Bill Labov died this morning. I'm not coherent enough to talk about how important and influential and brilliant he was. I am very sad.
I was so lucky to know him, and I am grateful every day that he (and Gillian, and Walt, etc) built an academic field where kindness is expected.
I was so lucky to know him, and I am grateful every day that he (and Gillian, and Walt, etc) built an academic field where kindness is expected.
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But also once we just shared science fiction book recs for like 2 hours
Me: Bill you're bleeding
Bill: [looks at finger]... [10 second pause] .. AAAAAHHHHH!
and then he did his little Bill chuckle
haha it cracks me up even now
Bill: I've heard of it
Person: I went to Harvard
Me: I've heard of it
One time I accidentally Bill-voiced to his face when we were discussing ideas in a seminar and I quoted him back to him 🤣
He pause-smiled
But what he meant by his q was "if you didn't do a test you shouldn't call this a significant difference"
But she thought he was testing her on what "statistical significance" was in general
I had been meaning to ask him again for the past ~7 years but never got around to it
I remember agreeing that reading & thinking abt alternative worlds w alternative rules (sci-fi / fantasy) makes you a better scientist abt this one
Also I'm very very sorry for your loss. ❤️ to you & your colleagues
He told of watching a very very drunk man trying to hit on a woman in the same car. The would be Lothario had all the right words, but his timing was slowed about 90%, so that all she could do was laugh.
A few years later I was at UPenn (not for linguistics) and took his intro course.
The last time I saw them (in march), they had double booked a family visit + me stopping by. B&G immediately invited me to join their day, I played cards w their grandson for most of it.