Exam 7: Language

Over the years, it has been been argued by some researchers such as Alvin Liberman that speech is _____; that is to say, humans are able to recognize certain sounds used in human speech in ways that other species cannot.

Children of immigrants do not just copy the pidgin of their parents, but instead create a new type of language with specific grammatical rules; this more structured form of the original pidgin is referred to as a(n) _____.

Hauser and Fitch (2003) name four particular design features that suggest language is an adaptation. Which of the following is NOT one of those design features?

According to Kirby (2007), there are at least four questions that can be asked from an evolutionary perspective. Which of the following is NOT one of them?

Bees use _____ to tell their hive mates where to find nectar.

One feature of human languages is that they are _____, meaning that sentences can be broken into words and words into speech sounds.

Pinker suggests that the most powerful aspect of language is its ability to convey an unlimited number of ideas from one person to another using

Chomsky argued that languages are _____ because they consist of a finite set of rules but an infinite number of sentences.

In terms of _____, including vocabulary, grammar, and the range of ideas that can be expressed, there is nothing like human language in other species.

Morphemes that can stand alone are called _____, whereas those that cannot stand alone are called _____.

One aspect of human language that sets it apart from animal communication systems is that it is structured on multiple levels. Discuss the hierarchical structure of language, explaining the characteristics of each level and how the levels are related to each other.

Humans communicate with language in a way that is different from every other species, whose communication systems tend to be

What is especially intriguing to Pinker is that parents teach their children language by giving them

Ann and David Premack worked with a chimpanzee named Sarah; they were particularly interested in three questions. Which of the following was NOT one of their research questions?

_____ argued that there is nothing biologically special about the acquisition of language, but _____ countered that language acquisition is different from other forms of learning.

According to the traditional view, speech perception is processed in ____ area and speech production is processed in _____ area.

The basic unit of sound in language is called a _____.

The gene _____ on chromosome 7 is related to vocal learning and the integration of auditory and motor processes; a rare allele of this gene leads to a disorder called developmental verbal dyspraxia, which involves problems in articulation, production, comprehension, and judgments related to grammar.

Attempts to teach human language to chimpanzees and bonobos suggest that they can achieve a level of language comprehension equivalent to a child of _____ year(s).

Language can be used to describe a variety of internal and external processes, and this is what enables languages, both spoken and written, to set the stage for _____ to play a role in human history that is very different from that of other species.