The Emergence and Development of Structural Systematicity in Language
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Edinburgh
Department Name: Sch of Philosophy Psychology & Language
Abstract
Abstracts are not currently available in GtR for all funded research. This is normally because the abstract was not required at the time of proposal submission, but may be because it included sensitive information such as personal details.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Simon Kirby (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Thompson B
(2016)
Culture shapes the evolution of cognition.
in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Thomas C. Scott-Phillips (Editor)
(2012)
The evolution of language : proceedings of the 9th international conference on the evolution of language (EVOLANG 9)
in EVOLANG 9
Theisen-White C
(2010)
Systematicity and arbitrariness in novel communication systems
in Interaction Studies. Social Behaviour and Communication in Biological and Artificial Systems
Tamariz, M
(2012)
How generation turnover and interlocutor negotiation effect language evolution
in The Evolution of Language: Proceedings of the 9th International Conference (EVOLANG9) Kyoto, Japan 13-16 March 2012
Smith, K
(2013)
Linguistic structure is an evolutionary trade-off between simplicity and expressivity
in Proceedings of Cogsci 2013
Smith, A D M
(2012)
Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning
Smith K
(2010)
Cross-Situational Learning: An Experimental Study of Word-Learning Mechanisms
in Cognitive Science
Smith A
(2011)
The Oxford Handbook of Grammaticalization
Scott-Phillips TC
(2010)
Language evolution in the laboratory.
in Trends in cognitive sciences
Scott-Phillips T
(2013)
Animal Communication Theory - Information and Influence
| Description | Our central finding is that systematicity in language is a cultural adaptation arising from the influence of naive learners on the transmission of language in a communicative context. We first developed some of the analytical techniques for language evolution experiments and then greatly extended the methodology by adding a communicative context, thereby avoiding the need for the previous experiments' artificial interventions to maintain the expressivity of the evolving language. In addition, we are now able to contrast horizontal and vertical cultural transmission, and by doing so show that it is transmission to naive learners that is critical for language to evolve a systematic (i.e. compositional) mapping between meanings and signals. This is a surprise, since the standard assumption in the cultural evolution literature is that there are few significant differences between horizontal and vertical transmission. In addition to examining the effect of transmission, our experiment allows us to look at the effect of negotiation and the communicative nature of the task. We also investigated the effects of the level of systematicity in a language on how well it is learned and reproduced. Our demonstration of the crucial role for cultural transmission has significant implications for the nativist hypothesis, and we have taken advantage of the grant being situated within the Language Evolution and Computation Research Unit to collaborate with other researchers and identify the effect of interaction between cultural and biological evolution using a Bayesian model. The striking result is that the existence of cultural transmission of language means that there are no conditions under which strong domain-specific innate constraints will evolve. Our experiments are predicated on the assumption that learners have the ability to infer the meanings reliably in an interaction. To support this conclusion, we have collaborated with other researchers in the research unit to explore cross-situational learning of meaning-signal pairs using both experiments and computational models which we reported in the journal Cognitive Science. |
| Exploitation Route | This grant has lead to an overarching theory of the evolution of structure in language as arising from a trade-off between simplicity (driven by learning) and expressivity (driven by communication). This finding can be generalised to a wide range of phenomena in language beyond the basic design features that we looked at. In addition it can be exte e. For example, music trades off simplicity and expressivity in much the same way, and this may lead to its characteristic structure. A similar process may even be at the root of complex behaviour in other species, such as in song birds with large song repertoires. |
| Sectors | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education |
| Description | Culture evolves : case study 6 : evolving language in the lab |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | This was part of an interactive exhibit shown at a number of science festivals and events, most notably the Royal Society's 350th Anniversary Summer Science Exhibition in London from 25th June to 4th July 2010. Simon Kirby created the an interactive experiment using two iPad's and a computer that allowed members of the public to understand the cultural evolution experiments that were developed further in the project. More information here: http://www.cultureevolves.org/caseStudy6.aspx This has since been shown at the Dundee Science Festival, Nov 14th 2010; the Edinburgh Science Festival, 1st-4th April 2012; and the British Science Festival in Aberdeen, 4-9th September 2012 Substantial interest in cultural evolution generated among wide range of public |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |
| URL | http://www.cultureevolves.org/caseStudy6.aspx |
| Description | Form-meaning systemacity and language evolu/on |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Invited talk by Monica Tamariz at the Department of Linguistics, University of Tuebingen, Germany, in September 2009. Influence on academic colleagues. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2009 |
| Description | Language as an evolutionary system : a multidisciplinary approach : workshop discussant |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Invited discussant at workshop on Language as an Evolutionary System http://www.lel.ed.ac.uk/~monica/programme http://www.lel.ed.ac.uk/~monica/programme |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
| Description | Meaning as a selective pressure in the evolution of linguistic structure |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Invited talk by Monica Tamariz given at "Language as an Evolutionary System: A Multidisciplinary Approach". Edinburgh, 13 July 2010. Influence on academic field. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
| Description | Nijmegen lectures 2009 invited discussant |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Invited discussant at the 2009 Nijmegen Lectures http://www.mpi.nl/events/nijmegen-lectures-2009/participants http://www.mpi.nl/events/nijmegen-lectures-2009/participants |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2009 |
| Description | The role of analysis and recombination in the evolution of language structure |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Talk given at the Lingusitic Circle, Department of Lingusitics and English Language, The University of Edinburgh (March 2009) Recognition by potential collaborators. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |