:44:29 GMT

The twenty-third episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our July 2024 episode departs from our usual format, and instead features a series of short take interviews conducted in conjunction with the IGS's summer seminar entitled, Navigating the Now: A Guide to Recognizing What is Going On, which was held at the October Gallery in London, England, on July 25th to 27th, 2024. Over the course of the three days, Lance Strate recorded the ruminations and evaluations from the other faculty who were leading the seminar, Mary Lahman, Dom Heffer, Nora Bateson, and Peggy Cassidy. The episode also includes responses from some of the students and participants in the seminar, reflecting on what they learned and experienced.

You can access Episode 23 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

3 MEA Awards Go to IGS Trustees

Sat, 06 Jul 2024 22:17:30 GMT

At the recent annual meeting of the Media Ecology Association hosted by Daemon University in Amherst, New York on June 6th to 9th, three members of the Board of Trustees of the Institute of General Semantics were honored for their contributions and achievements: Corey Anton, Susan Drucker, and Thom Gencarelli. The awards ceremony was hosted by IGS President Lance Strate, assisted by MEA Vice-President Heather Stassen.

Thom Gencarelli was presented with the MEA's 2024 Edmund S. Carpenter Award for Career Achievement in Editing in recognition of his service as editor of the IGS journal ETC: A Review of General Semantics.

Susan Drucker was presented with the MEA's 2024 Christine L. Nystrom Award for Career Achievement in Service in recognition of his contributions to the IGS, the MEA, and as a founder and leader of the Urban Communication Foundation.

And Corey Anton was presented with one of the MEA's highest honors, the MEA's 2024 Walter J. Ong Award for Career Achievement in Scholarship.

We join with our friends and colleagues in the MEA in congratulating our hardworking and talented trustees, Thom Gencarelli, Susan Drucker, and Corey Anton. And we also want to express our appreciation to the Media Ecology Association for their recognition.

June Podcast Episode

Thu, 27 Jun 2024 00:04:10 GMT

The twenty-second episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our June 2024 episode was recorded at a local radio station in the city of Gold Coast in Australia, and features Australian media personality and researcher, Renée Peterson. Renée has spent over two decades as a media industry professional in Australia and the US, as a radio and television producer, writer, and on-air broadcaster, and is currently completing her doctoral degree at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. She joins IGS trustees Lance Strate, Thom Gencarelli, and Laura Trujillo-Liñán, who were in Australia for the annual meeting of the International Communication Association (the IGS is an ICA affiliate organization). Their conversation centers on the role of radio, along with sound recording and newer forms of digital media, in Australia, the United States, and Mexico, as well as on celebrities, influencers, and more recent developments in digital media. They also talk about language, dialects, and not surprisingly, general semantics.

You can access Episode 22 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

Join Us in July for our Summer Seminar in London!

Sun, 26 May 2024 17:34:15 GMT

After last year's successful summer seminar in New York City, the IGS will be holding a 3-Day In-Person General Semantics Seminar in London, UK, on July 25-27.

Navigating the Now: A Guide to Recognizing What Is Going On will be taught by IGS Trustees Nora Bateson, Dom Heffer, Mary P. Lahman, and Lance Strate.

During the seminar, we will explore how unexamined language behaviors perpetuate misperceptions of past and present controversies in professional and personal spaces. And we will determine which language and listening behaviors respect the infinite worth of each person in the interaction.

The seminar will be held over 3 full days (9 AM to 5 PM) on July 25th to 27th in London, UK, at the October Gallery.

For more information and to register, click here.

May Podcast Episode

Sun, 26 May 2024 17:30:40 GMT

The twenty-first episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our May 2024 episode features an interview with Dr. Margaret Cassidy, the newly elected president of the New York Society for General Semantics, and the author of Bookends: The Changing Media Environment of American Classrooms; and of Children, Media, and American History: Printed Poison, Pernicious Stuff, and Other Terrible Temptations. Peggy Cassidy is Professor and Chair of the Department of Communication at Adelphi University, and a past president of the New York State Communication Association, and the Media Ecology Association. In conversation with IGS Trustees Lance Strate and Thom Gencarelli, the discussion deals with dance and choreography, language and the arts, symbolic form and musical notation, orality and literacy, education and communication, technology and psychotherapy, leadership and administration, and of course general semantics.

You can access Episode 21 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

April Podcast Episode

Tue, 30 Apr 2024 17:25:15 GMT

The twentieth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our April 2024 episode features an interview with lawyer, media activist, and artist-designer Paul Guzzardo. The conversation ranges across topics such as digital arts and deep fakes, the music of Ustad Imrat Khan, Henry Ford and the United Steel Workers labor union, Marshall McLuhan and Walter Ong, Patrick Geddes and Aldous Huxley, Josephine Baker, Walter Winchell, Giovanni Piranesi, and of course general semantics, and takes us on a trip from Guzzardo’s hometown of St. Louis to his current residence in Buenos Aries, Argentina, with stops along the way in places such as New York City, Edinburgh and Dundee in Scotland, and Calcutta, India. .

You can access Episode 20 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

March Podcast Episode

Sat, 30 Mar 2024 18:31:18 GMT

The nineteenth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our March 2024 episode features a discussion held in the media lab at Panamericana University in Mexico City with Panamericana's Media Lab Director Gustavo Navarro, IGS Trustee and Panamericana Philosophy Professor Laura Trujillo-Liñán, and visiting IGS Trustees Thom Gencarelli and Lance Strate. Their conversation covers media ecology, new media, education, general semantics, and more.

You can access Episode 19 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

February Podcast Episode

Mon, 12 Feb 2024 22:19:24 GMT

The eighteenth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our Febuary 2024 episode features the second part of an interview with singer-songwriter and activist Michelle Shocked. In conversation with IGS trustees Lance Strate and Thom Gencarelli, they discuss Michelle's career and music, and issues regarding copyright, media and technology, artists' rights, and human dignity (and includes a bit of salty language). The episode concludes with a live performance and a prerecorded song. If you haven't heard episode 17, you may want to listen to that one first.

You can access Episode 18 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

January Podcast Episode

Sun, 28 Jan 2024 21:04:51 GMT

The seventeenth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our January 2024 episode features an interview with singer-songwriter and activist Michelle Shocked. In conversation with IGS trustees Lance Strate and Thom Gencarelli, they discuss Michelle's background and music, and issues regarding copyright, media and technology, artists' rights, and human dignity, and conclude with a live performance.

You can access Episode 17 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, also on YouTube, and below:

December Podcast Episode

Sat, 30 Dec 2023 22:08:09 GMT

The sixteenth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our December 2023 episode features an interview with former IGS Executive Director and Trustee Steve Stockdale. In conversation with IGS President Lance Strate, Stockdale discusses his background and connection to general semantics, his experiences setting up a MOOC and teaching a course on general semantics online, and his initiative known as “calling out the symbol rulers”.

You can access Episode 16 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

2023 Symposium Videos Now Online

Thu, 28 Dec 2023 21:52:29 GMT

The presentations at the 71st Annual Alfred Korzybski Memorial Lecture and the Non-Aristotelian Perspectives, Ecological Approaches, and the Anthropocene Symposium held on October 27th-29th, 2023 at The Players, New York City, are now available for viewing via the IGS YouTube channel.

Lera Boroditsky's Korzybski Lecture was not included at the request of the speaker, but IGS members can access the raw footage of the entire weekend via our special members only page.

November Podcast Episode

Fri, 01 Dec 2023 21:48:35 GMT

The fifteenth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our November 2023 episode features an interview with author, public speaker, and strategy management consultant Marcy Axelrod. The interview, conducted by IGS President Lance Strate, focuses on her new book, entitled How We Choose to Show Up, her work as a business consultant, and the importance of speech, relationships, and personal presence.

You can access Episode 15 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

October Podcast Episode

Tue, 31 Oct 2023 20:42:11 GMT

The fourteenth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Our October 2023 episode features an interview with Nora Bateson, who is an IGS Trustee and President of the International Bateson Institute. The interview, conducted by IGS President Lance Strate, focuses on her new book, entitled Combining, a volume that includes essays, poems, and artwork. Their conversation touches on topics such as systems theory, the ecology of communication, learning and interdependence, relationships and contexts, and poetry and forms of expression.

You can access Episode 14 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

September Podcast Episode

Sat, 30 Sep 2023 20:37:01 GMT

The thirteenth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. Celebrating the one year anniversary of the launch of our podcast, our September 2023 episode features a roundtable discussion with IGS trustees Eva Berger, Susan Drucker, Thom Gencarelli, Michael Plugh, and Lance Strate, as they take up the one of the most basic questions for the discipline of general semantics: What is going on? Their discussion touches on problems such as racism and retribalization, information overload and political polarization, chaos and complexity, AI and regulation, and how to make things better.

You can access Episode 13 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

August Podcast Episode

Tue, 05 Sep 2023 17:23:24 GMT

The twelfth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. This installment features an interview with Paul Soukup, SJ, a professor of communication at Santa Clara University, and the author of seven books, including Communication and Theology; Christian Communication; Media, Culture and Catholicism; Mass Media and the Moral Imagination; Fidelity and Translation: Communicating the Bible in New Media; Out of Eden; and most recently, A Media Ecology of Theology. The interview is conducted by IGS president Lance Strate, and their discussion ranges across topics such as education, language, environmentalism, religion, and media.

You can access Episode 12 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

July Podcast Episode

Tue, 01 Aug 2023 18:47:56 GMT

The eleventh episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. This installment features an interview with novelist, literary scholar, and science fiction critic Marleen Barr. Dr. Barr is the author of two novels, Oy Pioneer! and Oy Feminist Planets, and a number of works of feminist science fiction, including Alien to Femininity: Speculative Fiction and Feminist Theory; Lost in Space: Probing Feminist Science Fiction and Beyond; Feminist Fabulation: Space/Postmodern Fiction; and Genre Fission: A New Discourse Practice for Cultural Studies. Her most recent book, just published by Dark Helix Press, is a short story collection entitled This Former President: Science Fiction as Retrospective Retrorocket Jettisons Trumpism. The discussion covers feminism, literary theory, science fiction, and politics.

You can access Episode 11 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

IGS Featured at MEA Convention

Sun, 09 Jul 2023 17:40:20 GMT

The IGS played a featured role at this year's 24th annual Media Ecology Association convention in New York City, held on June 22nd-25th, as cosponsors of the event. Here are some of the highlights:

At the opening session, IGS President Lance Strate delivered welcoming remarks along with MEA President Michael Plugh, who is also a Trustee of the IGS, and President of the New York Society for General Semantics.

The IGS was featured at a special plenary session on general semantics. The panel included, from l. to r., IGS Trustees Lance Strate, Susan Drucker, Eva Berger, Michael Plugh, Tomkins Institute Chair Phil Rose (serving as moderator), and IGS Trustees Laura Trujillo-Liñán and Corey Anton.

A session featuring authors of recently published books featured several IGS trustees: From l. to r. Lance Strate, author of Concerning Communication (IGS, 2022), Laura Trujillo-Liñán, author of Formal Cause in Marshall McLuhan's Thinking (IGS, 2022), Eva Berger, author of Context Blindness (Peter Lang, 2022), along with Paul Soukup, author of A Media Ecology of Theology (Baylor University Press, 2022), and chairing the session, Michael Plugh.

IGS Vice-President Corey Anton re-presented his 2022 keynote delivered at the New York State Communication Association's annual conference, "Apprehending the Elusive: Communication, Language, and Literacy":

Another plenary session featured IGS Fellow TC McLuhan in conversation with Lance Strate:

IGS Trustee Michael Plugh received the MEA's Christine L. Nystrom Award for Service for his efforts as an MEA officer, as well as for serving as President of the New York Society for General Semantics, and as Past President of the New York State Communication Association:

Adeena Karasick received the MEA's Susanne K. Langer Award for Outstanding Scholarship in the Ecology of Symbolic Form for her book, Massaging the Medium, published by the IGS.

IGS Trustee Eva Berger received the MEA's Erving Goffman Award for Outstanding Scholarship in the Ecology of Social Interaction for her book, Context Blindness.

And IGS Trustee Laura Trujillo-Liñán received the MEA's Marshall McLuhan Award for Outstanding Book for her monograph, Formal Cause in Marshall McLuhan's Thinking, published by the IGS.

It was truly a week to remember!

A Successful Seminar!

Sat, 08 Jul 2023 17:20:55 GMT

Held on June 19th-21st at Fordham University's Lincoln Center Campus in New York City, with instructors Mary P. Lahman, Lance Strate, Corey Anton, our Introduction to General Semantics in-person seminar was a great success, with over 20 students in attendance.

For more details and to see a slideshow from the 3-day seminar, see our Classes & Seminars page.

June Podcast Episode

Fri, 30 Jun 2023 20:05:55 GMT

The tenth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. This installment features an interview with writer, educator and general semantics expert Mary P. Lahman, conducted by Lance Strate. Dr. Lahman is Professor Emerita of Communication Studies at Manchester University in Indiana, and the author of Awareness and Action, published by the Institute of General Semantics. She is also a member of the IGS Board of Trustees. The discussion deals with communication as a field of study, the theory and practice of listening, and teaching on the topic of general semantics.

You can access Episode 10 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

The Tomkins Institute Added As AKML Co-Sponsor

Mon, 05 Jun 2023 18:02:35 GMT

At the recent annual conference of the International Communication Association in Toronto, May 26th-29th, in Toronto, IGS President Lance Strate and Treasurer Thom Gencarelli met with the Chair of the Tomkins Institute, Phil Rose, to discuss possibilities of collaboration between our two organizations. As a result, the Tomkins Institute has agreed to join the list of cosponsors of our annual Alfred Korzybski Memorial Lecture and the Symposium on Non-Aristotelian Perspectives, Ecological Approaches, and the Anthropocene to follow, being held on October 27th-29th in New York City.

Sylvan Tomkins (1911-1991) was a student of general semantics scholar Samuel Bois, and his affect theory is consistent with and complementary of the work of Korzybski, Hayakawa, Johnson, and Bois, as well as Norbert Weiner and Gregory Bateson's cybernetics, and media ecology.

Gary David, a member of the Tomkins Institute's advisory board, gave a memorable online lecture on General Semantics and Epistemics for the IGS this past March. Tomkins Institute's Chair (the equivalent of president) Phil Rose is a Past President of the Media Ecology Association, as are Strate and Gencarelli. Rose is also the editor of Confronting Technopoly: Charting a Course Towards Human Survival, an anthology based on the work of Neil Postman. Rose is also the author of Roger Waters and Pink Floyd: The Concept Albums and Radiohead and the Global Movement for Change: 'Pragmatism Not Idealism'.

The Tomkins Institute joins the New York Society for General Semantics, the Media Ecology Association, the International Bateson Institute, and the 404 Festival of Art and Technology as cosponsors of our 2023 AKML and Symposium.

May Podcast Episode

Wed, 31 May 2023 17:56:37 GMT

The ninth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. This installment features an interview with Martin H. Levinson, author, Trustee and Past President of the IGS, conducted by Lance Strate. Their conversation covers Levinson’s background in general semantics, his career in education, and his writing, centering on his satirical work. Levinson shares a reading from his latest book, Lunch with the American People: Satirical Food for Thought.

You can access Episode 9 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

Online Lecture by Thom Gencarelli: Some Perspective on the Perspective of Communication and Media Revolutions

Wed, 03 May 2023 21:38:40 GMT

Our 2023 IGS lecture series continues with an online talk featuring IGS Trustee Thom Gencarelli. The lecture will be delivered on Thursday, May 25th at 8:o0 PM EDT via Zoom. It will be free and open to the public, but registration is required. To view the event page and register, click here.

April Podcast Episode

Wed, 03 May 2023 21:27:28 GMT

The eighth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. This installment features an interview with Gary Gumpert, Professor Emeritus of Communicastion at Queens College of the City University of New York and President of the Urban Communication Foundation, conducted by Lance Strate and Thom Gencarelli. The conversation covers the entirety of Dr. Gumpert’s life and times, from his childhood escaping from the Holocaust, to his early career in radio and television broadcasting, to his work as a communication scholar. Along the way, we find a consistent emphasis on the themes of community and connection.

You can access Episode 8 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

March Podcast Episode

Sun, 02 Apr 2023 18:27:49 GMT

The seventh episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. This installment features media literacy maven and communication studies scholar Renee Hobbs, interviewed by Lance Strate and Thom Gencarelli. The conversation ranged across topics such as propaganda, media education, communication technology, and general semantics today.

You can access Episode 7 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

Online Lecture by Dr. Gary David: General Semantics and Epistemics: The Science-Art of Innovating

Wed, 08 Mar 2023 18:27:29 GMT

Our 2023 IGS lecture series continues with an online talk featuring Dr. Gary David. The lecture will be delivered on Sunday, March 26tf at 1:30 PM EST via Zoom. It will be free and open to the public, but registration is required. To view the event page and register, click here.

February Podcast Episode

Wed, 08 Mar 2023 18:21:45 GMT

The sixth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. This time the podcast features an interview with poet, author and recording artist Stephen Roxborough conducted by Lance Strate. The conversation focuses on the recent release of Roxborough's Poetic Dystopia, an album available on CD and digital download, featuring spoken word poetry, with music by Karl Blau.

You can access Episode 6 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

Online Lecture by Mary P. Lahman: EmpathyA is not EmpathyB is not EmpathyC

Sun, 05 Feb 2023 18:54:45 GMT

Our 2023 IGS lecture series continues with an online talk featuring IGS Trustee Mary P. Lahman. The lecture will be delivered on Tuesday, February 21st at 3 PM EST via Zoom. It will be free and open to the public, but registration is required. To view the event page and register, click here.

January Podcast Episode

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 18:44:20 GMT

The fifth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. This time the podcast features an interview with author and media scholar Paul Levinson conducted by Lance Strate. The conversation ranges across topics that include science fiction, science, language and media, politics, and free speech, and concludes with a reading by Levinson of his alternate history short story about the Beatles, "It's Real Life".

You can access Episode 3 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

2022 Symposium Videos Now Online

Mon, 16 Jan 2023 18:35:50 GMT

The presentations at the 70th Annual Alfred Korzybski Memorial Lecture and the Ecologies of Mind, Media, and Meaning Symposium held on October 7th-9th, 2022 at The Players, New York City, are now available for viewing via the IGS YouTube channel.

Janna Levin's Korzybski Lecture was not included at the request of the speaker, but IGS members can access the raw footage of the entire weekend via our special members only page.

Online Lecture by Nora Bateson: What is Warm Data?

Mon, 09 Jan 2023 18:49:40 GMT

Our IGS lecture series begins anew for 2023 with an online talk featuring IGS Trustee Nora Bateson. The lecture will be delivered on Tuesday, January 31st at 11 AM EST via Zoom. It will be free and open to the public, but registration is required. To view the event page and register, click here.

December Podcast Episode

Fri, 30 Dec 2022 18:27:24 GMT

The fourth episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. This time the podcast features a a freewheeling discussion with IGS trustees Corey Anton, Nora Bateson, Eva Berger, Corey Anton, and Lance Strate, on media and technology in general, and especially computers, artificial intelligence, and Chat GPT, and their effects on human communication, consciousness, and culture. You can access Episode 4 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

Online Lecture by Eva Berger: Metaphors and Definitions: A General Semantics Look at the Language of Pain, Addiction, and the Opioid Epidemic

Fri, 02 Dec 2022 20:11:03 GMT

The 2022 IGS lecture series continues with our fourth online talk featuring IGS Secretary Eva Berger. The lecture will be delivered on Monday, December 12th at 12 Noon EST via Zoom. It will be free and open to the public, but registration is required. To view the event page and register, click here.

November Podcast Episode

Fri, 02 Dec 2022 20:05:04 GMT

The third episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. This time the podcast features interviews with communication scholars Susan Jasko and Stephanie Bennett conducted by Lance Strate during the annual meeting of the National Communication Association in New Orleans. You can access Episode 3 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

Online Lecture by Corey Anton: Challenging Some Common-Sense Notions About Language

Fri, 11 Nov 2022 16:14:13 GMT

The 2022 IGS lecture series continues with our third online talk featuring IGS Vice-President Corey Anton. The lecture will be delivered on Friday, November 11th at 12 Noon EST via Zoom. It will be free and open to the public, but registration is required. To view the event page and register, click here.

New Podcast Episode Featuring Christopher Mayer & Adeena Karasick

Wed, 02 Nov 2022 21:11:06 GMT

The second episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. This time the podcast features an interview with author and financial consultant Christopher Mayer conducted by Thom Gencarelli and Lance Strate, plus a poetry reading by Adeena Karasick. You can access Episode 1 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

Online Lecture by Lance Strate: The Issue of Is: A Commentary on the Case Against the Verb “To Be”

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 00:24:39 GMT

IGS President Lance Strate will deliver the second in our new online lecture series on The Issue of Is: A Commentary on the Case Against the Verb “To Be”. The lecture will be held via Zoom on October 28th at noon EDT. It will be free and open to the public, but registration is required. To view the event page and register, click here.

Martin Levinson Interviewed on the Mind For Life Podcast

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 00:21:58 GMT

IGS Trustee and Past President Martin Levinson was interviewed on the Mind For Life Podcast hosted by Jeff Bogaczyk on How to Think Better With General Semantics. To view the podcast page and listen to the podcast, click here.

IGS Launches Semantic Reactions, Our Official Podcast

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 00:16:53 GMT

The first episode of Semantic Reactions, the official podcast of the Institute of General Semantics, is now available for your listening pleasure. The inaugural episode features an interview with Nora Bateson conducted by Lance Strate and Michael Plugh, plus a poetry reading by Martin H. Levinson, and a reading from Korzbyski's Manhood of Humanity, voiced by Eva Berger. You can access Episode 1 via our host site, and it is also available through most major podcast platforms, and on YouTube, and below:

Martin Levinson Featured on Veteran Et Cetera Podcast

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 00:13:12 GMT

IGS Trustee and Past President Martin Levinson was interviewed on an episode of the Veteran Et Cetera podcast, discussing the value of general semantics for veterans' readjustment. You can listen to the podcast via YouTube and below:

AKML & Symposium

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 00:06:30 GMT

The 70th annual Alfred Korzybski Memorial Lecture, featuring astrophysicist and novelist Janna Levin, was held on October 7, 2022, and the Ecologies of Mind, Media, and Meaning Symposium followed on October 8th and 9th, 2022. The event was co-sponsored by the New York Society for General Semantics, the Media Ecology Association, the International Bateson Institute, and the 404 Festival of Art and Technology. To view the event page, click here.AKML and Symposium. Video recordings from the symposium will be uploaded to the IGS YouTube channel in the near future.

How to Improve Your Thinking & Communicating Ability Using General Semantics

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 00:03:14 GMT

On September 29th, 2022, the IGS launched a new online lecture series featuring Trustee and Past President Martin H. Levinson discussing How to Improve Your Thinking & Communicating Ability Using General Semantics. To view the event page, click here. The recording of the event will be made available exclusively to IGS members in the near future.

Bateson Anniversaries Event: The Map is Not the Territory

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 00:00:02 GMT

On September 21st, the IGS co-sponsored a Bateson Anniversaries event entitled, The Map is Not the Territory, featuring IGS Trustee and International Bateson Institute President Nora Bateson, and IGS President Lance Strate. To view the event page, click here. Recording of the event is not presently available.

Science, Sanity, and the Semantic Environment II: An Online Symposium

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 23:54:31 GMT

The Science, Sanity, and the Semantic Environment II Online Symposium was held via Zoom on June 25, 2022. To view the event page, click here.

To view the recordings of the event on the IGS YouTube channel, click here, or view it below:

Totem and Taboo in Contemporary Talk

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 23:48:54 GMT

The Totem and Taboo in Contemporary Talk panel discussion and presentation of the 2021 S.I. Hayakawa Prize to John H. McWhorter was held on April 6, 2022. For the full event description, click here.

The recording of the event is available for viewing on the IGS YouTube channel. To view it there, click here. Or view it right here:

Laura Trujillo-Liñán Joins the IGS Board of Trustees

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 22:00:22 GMT

Laura Trujillo-Liñán has joined the IGS Board of Trustees. She is professor/researcher of Humanities and Media at Universidad Panamericana in Mexico City, and General Coordinator for the Universidad Panamericana Open University.

Thom Gencarelli Elected Treasurer of the IGS

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 21:56:47 GMT

Thom Gencarelli has succeeded Jacqueline Rudig as Treasurer of the IGS. Dr. Gencarelli is Professor and the founding Chair of the Communication Department at Manhattan College, and the current editor of the official journal of the IGS, ETC: A Review of General Semantics. He is also the Treasurer of the New York Society for General Semantics and a Past President of the Media Ecology Association, the New York State Communication Association, and the New Jersey Communication Association (twice).

Susan Drucker and Michael Plugh Join the IGS Board of Trustees

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 21:52:08 GMT

Susan Drucker and Michael Plugh have joined the IGS Board of Trustees. Dr. Drucker is a Distinguished Professor of Journalism in the Department of Journalism/Media Studies, School of Communication, Hofstra University. She is also an attorney, the treasurer of the Urban Communication Foundation, and the author and editor of 13 books and over 150 articles and book chapters. Michael Plugh is an Associate Professor of Communication at Manhattan College, the President of the New York Society for General Semantics, Vice-President of the Media Ecology Association, and a Past President of the New York State Communication Association.

Michael Plugh Elected President of the New York Society for General Semantics

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 21:41:12 GMT

Michael Plugh has succeeded Lance Strate as President of the New York Society for General Semantics. Dr. Plugh teaches communication at Manhattan College, has served as President of the New York State Communication Association, and Vice-President of the Media Ecology Association.

Lance Strate served as President of the NYSGS from 2016 to 2021, and stepped down from that role after being elected as President of the Institute of General Semantics. He remains on the NYSGS board in the office of Secretary. Teresa Manzella was elected as Vice-President and Thom Gencarelli as Treasurer of the NYSGS.

Trustees Elect Lance Strate as the New President and Eva Berger as the New Secretary of the Institute of General Semantics

Tue, 22 Dec 2020 19:09:12 GMT

After many years of faithful and fruitful service, Martin H. Levinson has stepped down from his position as President of the Institute of General Semantics, and Vanessa Biard-Schaeffer from Secretary. Both remain IGS trustees, and Biard-Schaeffer has also been appointed Ambassador-at-Large.

We are pleased to announce the election of Lance Strate as the new IGS President, and Eva Berger as Secretary. They will join current Vice President Corey Anton, and Treasurer Jacqueline Rudig, who were re-elected to their positions.

About Lance Strate

Dr. Strate is Professor of Communication and Media Studies at Fordham University in New York City, and the author of eight books, including On the Binding Biases of Time and Other Essays on General Semantics and Media Ecology; Amazing Ourselves to Death: Neil Postman's Brave New World Revisited; and most recently, Diatribal Writes of Passage in a World of Wintertextuality: Poems on Language, Media, and Life.

About Eva Berger

Dr. Berger is a former Dean and current Senior Lecturer in the School of Media Studies of the College of Management and Academic Studies in Tel Aviv, and author of The Communication Panacea: Pediatrics and General Semantics.

Lance Strate Named President of the New York Society for General Semantics

Mon, 23 May 2016 18:08:18 GMT

A bit of recent news from our sister organization, the New York Society for General Semantics:

Fordham Communications professor Lance Strate, Ph.D., has become the new president of the New York Society for General Semantics. He will be conducting monthly NYSGS meetings in the fall at The Players Club in New York City. More information to follow.

Dr. Strate recently posted an update on NYSGS on his blog.

For information on future NYSGS events, please visit http://www.nysgs.org.

James Madison University Seeking Professor with General Semantics Expertise

Mon, 22 Mar 2010 18:07:32 GMT

"Professor of Writing, Rhetoric, & Technical Communication at James Madison University"

James Madison University’s School of Writing, Rhetoric & Technical Communication seeks applications and nominations for a senior faculty position at the rank of professor.

Additional information about the School is available at www.jmu.edu/wrtc.

Duties and Responsibilities: research and scholarly activity in area of specialization; mentor student research, undergraduate and graduate; pursue external funding; strengthen cross-disciplinary relations with other departments and schools at JMU.

Qualifications: Requirements include a doctorate in Linguistics, Rhetoric and Composition, or related field, with demonstrated expertise in psycholinguistics, sociolinguistics, general semantics, and with evidence of successful teaching in first-year composition. Additional requirements include demonstrated success at writing grants and securing external funding and evidence of successful curricular and programmatic design.

Preferred qualifications include experience designing and teaching courses at the intersections of rhetoric, writing, technical and scientific communication and linguistics.

Instructions to applicants: Candidates must complete the JOBLINK Application at https://joblink.jmu.edu. In addition, candidates must send a letter of application, C.V., official transcripts, statement of teaching philosophy and/or sample syllabi, and three letters of recommendation to:

Dr. Jim Zimmerman
Chair, WRTC Search Committee
James Madison University
School of Writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication
800 South Main Street, MSC 2103
Harrisonburg, VA 22807

To assure consideration, all materials must be received by April 18, 2010.