Laura A. Michaelis's Avatar

Laura A. Michaelis

@congramqueen.bsky.social

Mom, Professor of Linguistics @colorado.edu. 1st gen Construction Grammarian, Fillmore protégée, using social semiotic syntax to combine climate-change action & meaning construction. Feet planted in Boulder, heart still in Berkeley

379 Followers  |  339 Following  |  42 Posts  |  Joined: 07.12.2023  |  1.8603

Latest posts by congramqueen.bsky.social on Bluesky


I will eventually shut up about this but Bad Bunny’s use of the power lines is an outstanding example of how to communicate about climate and energy issues. Not about who is the smartest nerd in the room and spewing numbers but about people’s actual lives. Genius.

09.02.2026 02:29 — 👍 2636    🔁 414    💬 4    📌 21

our recent #PNAS article "The intensification of the strongest nor'easters"
www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...

23.01.2026 16:57 — 👍 95    🔁 39    💬 8    📌 2
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You’ve probably heard this claim: Climate’s always changing!

It's true, Earth’s climate has changed before. But not this fast, and not for this reason.

Introducing Cold Facts, Hot Takes: my new series of evidence-based replies to common troll takes 🔥

Want the whole episode? Links below ⬇️

12.11.2025 00:22 — 👍 522    🔁 179    💬 14    📌 10

Indeed! The fastidious 20 minute non-verbal heist scene in his 1955 Les Hommes chez Rififi (watch for creative use of umbrella) was motivated by Dassin’s not knowing French! I used it for a psycholinguistic experiment that needed a silent sequence

20.10.2025 01:31 — 👍 2    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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The Monterey Peninsula is turning out at Del Monte beach! Largest mass mobilization in its history. Y E S on 50

18.10.2025 21:25 — 👍 4    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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My tired 15 yo (and friend) after 83 yo Macca exhausted everyone with his exhaustive repertoire at Coors Field last week: this song says it’s the end! No dear the song says it’s getting very NEAR the end. Three more encores to come!

18.10.2025 07:16 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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18.10.2025 07:16 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0

Nope. It’s an act. He did the same glaring, head shaking routine after the Live and Let Die pyro in Denver, 4 days after ABQ. I truly thought he had injured his ears. He was in fact ok but my 3 chihuahuas walking past Coors Field with my husband at the moment the boom boom started—total terror

18.10.2025 06:27 — 👍 2    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
Idiom Shortage Leaves Nation All Sewed Up In Horse Pies

Idiom Shortage Leaves Nation All Sewed Up In Horse Pies

Idiom Shortage Leaves Nation All Sewed Up In Horse Pies
theonion.com/idiom-s...

30.06.2025 14:00 — 👍 2137    🔁 312    💬 41    📌 30
UT Austin Computational Linguistics Research Group – Humans processing computers processing humans processing language

UT Austin Linguistics is hiring in computational linguistics!

Asst or Assoc.

We have a thriving group sites.utexas.edu/compling/ and a long proud history in the space. (For instance, fun fact, Jeff Elman was a UT Austin Linguistics Ph.D.)

faculty.utexas.edu/career/170793

🤘

07.10.2025 20:53 — 👍 41    🔁 27    💬 1    📌 4
A map of the world showing how levels of worry in most countries are greater than 70%. Source: Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, International Public Opinion on Climate Change, 2023.

A map of the world showing how levels of worry in most countries are greater than 70%. Source: Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, International Public Opinion on Climate Change, 2023.

Two of the most common climate misconceptions I see, even among knowledgeable folks, are that (1) most people aren't worried about climate change, and (2) if they were, they'd act.

Not true! Data show (1) most people are worried, but (2) they won’t act if they don’t know what to do-and most don’t.

06.10.2025 15:24 — 👍 627    🔁 268    💬 21    📌 18
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Renewables overtake coal as world's biggest source of electricity Developing countries lead the historic clean energy charge but the US and EU rely more on fossil fuels than before, a think tank study shows.

China remains way ahead in clean energy growth, adding more solar and wind capacity than the rest of the world combined.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

07.10.2025 10:23 — 👍 51    🔁 24    💬 2    📌 2
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Meat is a leading emissions source – but few outlets report on it, analysis finds Sentient Media reveals less than 4% of climate news stories mention animal agriculture as source of carbon emissions

Data analysis by @sentientmedia.org, a CCNow partner, finds that less than 4% of climate news stories mention animal agriculture as a source of carbon emissions despite the fact that “food and agriculture contribute 1/3 of global greenhouse gas emissions, second only to the burning of fossil fuels.”

05.10.2025 16:11 — 👍 23    🔁 19    💬 1    📌 0
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G’mar Chatima Tovah to all of my global mishpocha who are observing Yom Kippur.

02.10.2025 01:32 — 👍 47    🔁 7    💬 2    📌 2
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Charlie Kirk was a fossil fuel industry plant Big Oil's money gave Kirk a larger platform to spread baseless climate conspiracy theories—as well as other extremist views.

Anyway here's the real article, please share this one and not that one heated.world/p/charlie-ki...

22.09.2025 22:03 — 👍 231    🔁 135    💬 3    📌 17
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Rob Reiner Predicts He’ll Be Next After Slamming Kimmel Axing He made the remark after launching criticisms over Jimmy Kimmel Live! being pulled off the air

Nice illustration of the Pseudoconditional construction (Kay & Michaelis 2012) in quote from Rob Reiner: "'If I’m Jimmy Kimmel, I’m suing the Trump administration,” Reiner said. “I’m suing them for abandoning my First Amendment rights.'" www.thedailybeast.com/rob-reiner-t...

21.09.2025 20:11 — 👍 3    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

And what 22 year old American uses the past perfect? It is not used in American English formal written genres anymore, let alone in text msgs

18.09.2025 01:54 — 👍 3    🔁 1    💬 1    📌 0

Yes, but who allowed “4 bridges in the Bay Area”? They’ve got GG, Bay, San Mateo and Dunbarton (pronounced wrong). But what about Richmond-San Rafael? Benicia? Carquinez?

16.09.2025 15:22 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Abstract deadline changed to *December 1, 2025*

07.09.2025 21:48 — 👍 12    🔁 5    💬 0    📌 0

there's no room for political violence in america like there's no room for newspapers in a hoarder's house

11.09.2025 00:42 — 👍 1010    🔁 176    💬 4    📌 1
Quote from CNN article on NZ fugitive dad

Quote from CNN article on NZ fugitive dad

Quote from NZ Police Commissioner Jill Rogers in CNN story on NZ fugitive dad proving Oceania doesn't use the present perfect like AmE speakers do! "The quad bike has run over the spikes. The two occupants have been on that bike, and it has come to a rest on this rural road. ..." Rogers said.

10.09.2025 02:07 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Often wondered: the Latin word for hedgehog is ericius, so how did it become IGEL in German? English borrowed French hérisson as URCHIN, whence street urchin (hedgehog of the street) 🦔 🏘️ and sea urchin (hedgehog of the sea) 🦔🌊

08.09.2025 17:16 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0
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It’s that time of year again. Back to school for the kids.

This ad should run during every NFL kickoff, every college football opener, every “Friday Night Lights.” Because school shootings are as American as football now.

07.09.2025 23:09 — 👍 1577    🔁 817    💬 91    📌 102

@ejfranci2.bsky.social is this the craziest relative clause extraposition ever?

03.09.2025 02:07 — 👍 4    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0

Shouldn't the EPA protect the environment?

03.09.2025 01:22 — 👍 266    🔁 62    💬 19    📌 3

Beautifully stated

30.08.2025 21:40 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Sigh, *taps the sign again*

26.08.2025 17:48 — 👍 168    🔁 65    💬 13    📌 4
Speech and Language Processing Speech and Language Processing

Now that school is starting for lots of folks, it's time for a new release of Speech and Language Processing! Jim and I added all sorts of material for the August 2025 release! With slides to match! Check it out here: web.stanford.edu/~jurafsky/sl...

24.08.2025 19:28 — 👍 150    🔁 59    💬 3    📌 4
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Here Comes the Sun: A Win on Climate Is Still Possible, and Every Generation Must Pitch In, McKibben Says There’s no guarantee that we have time to reverse climate change and dodge its worst impacts, but renewable energy gives us our best shot, says U.S. author, speaker, and climate organizer Bill McKibbe...

Here Comes the Sun: A Win on Climate Is Still Possible, and Every Generation Must Pitch In, McKibben Says www.theenergymix.com/here-comes-t...

24.08.2025 14:44 — 👍 118    🔁 32    💬 1    📌 3

Started in Berkeley at dawn of millennium, ICCG14 will be 1st in US since 2008 & only 3rd US site. As US stumbles, the courageous Ivy steps in as host. “In the service of the Nation & Humanity”. Meanwhile 💕 to these world cities for keeping the ICCG dream alive 🌏😘

24.08.2025 16:26 — 👍 5    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

@congramqueen is following 20 prominent accounts