The Linguist Who Caught the Unabomber
For 17 years, the Unabomber was a ghost, but his most powerful weapon—a 35,000-word manifesto—became his undoing. This is the story of how FBI linguist James Fitzgerald deciphered the unique…
Forensic Linguistics
Reading Speech: Secrets of the Spectrogram
What if you could see your own voice? Spectrograms, or "voiceprints," are powerful tools that turn the fleeting sounds of speech into detailed visual maps. By learning to read these…
The Comma That Rules a Nation
The U.S. Second Amendment's meaning hinges on a single, hotly debated comma. This grammatical ambiguity has fueled a centuries-long battle between two interpretations: is the right to bear arms a…
The Power of a Question: How Linguistic Manipulation Shapes Police Confessions
A confession can seem like the most straightforward form of evidence, but the language used to obtain it is incredibly complex. Police interrogations are a masterclass in linguistic manipulation, where…
Your Own Words Will Betray You: How Forensic Linguistics Solves Crimes
Every time you write or speak, you leave behind a unique linguistic fingerprint. Explore the fascinating world of forensic linguistics, where experts analyze everything from ransom notes to text messages…