Cognitive Research: New Ways to Understand Language and Gender!

Cognitive Research: New Ways to Understand Language and Gender!

On June 30, 2025, the “Kaleidoscience” podcast will celebrate its two-year anniversary. The podcast, which launched in August 2023, has set itself the task of making complex scientific topics relating to cognitive science accessible to a broad audience in a clear and understandable way. The focus is on a dialogue between research and society, which is promoted by the inclusion of guests from cognitive science and related disciplines. The five-person moderator, consisting of Elisa Palme, Sönke Lülf, Sophie Kühne and Imogen Hüsing, including producer Clara Kühne, conducts discussions with scientists from all over the world to discuss exciting topics.

A new episode appears every two weeks that addresses current research topics. The focus of the current season includes pain research, BrainTech, focus and attention, music and AI simulations of the brain. The final thematic block entitled “Gender & Sexuality” is particularly noteworthy. Gender identity, sexuality and social structures in cognitive research are discussed here. The podcast is published, among other things, on the Cognitive Science Student Journal website and common podcast platforms.

Variety of topics and guests

The podcast brings numerous well-known guests in front of the microphone. Professor Dr. Ellie Dommett from King’s College London talks about ADHD and attention. Professor Dr. Tim Kietzmann from the University of Osnabrück addresses the interface between artificial intelligence and brain functions. Dr. Helena Hartmann from Essen University Hospital is investigating the influence of pain on one's own feelings. This selection illustrates the broad spectrum of cognitive science issues covered in the podcast.

A central goal of the podcast is to make dialogues lively and accessible. This contributes to successful science communication that extends beyond specialist circles. In this context, the podcast reflects the current challenges and advances in cognitive research. Topics such as gender and sexuality in particular differ significantly in their perception and communication, which is confirmed by research Cognition Freiburg is examined in detail.

Research and methods

Research at the University of Freiburg aims, among other things, at cognitive mechanisms and the architectural properties of language understanding. This includes the processing of complex and ambiguous linguistic structures as well as the influence of gender-inclusive language forms on readability. Social cognition, including the study of stereotype formation and social polarization, also plays a central role. Modern methodological approaches such as computer-aided modeling and machine learning are used.

In addition, third-party funded projects, including “GENELLI” to research the relationship between linguistic and stereotypical gender relations, and the DFG project “Gender-related practices in personal references” will be presented. These research projects complement the thematic focus of the podcast and promote a deeper understanding of language and cognition in a social context.

The editorial team of Kaleidoscience and the Institute of Cognitive Science are available for media inquiries at the email address kaleidopod@uos.de. The podcast is an example of how scientific research and communication can be interwoven.