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From the archives

American Judge

The normal is gone

The Trust Spiral

Restoring faith in the media

Lax Americana

What happens if Donald Trump returns to the White House?

Julie Sedivy

Julie Sedivy is an adjunct professor of linguistics and psychology at the University of Calgary, and the co-author, with Greg Carlson, of Sold on Language: How Advertisers Talk to You and What This Says about You (John Wiley & Sons, 2011).

Articles by
Julie Sedivy

What Turns Us On

Shining a cool, clear light on the things that fascinate October 2014
A man I know recently confided to close friends over dinner his intention to end his marriage. It was not, he explained, that he and his wife did not love each other; the trouble was they did not respond to each other. We all nodded, understanding perfectly what he was referring to—that rich and resonant feeling of…

Subconscious Seduction

The colourful history—and current understanding—of subliminal messaging October 2012
Whenever I teach my university course “Language and Advertising,” it is not long before students want to talk about the infamous episode in which thousands of movie-goers in the 1950s were exposed to quickly flashed subliminal messages such as “eat popcorn” and “drink Coca-Cola,” causing hordes of people to tramp obediently over to the snack bar to make their purchases without knowing what it was that sparked their sudden desire for…