Unit 4: Linguistics PDF

UNIT 4: LINGUISTICS KMF 1014 Introduction to Cognitive Science The Psychological Approach (Cognitive Psychology)  Emphasis on the study of internal mental operations  Mental functioning = representation & computation  Cognitive Psychologist  Concerned with quest...

UNIT 4: LINGUISTICS KMF 1014 Introduction to Cognitive Science The Psychological Approach (Cognitive Psychology)  Emphasis on the study of internal mental operations  Mental functioning = representation & computation  Cognitive Psychologist  Concerned with questions about: intelligence, learning, attention, pattern recognition, memory, problem solving, and many other aspects of human cognition The Neuroscience Approach (Cognitive Neuroscience)  Attempt to explain cognitive processes in terms of underlying brain mechanisms  Describe the biological ‘hardware’ upon which mental ‘software’ supposedly runs  Neuroscientists  Learn more the structures and functions of the human brain and how they relate to the behaviors we observe in people: using language, solving problems, and remembering. The Linguistic Approach  Domain of Language  What is Language?  How do we acquire Language?  What parts of the brain underlie language use?  Linguists  Hypothesizes about the human capacity for language and what it indicates about the nature of the human brain.  The Connection (Gasser, 2006)  Language is probably the best window we have on the workings of the human mind. Language gives us the extraordinary ability to describe the contents of our thoughts, an ability that no other animal has.  The units of language — elements of form, words, grammatical patterns, conventions of usage — are in some sense also units of cognition. Units of Units of Language Cognition Key to Understanding Human Essence  “When we study human language, we are approaching what some might call the ‘human essence’, the distinctive qualities of MIND that are, so far as we know, unique to man” Noam Chomsky Language? Means of communication - Function Systematic code - Form Essential components include: - Sender/Receiver (sharing same code) - Message (coded way of transmitting information) - Code (systematic set of rules that enable communication) Linguistics?  The science of language (i.e. A scientific study of language)  Applying methodology of science to study language Collecting facts of language,verifying them empirically Analyzing, classifying, formulating hypotheses (accept, reject, modify)  The scientific study of human natural language Uniqueness of Human Language  Acquired with no conscious awareness  Knowledge of Language (Linguistic Knowledge)  Have the capacity to produce sounds that signify certain meanings and to understand and interpret sounds produced by others  Can speak and be understood by others who know that language Knowledge of the sound system Knowledge of words Creativity of linguistic knowledge Knowledge of sentences & non-sentences Linguistic Competence Universal Properties of Language Transferring thoughts from one MIND to another  Modularity Communicative in Purpose  Constituency & Recursion Production, transmission, comprehension of information  Discreteness  Productivity  Arbitrariness  Reliance on Context  Variability Universal Properties of Language Modularity Constituency & Recursion  Language = a modular system  Language = organized into  Production & interpretation of constituents language through usage of a  Simple – complex units set of component subsystem  Sounds (Phonology)  Words (Morphology)  Meaning (Semantic & Pragmatic)  Rules of Sentence Pattern (Syntax)  Grammatical processes applied Structured repeatedly (embedding) rules specifying combination Finite rules but Infinite number of sentences Universal Properties of Language  Recursion: Allow one sentence to be contained within another. E.g.: This is the house that John built This is the house + John built this house. Sobel p. 257-260 Universal Properties of Language Discreteness Productivity  Continuous stream of sounds  Combine minimal units of divided into individual units meaning (i.e. morpheme) into  Larger units perceived to be novel words composed of smaller units  Popular + ity = popularity kameksikpatkuarteksidakgikmolahjeraya  Un + popular = unpopular  Walk + s = walks Phoneme  Walk + ed = walked Basic form of sound, sensed in the mind  Dynamic – changes over time (without meaning)  Coining new words with new /b/ , /a/, /t/ meanings Universal Properties of Language Arbitrariness Reliance on Context  No principled or systematic  Reliance on connection connection between words and their meanings between form (what is said)  Nothing about the pronunciation and context (when, where, by which logically associates word whom & to whom it is said) with meaning  Principles of one language for My baby is looking at the screen. arranging words inherently no better or worse than those of another  Exception = onomatopoeia (meow, clang). The creation of word such that it sounds like what it means. Sobel p. 257 Onomatopoeia = a word that imitates the sound it represents. Universal Properties of Language Variability  Language used varies depending on who’s speaking and the situation in which they are speaking Insights  Our ability to speak and understand, and to make judgments about the grammaticality of sentences, reveal our KNOWLEDGE of the rules of language Represents a complex cognitive system Linguistic Knowledge Linguistic Competence Finite Rules Grammatical Competence Mental Grammar Sobel p. 260  Grammar  Research demonstrates that vast number of rules (complex)  Children absorb them unconsciously as language is spoken.  Not taught is taught = past tense of swim is swam NOT  What swimmed. Read Sobel p. 261 - 264J.A.C Lee  Grammar  Our ability to use our language:  What we know even if we do not know that we know it.  Referred by Linguists as Linguistic competence Is the unconscious knowledge of grammar.  Components of language: Phonology Morphology Syntax Semantics Read Sobel p.J.A.C 261Lee  Grammar  Phonology  Rules regarding the sound system  Morphology  Rules regarding word structure  Syntax  Rules regarding the structure of sentences  “Semantics  Rules regarding the meaning of sentences J.A.C Lee  Grammar  Phonology  Rules regarding the sound system (/c/ /a/ /t/)  Morphology  Rules regarding word structure  SING, SING+ING = SINGING, SING + ER = SINGER J.A.C Lee  Grammar  Syntax  Rules regarding the structure of sentences “They will slept well after the mid-terms exam” vs. “They will sleep well after the mid-terms exam” vs. “They will sleep well the mid-terms exam”  Semantics  Rules regarding the meaning of sentences “You are so CLEVER! I should have known!” “I spilled the coffee, get the mop.” [Did coffee beans or liquid coffee spill onto the carpet?] J.A.C Lee  Rules of Language: Grammar Pragmatics Infinite Use Semantic Syntax Morphology Descriptive Phonology Grammar Finite Rules Phonetics  Rules of language  There is a finite set of rules that we learn.  Rules enable us to put together:  Sounds  Words  Sentences of our language  Recognize when they are not being followed J.A.C Lee  Grammar  Linguistic competence  Effortlessly and usually without awareness.  Rules of language.  Parts that are left out.  Recognize and create ambiguous sentences.  Paraphrase.  Utterance. J.A.C Lee  Grammar  Linguistic competence  Effortlessly and usually without awareness. Ship (s) tub (z) Nap (s) lab (z) Cat (s) bud (z) Nut (s) lid (z) Park (s) rag (z) Wick (s) wig (z) Accompanied by vibration + voice Read Sobel p. 262  Grammar  Linguistic competence  Rules of language.  Ali left home this morning with his keys.  Left morning home this his with keys Ali. J.A.C Lee  Grammar  Linguistic competence  Parts that are left out. “Stop it”  how do you know that STOP IT it refers to you? J.A.C Lee  Grammar  Linguistic competence  Recognize and create ambiguous sentences. “Andrew saw the girl with binoculars.” Who has the binocular? Andrew or the girl? The zoo contained young giraffes and anteaters. Are the anteaters young too? Or only the giraffes? J.A.C Lee  Grammar  Linguistic competence  Paraphrase. Grammatical relations remain constant “Mei ate a sandwich.” “A sandwich was eaten by Mei.” “Ah Chong is climbing the tallest tree in the yard.” “The tallest tree in the yard is being climbed by Ah Chong.” J.A.C Lee  Grammar  Linguistic competence  Utterance. Native speakers VS. Non-native speaker “rowing”  “lowing” “something”  “somesing” J.A.C Lee  Grammar  Summary  We are generally unaware of knowing these rules but we know them well.  What are linguists interested in doing? Linguists try to understand and explain the ability of human beings to produce language. J.A.C Lee  Grammar  What sort of rules?  Rules = Grammar  Descriptive rules  Rules linguists focus on when they are concerned with a speaker’s implicit knowledge of linguistic systems.  Prescriptive rules  Need to be taught  Based on what educated people consider to be correct. J.A.C Lee Unconscious Awareness Descriptive Grammar  Description/model of mental grammar internalized by speaker of a particular language Describes basic linguistics knowledge Explains how its possible for users to speak/understand/make judgments about well formedness of language Grammatical (conform rules of mental grammar) Ungrammatical (deviates rules of mental grammar) Description of Mental Grammar Ambiguous mental grammar  Prescriptive Grammar  Prescription of the grammar/rules of a language/dialect considered by grammarians to be ‘more correct’ than the others.  Need to be taught.  Based on what educated people consider to be correct.  Approaches in the Field of Linguistics Attempt to understand and explain Hypothesizes about the human the ability of human beings to use capacity for language and what it (comprehend & produce) language indicates about the nature of the human brain Read Sobel p. 265-270 Does our native language shape our Sobel p. 267 thinking and ideas development?  Relation of language & culture  Language & thought Our understanding of the world is determined by the language we use Language serves to shape thought  Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis Edward Sapir  Linguistic Determinism Our language determines the way we think We cannot & cannot LEARN to think in any way but the way in which our language dictates  Linguistic Relativity Distinctions found in a given language will not be the same as those in other language Benjamin Lee Constructions of language make it relatively easier Whorf or more difficult to think in certain ways Contemporary Linguistics: Langue? Parole?  Underlying the actual utterances of speakers of a given language is a shared structure  Structure absorbed by speakers when very young and remaining largely below level of consciousness  Implicit structure enables determination about Ferdinand de correctness and incorrectness of utterance Saussure  Langue – the linguistic system internalized by speakers of a language  Linguistic competence  Parole – the act of speaking  Linguistic performance Langue? Parole? Rise of Behaviorist Paradigm  What goes on in the mind that is NOT directly observable or measurable is NOT an appropriate & useful subject of research  Appropriate study = BEHAVIOUR  Inappropriate study = Study based on Unconscious J.B. Watson Knowledge Deny Existence of the Mind  Language = behavior  Language learning = conditioning Reinforcement, Shaping B.F. Skinner John B.Watson & B.F.Skinner  With the advent of the “behavioristic” paradigm, the “mentalistic” approach to the study of language was abandoned.  Behaviorism = what goes on in the mind that is not directly observable or measurable is not an appropriate and useful subject of research. J.A.C Lee  John B.Watson & B.F.Skinner  B.F.Skinner  Interpret and explain the major aspects of linguistic behavior within the behaviorist framework.  NoamChomsky refuted Skinner’s argument. Read Sobel p. 270-275 J.A.C Lee Noam Chomsky  Brought the study of linguistics back into the domain of the mind.  Determined the direction of linguistics. J.A.C.Lee Contributions of Chomsky  Sets of rules exists in the minds of speakers and hearers capacityin the brain to function without conscious awareness of the person J.A.C.Lee  Return Of the Cognitive: Contemporary Linguistics  Vast & largely unconscious rules exist in Human Mind  Behaviorist explanation CANNOT account for language  Proposed method of formalizing rules of language components  Syntactic Component Rules of arrangement of words into sentences Noam Chomsky  Part of grammar that represents a speaker’s Syntax: knowledge of sentences & their structures Simple Sentence S NP VP Sentence Noun Phrase Verb Verb Phrase Noun Phrase Phrase S (Art) N V (Art) (N) Simple Sentence: Adjective Verb Noun Phrase Phrase Adjective S (Art) N V (Art) (N) S (Art) (Adj) N V (Art) (N) Simple Sentence :Preposition P P NP Other languages have their own rules Cognitive Science Relevance of the Rules? Read Sobel p. 275-279 Relevance of the Rules?  Appreciative of emergence of new linguistics of 20th century  Insight into the Human Mind based on unconscious rules of language acquired  Formalization of language rules enables identification of rules which are general to all languages  Insight into the workings of the Human Mind – capacity for language  Increase understanding of First Language Acquisition  Focus on how children acquire their first language within the limited frame of time (Innate Capacity)  Develop capabilities to model aspects of human intelligence using computer technology  Formalization of rules enable scientists (AI) to attempt to model human language Read Sobel p. 276  Relevance of the rules to Cognitive Science 1. Appreciate what was involved in the new linguistics of the 20th century. 2. Establish a formal means of encoding rules of language.  Eg.: Aspiration rule form one sound to all sounds. 3. Rules that are made explicit  Increase our understanding of the way children learn their first language. J.A.C.Lee  Relevance of the rules to Cognitive Science 4. Develop linguistic capabilities in computers  To model aspects of human intelligence  Computer programs – precise and unambiguous instructions. 5. How infants acquire rules  Adopted children – learn language of adoptive culture.  How do infants know language? Does that ability arise from general cognitive ability or is it in the brain function? J.A.C.Lee  Relevance of the rules to Cognitive Science  How infants acquire rules  Chomsky’s hypothesis  Inborn (innate) linguistic capacity of human.  E.g.: analogy – capacity to walk.  Walking proceeds due to maturation (bones + muscles)  Language development occurs IF the environment provides exposure to language. J.A.C.Lee  More on Innate Capacity for Language  Human inborn linguistic capacity is sensitive to rules of human language  Language Acquisition Device (LAD)  Despite surface differences, all human languages share a fundamental structure  Universal Grammar (UG) = Part of human Noam Chomsky biologically endowed language faculty A system of rules & principles that characterize all grammars Rules of UG provide basic blueprint that all languages follow The universal laws serve as a window into the workings of the human mind  Relevance of the rules to Cognitive Science  UNIVERSAL GRAMMAR  In language there are many  Ability to apply universal grammar we face at birth possible grammars:  But how is it possible that a brain possesses innately a system  All human adequate to do the task? language share a fundamental structure J.A.C.Lee  Relevance of the rules to Cognitive Science But how is it possible that a brain possesses innately a system adequate to do the task?  HYPOTHESIS: There are principles and parameters where learning the syntax of one’s first language is a matter of setting these switches. Read Sobel p. 278 J.A.C.Lee  Summary  Chomsky’s hypothesis  children have innate ability to learn & acquire language  Relevance of rules to Cognitive Science  Acquisition of first language  Rules in language  How infants acquire rules?  Computational linguistics J.A.C.Lee  Cognitive Science Cognitive Role of Psychology Linguistics? Neuro- Linguistics Philosophy science Artificial Intelligence  Role of Linguistics Language & Thought Cognitive Language Acquisition Psychology Language Deprivation Language & Thought Language Loss Consciousness Neuro- Linguistics Philosophy science Artificial Machine Translation Aphasia Intelligence Natural Language Processing Other Language-Related Tasks  Linguistics & Cognitive Psychology Cognitive Psychology Neuro- Linguistics Philosophy science Artificial Intelligence Language & Thought  Linguists search for underlying commonalities among language  Infer about functioning of cognitive processes & their representation in the brain  Key Q = What is the relation of language to thought?  Capacity for abstract thought depends on capacity for language Concrete thought = mental imaging  Thoughts exist before they are expressed using language Thoughts = propositional representation LANGUAGE ACQUISITION  First-language acquisition 66  Branch of linguistics that is concerned with first- language acquisition = developmental psycholinguistics.  Question raised: how do human infants acquire their first language(s)?  Many learn more than one language in the environment in which they are raised. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng  First-language acquisition 67  Language is INNATE not learned by imitation.  E.g.evidence: tulips -------- one lip (for only one blossom). Not learned by imitation. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng  First-language acquisition 68  Children learn rules:  “I rided my bike around the corner.”  Learned the rules correctly…..  BUT based on the above sentence, they are applying rules where they SHOULD NOT.  “I rode my bike around the corner.” Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng  First-language acquisition 69  Children learn rules EARLY:  Even though the complete version of language is not used. “sit-sit” “walk-walk” Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng 70 First-language acquisition  Experiment by Jean-Berko Gleason:  Howchildren learn underlying rules Read Sobel p.by Prepared 282-288 Julia Lee Ai Cheng 71 Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng 72 The wug test  If the child responded “wugs”  Indicatesthat the child had learned plural the rule.  If the child responded “wug”  Indicates that the child had not learned the plural rule. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng 73 Experimental studies  Infants  recognize sounds of language  Speakers ofa given language perceive sounds belonging to the language. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Patricia Kuhl 74 Experimental studies  1-2 month old infants  Can differentiate speech sounds occuring in different languages in the world  Why is it that adults have difficulty learning how to pronounce words in a foreign language? Some sounds that native speakers classify as different, sound the same to the adult learners. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Experimental studies 75  6-month-old infants  Distinguish sounds of their own language  Differentiate categories to which groups of sounds belong  Longbefore they produce any utterance in their native language, that language has begun to shape the ways their brains organize it. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng 76 Experimental studies  Recognizing sounds  Infants are better at recognizing sounds in languages other than those spoken around them THAN adults and 6- to 12-year-olds. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng  Developmental Psycholinguistics: Language Acquisition  Key Q = How do human infants acquire their first language(s)?  In the process of acquiring their first language(s), children are learning the underlying rules  Language begin to shape the way their brains organize it even before they start produce any utterance  Ability to differentiate among speech sounds among infants disappear as they grow older Once able to distinguish phonemes of own language, begin to lose ability to distinguish those of other languages Stages in Language Acquisition  Process of language acquisition is fast (3-4 years), but it is not instantaneous  Children do not start with a fully formed grammar or with knowledge of social and communicative intercourse.  Linguistic competence develops by stages. Observations of children in different language areas of the world reveal that the stages are similar, possibly universal.  Some of the stages last for a short time; others remain longer. Stages in Language The exact age at which a specific child goes through a certain stage varies, but the order of Acquisition the stages is pretty much the same From Birth "Prewired" mind Universal Listener Cooing (by 3months) Babbling (6 – 8 months) Two-word Holophrastic (18 - 24 months) Telegraphic (8 - 18 months) (24 - 30 months) Stages in Language Acquisition Cooing Stage Babbling Stage  Early in 1st year  Repetitive CV patterns  Utter sounds distinguishable  Mama, papa, gaga, gugu from crying sounds  Intonation pattern begin to  Indicative of various kinds develop of feelings & needs  Learning to distinguish between the sounds of their language and  Begin to use vocal apparatus to the sounds that are not part of develop motor gestures which the language. eventually will produce speech  Lose the ability to discriminate between sounds that are not phonemic in their language – 6 months Stages in Language Acquisition Holophrastic Stage Two Word Stage  Single words for various  Mini sentences – simple meanings semantic relations  "Dada“  No syntactic or morphological Here comes Daddy!; markers like determiners, This is for Daddy.; prepositions, auxiliaries or That is where Daddy sits.; inflectional affixes This shoe is Daddy’s.  allgone milk  More comprehension than  baby sleep production:  byebye boat  Children can perceive or comprehend many more phonological contrasts than they can produce themselves. Stages in Language Acquisition  Telegraphic Stage  Lack of functions words (like determiners, prepositions, inflectional affixes, or auxiliaries), and use of content words What that? /Daddy like book /Cathy build house /No sit there  Resemblance to telegraphic speech Very few word order errors  subject-verb = "chicken eat" verb-object = "eat chicken"  Use of syntactic and grammatical function words at the later stage Stages in first-language acquisition 83  All human babies can learn at least one language system.  Babies go through a series of stages when learning their native language. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Stages in first-language acquisition 84  Children’s linguistic competence  At the first stage (within 1st year) Known as COOING stage. All babies sound alike no matter what the language. Utter sounds distinguishable from crying sounds and other vocalizations (indicate feelings and needs) Infants beginning to use vocal apparatus (tongue, lips, vocal cords) Develop motor gestures to produce speech Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Stages in first-language acquisition 85  Children’s linguistic competence  At the second stage (Babbling) coostake on the sounds of the vowels of the baby's native language – Babbling Smaller sets of sounds Repeated consonant-vowel pairs “baba” “papa” “mama” Intonation patterns of language begin to develop Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Stages in first-language acquisition 86  Third stage (one word)  When babies are ready to produce full words, they generally begin by producing one-word utterances consisting of nouns.  Utterances (words) “Doggie” “Kitty” “Ball” Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Stages in first-language acquisition 87 “See doggie”  Fourth stage “Book there” “More milk”  Two-word utterances [18 month – 24 months] “Mama walk” “Hit you” “Where ball?”  Fifth stage  More advanced – longer utterances. “Mommy see doggie, truck go bye-bye.” Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Stages in first-language acquisition 88  Children’s linguistic competence  Active construction of words first “The boy crossed the street.”  Passive construction of words later “The street was crossed by the boy.” Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Bilingualism Read Sobel p. 291-294 Bilingual? Monolingual?  A bilingual = a person who speaks 2 languages with native fluency.  Simultaneous (more or less) acquisition of two languages beginning in infancy (or before the age of 3 years)  The norm in many parts of the world  Early bilingual acquisition process may involve some amount of language mixing – not necessarily an indication of any language problem  Around 2 years old = Bilingual children reported to use words (vocabulary) from both languages  By 3 years old = word combining habit decreases Second-language acquisition Read Sobel p. 289 Second-language acquisition 92  What is second-language acquisition?  Learning of language(s) after one has acquired a first language.  Innate mechanism enables us to learn 1st language. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Second Language Acquisition  The acquisition of a second language by someone (adult or child) who has already acquired a first language  Argued to be different from L1 Acquisition (The Fundamental Difference Hypothesis)  Success may depend on a range of factors, including age, talent, motivation, location (L1/L2)  Different rules involved – interference from First Language  Developmental change in language acquisition mechanism – due to maturity  Maturational constraints on Language Acquisition Language Acquisition Device Second-language acquisition 94  Experiments:  Infant’s brain Ready to acquire language.  Maturation effect Capacity decreases. We experience difficulties and frustration in learning a new language. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Second-language acquisition 95  Is it better to learn a second language as a child or as an adult?  Study  1989  Johnson and Newport  Adults make faster initial progress  Eventual success in the second language is NOT AS GREAT as children’s. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Second-language acquisition 96  Study:  Chinese and Korean adults  Migrated to the United States (for about 10 years)  Similar socioeconomic backgrounds.  Arrived at ages 3 – 39 years old. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Why Chinese cannot… Second-language acquisition 97  Study:  Given 2 types of sentences Sentence 1 = Grammatically correct Sentence 2 = One grammatical error  12 types of rules involved  Response “Correct” or “incorrect” Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Second-language acquisition 98  Results:  Statistical significance between age of arrival in USA and performance on test.  Those who learn English later during childhood/adolescence had lower test scores than those who learned when they were between 3 to 7 years old. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Second-language acquisition 99  Hypothesis:  Maturational constraints on language acquisition 1. Language acquisition device (LAD) A special language faculty sensitive to the types of structures that occur in human languages As children mature, changes to LAD occur. Older learners are less successful in inducing linguistic systems to which they are exposed. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Second-language acquisition 100 Hypothesis: Maturational constraints on language acquisition 2. Nonlinguistic reasons Constraints in perception and memory Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng 101 If bilinguals acquire their 2nd language young enough, they DO NOT experience the difficulties they would encounter at a later age. Why? Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng 102 Why does the efficiency to languages decline at the later age? Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng  Possible reasons 103 1. Interference from our first language. 2. Difference in the process of learning a subsequent language.  E.g.: different rules involved. 3. There is a developmental change in the language acquisition mechanism as we mature. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Critical period Critical Period  A stage when language learning takes place naturally  Language Acquisition Device – innate capacity lasts only a short time  Predetermined by content of environment/exposure If environmental stimulus missing, capacity is impaired or loss  Language learning becomes difficult after the stage has passed  Developmental change in LAD  Interference from 1st Language  Difference in language learning process (already completed one)  Early exposure to language serves as means to normal linguistic development  Both spoken & sign languages Read Sobel p. 284 Critical Period 106  Study on birds:  Have innate capacity to acquire their species' basic song pattern – only while they are very young.  Must hear the song within the 1st few months.  If NOT, they are no longer able to acquire it.  Innate acquisition capacity lasts only a short time indicates the existence of critical period in these species. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng  Summary 107  1st language  bilingualism  2nd language  Critical period Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng  Summary – 1st language 108  Language is innate.  Children learn rules (and they learn it early).  Infants are better at recognizing sounds in languages other than those spoken around them THAN adults and 6- to 12-year-olds.  Stages of language acquisition  Cooing, babbling, utterances Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng  Summary - bilingualism 109  At 2 years - may mix languages  At 3 years of age – combine vocabulary from two languages become less. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng  Summary – 2nd language 110  Learning of language(s) after one has acquired a first language.  Newport’s study: Those who learn English later during childhood / adolescence had lower test scores than those who learned when they were between 3 to 7 years old. Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng  Summary – 2nd language 111  Due to maturational constraints on language acquisition  Linguistic reason: LAD – a special language faculty.  Nonlinguistic reason: constraints in perception + memory. Why does the efficiency to languages decline at the later age?  Critical Period Prepared by Julia Lee Ai Cheng Language Deprivation  Children deprived of normal exposure to language as they developed  Abuse or abandonment Feral Children – lost or abandoned, raised in extreme social isolation  Born deaf or severe hearing loss Native fluencyin sign language (ASL) when exposed early in childhood  Brain imaging research  Complexneuron circuits evident in learners exposed very early to music compared to those who began music training after 12 years old Genie Read Sobel p. 294 Language Loss (Attrition)  Loss of language – language becomes less available to users (i.e. lost some or all of linguistic system which once was in fully developed form)  Firstlanguage attrition (native language)  Second language attrition  Brain damage patients (Aphasia) (Sobel, p. 182)  Research on subjects provided insight into the way language is organized in brain  Linguistics & Neuroscience Cognitive Psychology Neuro- Philosophy Linguistics science Artificial Intelligence Aphasia Revisited  The extent & location of damage to brain determine aphasic patient’s language deficits  Broca’s Aphasia = nonfluent aphasia  Wernicke’s Aphasia = fluent aphasia Linguistics Neuroscience Cognitive Psychology Read Sobel p. 299-304  Linguistics & Philosophy Cognitive Psychology Neuro- Philosophy Linguistics science Artificial Intelligence Consciousness  How does the area of language relate to consciousness?  Mental Grammar = unconscious rules (Linguistics) Rene Descartes  Innateness of ideas (Rene Descartes)  A priori or innate knowledge (Immanuel Kant) Immanuel Kant Language & Thought Revisited  Influence from Immanuel Kant’s views on existence of a priori or innate knowledge  Linguistic structures acquired in the process of L1 learning contribute to the way we experience the world Language serves as a filter of thought  Q = What effect does the lack of certain constructions in a given language have on the way speakers of this language think?  Q = Could availability of constructions facilitates thinking in certain way?  Linguistics & Artificial Intelligence Cognitive Psychology Neuro- Philosophy Linguistics science Artificial Intelligence Preliminary Insights  Development of computer technology  Programmed to perform human task Focus on getting computer to take over our boring, time- consuming work Further the work which our minds used to be engaged in  Related questions  Could we ask them to do more?  Would they ever reach a stage where they could also exhibit intelligence like we do?  Do we know enough about Human Intelligence to enable us to create intelligent machines? Machine Translation  1960s – machine perform simple linguistic task  Automatic translation Input (Source language) Output (Target language) Memory (Words of Source Language & Their Equivalent in Target Language)  Difficulty with translation - Meaning Finding the right meaning requires detailed knowledge of the world There could be various possible meanings There may not be equivalent words or phrases There could be different word ordering in sentences  Machine translation works best only when vocabulary involved limited to very specific domain Machine Translation Natural Language Processing  Computer technology that handles human natural language  Programs in which sentence pattern frames stored as data  Translate ordinary human commands into language computers can understand & act on  The goal is “to achieve human-like language processing”.  Renown program = ELIZA  Matching input to fixed pattern Natural Language Processing  Natural Language Processing Assign categories (parts of speech) to the words in a sentence & group them into phrases – formalization of rules Natural Language Processing Complexity of programming a computer to ‘do’ human language reflects the vast complexity of human language Other Language-Related Tasks  Due to its suitability in storing & retrieving large amount of data, computer technology can undertake tasks which would be daunting for human to attempt  Concordance – frequency count of all words in given texts & their exact locations  Speech recognition – speech synthesis Group project: Week 13 & 14  Language acquisition in children.  Acquisition of second language  Natural language processing in the workplace.  END OF UNIT 4 KMF 1014 Introduction to Cognitive Science