Science fiction heroes aren't usually humanities professors, but Arrival  (2016) is the exception to that rule. Amy Adams stars as Dr. Louise Banks, who may be the only person on Earth who can figure out what a pair of mysterious aliens are trying to say. 

Today on AirSpace, Matt and Emily discuss the film, its source material (Ted Chiang's novella Story of Your Life), linguistics, non-linear time, extraterrestrials, explosions, geopolitical tension, oat milk, and other mysteries of the universe. 

The transcript for this episode is at s.si.edu/airspaces11e4 

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AirSpace is made possible with the generous support of Lockheed Martin.