Psych 56L/ Ling 51: Acquisition of LanguageAnnouncementsLanguage and Other SpeciesSlide 4Communication SystemsPrimate CommunicationSlide 7Bee CommunicationSlide 9Slide 10Bird CommunicationSlide 12Slide 13Slide 14Slide 15Learning Human LanguageAlex the ParrotAlex’s languageTeaching chimpanzeesSlide 20Slide 21Slide 22Teaching bonobosSlide 24So what’s the problem?So what is it humans learn?Language as an evolved capacityLanguage as a modification of other capacitiesSlide 29Language as a module + adaptationA Famous Nativist’s Words: Language as a By-ProductQuestions?Psych 56L/ Ling 51:Acquisition of LanguageLecture 5Biological Bases of Language IIIAnnouncementsReview questions for biological basis of language availableHomework 1 assigned, due next Monday (10/20/08) in class.Class Reader:Jacquece Fradue, [email protected] and Other SpeciesQuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressorare needed to see this picture.QuickTime™ and a decompressorare needed to see this picture.Language and Other SpeciesQuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressorare needed to see this picture.Are we special among the animal species?What are other species capable of?Could language have evolved gradually?Communication SystemsHuman language does enable communication, but it has several features that separate it from other animal communication systems:reference: symbols stand for things in the worldsyntax: productive system for combining symbols to express new meaningsintentionality: speakers use language for the purpose of communicating with othersPrimate CommunicationVervet monkeysQuickTime™ and a decompressorare needed to see this picture.Predator alarm calls:“leopard” = run to the trees“eagle” = look up, run into the bushes“snake” = stand up on hind legs & look aroundNo evidence for complex combinatorial system or that monkeys produce calls with the intent to modify the mental state of their listener.Primate CommunicationVervet monkeysQuickTime™ and a decompressorare needed to see this picture.What they can’t say:“What a large eagle up in the sky over there! We’d better take cover. C’mon!”“I doubt there are any leopards around here. The field looks pretty clear.”“Did you see that whopping big snake yesterday? It was so scary!”Bee CommunicationHoney BeesDance to communicate the location of food (nectar)Can indicate: nearby vs. far, direction, richness of the food source (dance harder for the good stuff)Though bees can create novel messages, they’re always about the location of food.QuickTime™ and a decompressorare needed to see this picture.Bee Communication‘deciphered’ by Karl von Frisch, 1919 & onwardQuickTime™ and aTIFF (LZW) decompressorare needed to see this picture.Under 50 m awayOver 50 m away:encodes distance & direction - is encoding of 2D space (a bee’s “mental map”)Bee CommunicationHoney BeesWhat bees can’t communicate:“Have you seen the flowers in the next field over? They totally rock. I’ve never seen such brilliant colors.”“This hive is lookin’ gooooood lately.”QuickTime™ and a decompressorare needed to see this picture.Bird CommunicationSongbirdsMales use songs to attract and acquire mates. In many species, the development of the song requires exposure to adult birds who model the song.QuickTime™ and a decompressorare needed to see this picture.Bird CommunicationSongbirdsNote: even though there is a learned part and a genetic part, we still classify birdsong as an instinct.QuickTime™ and a decompressorare needed to see this picture.Bird CommunicationSparrow Song song callSong is highly structured - notes, syllables, phrasesBird CommunicationVariation in SongBird 1Bird 2Bird CommunicationQuickTime™ and a decompressorare needed to see this picture.Songbird communication is thought to be similar to human children needing exposure to adult language. Both human language and birdsong: (1) have early stages prior to the appearance of the adult form (babbling vs. subsong) (2) require the babies to be able to hear their own productions (3) have sensitive periods (4) are lateralized in the left hemisphereLearning Human LanguageJust because other animals’ communication systems aren’t as complex as human language, does that mean that they’re incapable of learning human language (reference, syntax, intentional communication)?QuickTime™ and a decompressorare needed to see this picture.QuickTime™ and a decompressorare needed to see this picture.Alex the ParrotGrey parrot, born 1976, died 2007 Trained by Dr Irene Pepperberg (U. Arizona) since 1977 Impressive ability to speak/understand…for a parrothttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6KvPN_Wt8IAlex’s language•Speech sounded remarkably accurate…produced very differently from humans•Knew names of about 150 objects plus some fixed expressions•Answered simple questions about objects (e.g. about size, color, material)•Required immense amounts of trainingTeaching chimpanzeesTeaching chimpanzees to speak didn’t work out very well 1930s: Gua, raised in a human home and treated like human infant along with the couple’s son- motor skills surpassed child’s, but never learned to speak while the child did1940s and 50s: Viki, raised in a human home and actively taught to produce words- by 6, Viki could say “mama”, “papa”, “cup”, and “up”Problem: Chimpanzees have a vocal tract that makes speech production essentially impossible.QuickTime™ and a decompress orare need ed to see this picture.Teaching chimpanzeesTeaching chimps to sign using ASL 1960s: Washoe, lived in trailer in backyard, people always communicated via ASL, taught by molding hands into the appropriate signs- learned to produce 132 signs after 4 years, correctly label a variety of objects and sign small expressions like “more fruit”, “Washoe sorry”, and “Please tickle”QuickTime™ and a decompress orare need ed to see this picture.QuickTime™ and a decompressorare needed to see this picture.Teaching chimpanzeesTeaching chimps to sign using ASL 1979: Nim Chimpsky, raised in private home, taught signs by having hands molded into them- learned 100 signs and produced some combinationsQuickTime™ and a decompress orare need ed to see this picture.But combinations produced are very different from those of a human child - very repetitive, no additional complexity:2-sign 3-sign 4-sign“eat drink” “eat me Nim” “eat