About this episode

Dr. Kristina Šekrst joins to explore the linguistic themes of the Star Trek episode 'Darmok'.

Guest: Dr. Kristina Šekrst Philosopher, linguist, and AI researcher Kristina Šekrst beams aboard to discuss the TNG episode "Darmok," where Picard and crew encounter the Tamarians, a species who only speak in metaphor. Why do we use metaphors? How would you lie in Tamarian? And can the universal translator ever exist? Follow us on Bluesky! Mike: https://bsky.app/profile/miquai.bsky.social Kristina: https://bsky.app/profile/epiphenomenal.bsky.social

People in this episode

Host: Michael L. Wong

Guest: Dr. Kristina Šekrst

Topics covered

• linguistics
• metaphor
• Star Trek
• communication
• AI research

Keywords

• linguistics
• metaphor
• Darmok
• Star Trek
• communication
• AI
• TNG

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Bluesky

Books & works: Darmok

More episodes of Strange New Worlds: A Science & Star Trek Podcast

• Episode 199: Cosplay for Science · May 10, 2026 · 52 min
• Episode 197: The End of Everything · April 19, 2026 · 46 min
• Episode 196: The Antifascist Star Trek Watch List · March 8, 2026 · 55 min
• Episode 195: Time's Second Arrow · January 28, 2026 · 49 min
• Episode 194: The Giant Leap · January 23, 2026 · 1h 8m
• Episode 192: Whispers of Life in Ancient Rocks · November 17, 2025 · 30 min

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Strange New Worlds: A Science & Star Trek Podcast podcast page.