#659 Nick Chater & Morten Christiansen - The Language Game; Language as a Game of Charades
RECORDED ON MAY 11th 2022.
Dr. Nick Chater is Professor of Behavioural Science at Warwick Business School. He works on rationality and language using a range of theoretical and experimental approaches.
Dr. Morten Christiansen is William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychology at Cornell University. His research focuses on the interaction of biological and environmental constraints in the evolution, acquisition and processing of language.
They are both authors of The Language Game: How Improvisation Created Language and Changed the World.
In this episode, we focus on The Language Game. Topics include: the importance of language; language as a game of charades; cognitive mechanisms necessary for language; how languages evolved; linguistic communication as a cooperation process; improvisation; how we keep up with and chunk language; the meanings of words; Universal Grammar; why other species do not use language; if language is in decline; improving children’s language skills; if language influences thought; and how language might shield us from the technological singularity.
Time Links:
Intro
The importance of language
Language as a game of charades
Do we need to know rules?
Cognitive mechanisms for language
The evolution of language
Linguistic communication as a cooperation process
Improvisation
How do we keep up with language?
Do words have specific meanings?
Universal Grammar
Why other species do not use language
Language and the evolution of culture
Is language in decline?
Improving children’s language skills
Does language influence thought?
Language and the technological singularity
Follow Drs. Chater and Christiansen’s work!
Follow Dr. Chater’s work:
Faculty page: https://bit.ly/3xu5jz1
ResearchGate profile: https://bit.ly/3jI4qLl
Amazon page: https://amzn.to/3uLGugb
Twitter handle: @NickJChater
Follow Dr. Christiansen’s work:
Faculty page: https://bit.ly/3K1eWIp
ResearchGate profile: https://bit.ly/3OiGuMH
Amazon page: https://amzn.to/3uNvZJx
Twitter handle: @MH_Christiansen
The Language Game: https://amzn.to/3xxOfs8