Thomas A. Sebeok and the Scientific Self

What does it mean to be a scientist and a genius? Thomas A. Sebeok (1920-2001), Indiana University Distinguished Professor emeritus of linguistics and semiotics, described himself as an academic Apis mellifera (honeybee), who darts "solitary from flower to flower, sipping nectar, gathering pollen from flowers, serendipitously fertilizing whatever he touches.” The inquisitive polymath and world-renowned pioneer in semiotics taught linguistics, anthropology, and Uralic and Altaic studies at Indiana University from 1943-1991. This exhibition investigates the intellectual intersections Sebeok inhabited, pollinated, and mastered during his extraordinarily prolific career. Sebeok challenges us to see all, learn all, and never stop asking questions.