The theories of computing and communication come to loggerheads when facing the problem of universality. Computing rejoices in the concept that there are infinitely many universal languages to change the language of choice every minute. This is of course devastating for communication where there is a need to synchronize languages among communicating elements so that they understand each other ... but should it be? Humans do seem to learn to communicate without prior synchronization. What is the underlying theory for such communication? And can this lead to universal communication?
In this talk we will describe some of our efforts over the years, starting with joint works with Juba and Goldreich, trying to grapple with this question. There may even be hints of answers.
In addition to touching on a theme close to Leonid Levin's works (universality), this series of works was also partially inspired by many Levinisms that challenge widely adopted notions in our communications (e.g. "what should be the ideal length of a paper?"). I hope to use this joyous occasion to reraise all the controversies!