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Jacob Billings

Linguist and software engineer focusing on artificial intelligence methods within linguistics

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Coping with Uncertainty in My Life

By Jacob Billings on Tuesday, January 26, 2021

Usually, I like to wake up early around 5:30 am, and start my day. That is my preferred schedule if I can get to bed early enough. This morning I woke up to this beautiful scene. It’s not unusual to see fog like this where I live in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. This morning was a little …

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Linguistics Politics

How semantics change our perception of reality.

By Jacob Billings on Monday, January 25, 2021

There was an article in the National Review that caught my eye today. It was about how the media covered the different riots this summer and how they treated capitol rioters in January. We hold concepts in our brain through language. When we think of the word elephant we don’t picture in our minds a …

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Religion

My love/hate relationship with LDS seminary

By Jacob Billings on Sunday, January 24, 2021

For those not of my faith, seminary is a four-year program for high school-aged youth. Every weekday during the school year the youth attend a one-hour class about the scriptures. Every year they rotate the topics. They rotate between Old Testament, New Testament, Book of Mormon, and Doctrine and covenants. The latter two being volumes …

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Linguistics

Breaking down a weird abortion argument

By Jacob Billings on Friday, January 22, 2021

I keep seeing this photo go around social media and people defending it as if it was logical. It is not a logical argument to make for reasons I will explain. In writing this article, I am not advocating one position over another. That is for you to decide. My only objective in this article …

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Politics

My thoughts on the Trump Presidency and our nation going forward

By Jacob Billings on Wednesday, January 20, 2021

Now that Joe Biden is now the President of the United States I think it is appropriate to reflect back on the last four years. It was a bumpy ride. One that I would not like to live again. For what it is worth here is my take on the last four years. I was …

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Liberty

The forgotten message of Martin Luther King Jr.

By Jacob Billings on Monday, January 18, 2021

One of my all-time favorite pieces of political writing is Martin Luther King’s letter from Birmingham jail. The truth in that letter is second only to the declaration of independence in my mind. In fact, they both espouse the same truths and virtues. They are both based on the concept of natural law. Natural law …

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Personal

An update to my battle with soda

By Jacob Billings on Saturday, January 16, 2021

On January 1st I made the decision to get off of soda of every kind. I drank two sodas a day for a couple of years. I went completely cold turkey. I have pretty strong will power when I put my mind to something and was certain that once I got over the initial withdrawal …

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Liberty

Some reflections from Frédéric Bastiat

By Jacob Billings on Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Claude-Frédéric Bastiat was a French economist and writer who lived in the 19th century. He wrote extensively on the philosophy of liberty. As I have been re-reading his book The Law four quotes have stood out to me. Bastiat passed away in 1850 but unfortunately the ideas he fought against still remain and in our …

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Linguistics

On Free Speech and Censorship

By Jacob Billings on Thursday, July 30, 2020

Recently Breitbart published a video in which doctors touted the use of hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19. It went viral. Shortly after, social media companies started to remove the video because of misinformation. I posted about this on Facebook and some responses I received were interesting, to say the least. It was much more …

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About Me
Jacob Billings
Jacob Billings

I am a software engineer and a linguist. I hold a bachelors degree in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Utah, a Master’s degree in linguistics from Francisco Marroquín University in Guatemala City and working on a double doctorate degree in Archaeology and Mathematics.
My research focuses on four areas:
Artificial intelligence algorithms within historical linguistics and epigraphy.
Morphosyntax in Mesoamerican and Mesopotamian languages.
Linguistics of the Book of Mormon and early members within the LDS faith movement in the 19th century.
Linguistics and liberty. How language affects perceptions of liberty.

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