S2 E10: Language and Health - Dr. Thomas Bak

Much Language Such Talk

Welcome to another exciting episode of Much Language Such Talk! Did you know that March 27th is International Day of Multilingualism? To celebrate this awesome day we’re joined by Dr. Thomas Bak, a researcher at the University of Edinburgh.

Born and raised in Cracow, Poland, Dr Thomas H Bak studied medicine and worked as a clinician in psychiatry and neurology in Bern, Berlin, Cambridge, and Edinburgh. From 2010-2018 he was the president of the World Federation of Neurology Research Group on Aphasia, Dementia and Cognitive Disorders (WFN RG ADCD).

His main research interest is the relationship between language, brain and mind, with a recent focus on the impact of language learning and multilingualism on cognitive functions across the lifespan and in brain diseases such as dementia and stroke. He conducts his research in a wide range of populations, from Scotland, through India, to Singapore. Not only does Thomas conduct research across the world, but you can often find him lecturing across the world in 7 languages, talking with press, on the radio and in TV interviews, as well as advising policy makers, from the House of Lords, to the European Commission.

In additional to Thomas’ public engagements, he is the Program Director of Bilingualism in later life, healthy ageing & dementia at Bilingualism Matters and is the Co-founder of the Healthy Linguistic Diet.

In his free time, Thomas enjoys, unsurprisingly, learning languages, hill walking, reading poetry and cooking. If you would like to get in touch with Thomas, you can find him on Twitter @thbaketal.

MLST is brought to you by volunteers at Bilingualism Matters Edinburgh. The views of our guests don’t always reflect our own, as we hope to provide an accessible platform for the findings of current research and the perspectives of experts. For more resources like definitions of linguistic terms, episode transcripts, and information about the team, go to our website at www.mlstpodcast.com.

Recorded on 03/03/2022

Music: Arc of the Sun by The 126ersssssss