1. Language and Cognitive Science
By: Holly Cummings, Elizabeth Ray, and Lindsay Hines

2. What is Language? Function Properties
thought expression
means of communication
Properties
communicative
arbitrary (except for onomatopoeia)
self-referent (metalanguage)
dynamic
human trait only (oral speech)
Sources:

3. Language and the Brain Where is Language Processed?
Broca’s Area and Wernicke’s Area
right-handed- 97% chance processed in left hemisphere
left-handed- 68% chance processed in left hemisphere, 19% chance processed in right hemisphere, 13% chance processed in both
Sources:

4. Composition of Language I
What is language composed of?
phones- a speech sound considered without reference to its status as a phoneme or an allophone in a language
phonemes- the smallest phonetic unit in a language that is capable of conveying a distinction in meaning
phonemonics- the study of the sound system of a given language and the analysis and classification of its phonemes
Sources:

5. Composition of Language II
What is language composed of ?
morphemes- a meaningful linguistic unit consisting of a word, or a word element, that cannot be divided into smaller meaningful parts
lexicon- the morphemes of a language considered as a group
vocabulary- the sum of words used by, understood by, or at the command of a particular person or group
Sources:

6. Composition of Language III
What is language composed of?
syntax- the study of the rules whereby words or other elements of a sentence structure are combined to form grammatical sentences (predicate, prepositional phrase..etc)
ex) “Mary is going to Bob’s house for Thanksgiving dinner.”
Sources:

7. Language Acquisition Prenatal Postnatal
response to human voices
Postnatal
cooing
babbling
one-word utterances (around 1st birthday) ex) “mama”
two-word utterances (18 mos.) ex) “Big truck”
fluent sentences (late twos and mid threes)
Sources:

8. How does Language Acquisition Occur?
Learnability Theory- defines learning language as a scenario involving four parts (Gold, 1967; Osherson, Stob & Weinstein,)
a class of languages
an environment
a learning strategy
a success criterion
Sources:

9. Language and Its Meaning
Semantics- the study of the relationships between signs and symbols and what they represent. The meaning or the interpretation of a word, sentence or other language form.
Theories of Meaning
Definitional Theory
Prototype Theory
Sources:

10. Analysis of Language I
Pragmatics- the study of language as it is used in a social context.
Sociolinguistics- the study of language and linguistic behavior as influenced by social and cultural factors
ex) pragmatics of a salesperson (sales “pitch”)
Sources:

11. Analysis of Language II
Speech errors
Spoonerism (Reverend William A. Spooner)- phrases, sentences, or words in language with sounds swapped
Slip of Tounge (Fromkin 1973)- word substitution
Tip of Tounge (Fromkin 1973)- feeling that a word is lost
Twist of Tounge (Fromkin 1973)- unsuccessful attempt to say a word
Sources:

12. Language and Cognition I
Linguistic Relativity- hypothesis that the particular language one speaks influences the way one thinks about reality
syntax- the study of the rules whereby words or other elements of sentence structure are combined to form grammatical sentences
Linguistic Universals- linguistic system of an individual is shaped to a significant degree by the utterances to which that individual has been exposed.
Sources:

13. Language and Cognition II
Bilingualism- using or able to use two languages, especially with equal or nearly equal fluency
Mental Representation
dual system hypothesis
single system hypothesis
Sources:

14. Language Pathologies I
Aphasia- denotes a class of acquired language disorders
Broca’s aphasia
Wernicke’s aphasia
Sources:

15. Language Pathologies II
Disfluency- stammering, stuttering, and cluttering; excessive speed of delivery of speech
Agnosia- ability to perceive sounds is intact while the ability to recognize them is impaired
Aphonia- involves a complete loss of voice and may be organic or functional
Sources:

16. Thank you for listening to our presentation!
Do you have any questions?