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A Replicated Typo
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A Replicated Typo 2.0
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- March 13, 2012
- 09:12 PM
- 217 views
So, what is it then, this Grammaticalization?
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
A century ago Antoine Meillet, in his work L’évolution des Formes Grammaticales, coined the term grammaticalization to describe the process through which linguistic forms evolve from a lexical to a grammatical status. Even though knowledge of this process is found in earlier works by French and British philosophers (e.g. Condillac, 1746; Tooke, 1857), as well [...]... Read more »
Kurylowicz, J. (1965) The Evolution of Grammatical Categories. Diogenes, 13(51), 55-71. DOI: 10.1177/039219216501305105
- February 20, 2012
- 07:38 AM
- 262 views
Phonemic Diversity and Vanishing Phonemes: Looking for Alternative Hypotheses
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
In my last post on the vanishing phonemes debate I briefly mentioned Atkinson’s two major theoretical points: (i) that there is a link between phoneme inventory sizes, mechanisms of cultural transmission and the underlying demographic processes supporting these changes; (ii) we could develop a Serial Founder Effect (SFE) model from Africa based on the phoneme [...]... Read more »
Atkinson, Q. (2011) Phonemic Diversity Supports a Serial Founder Effect Model of Language Expansion from Africa. Science, 332(6027), 346-349. DOI: 10.1126/science.1199295
Lupyan G, & Dale R. (2010) Language structure is partly determined by social structure. PloS one, 5(1). PMID: 20098492
Trudgill, P. (2004) Linguistic and social typology: The Austronesian migrations and phoneme inventories. Linguistic Typology, 8(3), 305-320. DOI: 10.1515/lity.2004.8.3.305
Trudgill, P. (2011) Social structure and phoneme inventories. Linguistic Typology, 15(2), 155-160. DOI: 10.1515/LITY.2011.010
Kolinsky, R., Lidji, P., Peretz, I., Besson, M., & Morais, J. (2009) Processing interactions between phonology and melody: Vowels sing but consonants speak. Cognition, 112(1), 1-20. DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2009.02.014
Munroe, R., Fought, J., & Macaulay, R. (2009) Warm Climates and Sonority Classes: Not Simply More Vowels and Fewer Consonants. Cross-Cultural Research, 43(2), 123-133. DOI: 10.1177/1069397109331485
- January 25, 2012
- 09:24 PM
- 340 views
The Great Mystery of Vanishing Phonemes
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
It’s been well over a year since I first wrote about the relationship between phoneme inventory size and demography (see here and here). Since then, I have completed a thesis examining this relationship further, especially in the context of the relative roles of demography and tradeoffs between other linguistic subsystems (namely, a language’s lexicon and [...]... Read more »
Atkinson, Q. (2011) Phonemic Diversity Supports a Serial Founder Effect Model of Language Expansion from Africa. Science, 332(6027), 346-349. DOI: 10.1126/science.1199295
- October 27, 2011
- 05:02 AM
- 467 views
Tea Leaves and Lingua Francas: Why the future is not easy to predict
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
Tweet We all take comfort in our ability to project into the future. Be it through arbitrary patterns in Spring Pouchong tea leaves, or making statistical inferences about the likelihood that it will rain tomorrow, our accumulation of knowledge about the future is based on continued attempts of attaining certainty: that is, we wish to [...]... Read more »
Taleb, N. (2007) Black Swans and the Domains of Statistics. The American Statistician, 61(3), 198-200. DOI: 10.1198/000313007X219996
- October 13, 2011
- 10:48 AM
- 356 views
Robustness, Evolvability, Degeneracy and stuff like that…
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
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Much of the work I plan to do for this year involves integrating traditional and contemporary theories of language change within an evolutionary framework. In my previous post I introduced the concept of degeneracy, which, to briefly recap, refers to components that have a structure-to-function ratio of many-to-one, with a single degenerate structure being . . . → Read More: Robustness, Evolvability, Degeneracy and stuff like that…... Read more »
Cheshire, J. (2007) Discourse variation, grammaticalisation and stuff like that. Journal of Sociolinguistics, 11(2), 155-193. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9841.2007.00317.x
Whitacre, J. (2010) Degeneracy: a link between evolvability, robustness and complexity in biological systems. Theoretical Biology and Medical Modelling, 7(1), 6. DOI: 10.1186/1742-4682-7-6
- September 22, 2011
- 09:14 AM
- 409 views
Degeneracy, Evolution and Language
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
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Having had several months off, I thought I’d kick things off by looking at a topic that’s garnered considerable interest in evolutionary theory, known as degeneracy. As a concept, degeneracy is a well known characteristic of biological systems, and is found in the genetic code (many different nucleotide sequences encode a polypeptide) and immune responses (populations . . . → Read More: Degeneracy, Evolution and Language... Read more »
Edelman, G. (2001) Degeneracy and complexity in biological systems. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 98(24), 13763-13768. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.231499798
Whitacre, J. (2010) Degeneracy: a link between evolvability, robustness and complexity in biological systems. Theoretical Biology and Medical Modelling, 7(1), 6. DOI: 10.1186/1742-4682-7-6
- April 19, 2011
- 08:41 AM
- 795 views
The Return of the Phoneme Inventories
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
Right, I already referred to Atkinson’s paper in a previous post, and much of the work he’s presented is essentially part of a potential PhD project I’m hoping to do. Much of this stems back to last summer, where I mentioned how the phoneme inventory size correlates with certain demographic features, such as population size and population . . . → Read More: The Return of the Phoneme Inventories... Read more »
Atkinson QD. (2011) Phonemic diversity supports a serial founder effect model of language expansion from Africa. Science (New York, N.Y.), 332(6027), 346-9. PMID: 21493858
- January 18, 2011
- 08:27 AM
- 765 views
Evolving Linguistic Replicators: Major Transitions and Grammaticalisation
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
Just before Christmas I found myself in the pub speaking to Sean about his work on bilingualism, major transitions and the contrast between language change and the cultural evolution of language. Now, other than revealing that our social time is spent discussing our university work, the conversation brought up a distinction not often made: whilst language change is part of language evolution, the latter is also what we consider to be a major transition. As you evolutionary biologists will know, this concept is perhaps best examined and almost certainly popularised in Maynard Smith & Szathmáry’s (1995) The Major Transitions in Evolution. Here, the authors are not promoting the fallacy of guided evolution, where the inevitable consequence is increased and universal complexity. Their thesis is more subtle: that some lineages become more complex over time, with this increase being attributable to the way in which genetic information is transmitted between generations. In particular, they note eight transitions in the evolution of life:... Read more »
Croft, W. (2010) The origins of grammaticalization in the verbalization of experience. Linguistics, 48(1), 1-48. DOI: 10.1515/LING.2010.001
Ronnie Cann. (2001) Functional vs. lexical: a cognitive dichotomy. International Conference on Syntactic Categories. DOI: 10.1016/S0092-4563(00)80019-7
- November 24, 2010
- 10:11 AM
- 886 views
From Natyural to Nacheruhl: Utterance Selection and Language Change
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
Most of us should know by now that language changes. It’s why the 14th Century prose of Geoffrey Chaucer is nearly impenetrable to modern day speakers of English. It is also why Benjamin Franklin’s phonetically transcribed pronunciation of the English word natural sounded like natyural (phonetically [nætjuɹəl]) . . . → Read More: From Natyural to Nacheruhl: Utterance Selection and Language Change... Read more »
Blythe, R., & Croft, W. (2009) The Speech Community in Evolutionary Language Dynamics. Language Learning, 47-63. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9922.2009.00535.x
- November 11, 2010
- 07:35 PM
- 940 views
Animal Signalling Theory 101 – The Handicap Principle
by Anne in A Replicated Typo 2.0
One of the most important concepts in animal signalling theory, proposed by Amotz Zahavi in a seminal 1975 paper and in later works (Zahavi 1977; Zahavi & Zahavi 1997), is the handicap principle. A general definition is that females have evolved mating preferences for males who display exaggerated ornaments or behaviours that are costly to maintain and develop, and that this cost ensures an ‘honest’ signal of male genetic quality.
As a student I found it quite difficult to identify a working definition for this important type of signal mainly due to the apparent ‘coining fest’ that has taken place over the years since Zahavi outlined his original idea in 1975. For this reason, I have decided to provide a brief outline of the terminological and conceptual differences that exist in relation to the handicap principle in an attempt to help anyone who might be struggling to navigate the literature.... Read more »
ZAHAVI, A. (1975) Mate selection?A selection for a handicap. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 53(1), 205-214. DOI: 10.1016/0022-5193(75)90111-3
- October 26, 2010
- 02:40 AM
- 811 views
On Phylogenetic Analogues
by Richard in A Replicated Typo 2.0
A recent post by Miko on Kirschner and Gerhart’s work on developmental constraints and the implications for evolutionary biology caught my eye due to the possible analogues which could be drawn with language in mind. It starts by saying that developmental constraints are the most intuitive out of all of the known constraints on phenotypic variation. Essentially, whatever evolves must evolve from the starting point, and it cannot ignore the features of the original. Thus, a winged horse would not occur, as six limbs would violate the basic bauplan of tetrapods. In the same way, a daughter language cannot evolve without taking into account the language it derives from and language universals. But instead of viewing this as a constraint which limits the massive variation we see biologically or linguistically between different phenotypes, developmental constraints can be seen as a catalyst for regular variation.... Read more »
Gerhart, J., & Kirschner, M. (2007) Colloquium Papers: The theory of facilitated variation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 104(suppl_1), 8582-8589. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0701035104
- October 23, 2010
- 05:22 AM
- 767 views
Domain-General Regions and Domain-Specific Networks
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
The notion of a domain-specific, language acquisition device is something that still divides linguists. Yet, in an ongoing debate spanning at least several decades, there is still no evidence, at least to my knowledge, for the existence of a Universal Grammar. Although, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the problem was solved many years ago, especially . . . → Read More: Domain-General Regions and Domain-Specific Networks... Read more »
Deacon, T. (2010) Colloquium Paper: A role for relaxed selection in the evolution of the language capacity. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 107(Supplement_2), 9000-9006. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0914624107
Christiansen, M., & Chater, N. (2008) Language as shaped by the brain. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 31(05). DOI: 10.1017/S0140525X08004998
- October 3, 2010
- 04:34 AM
- 678 views
That’s Linguistics (Not logistics)
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
Linguists really need a catchy tune to match those in logistics. Any takers?
I always remember when one of my former lecturers said he was surprised by how little the average person will know about linguistics. For me, this was best exemplified when, upon enquiring about my degree, my friend paused for a brief moment . . . → Read More: That’s Linguistics (Not logistics)... Read more »
Lyle Cambell. (2002) The History of Linguistics. The Handbook of Linguistics. info:/10.1111/b.9781405102520.2002.00006.x
- September 21, 2010
- 03:06 PM
- 946 views
Genetic Anchoring, Tone and Stable Characteristics of Language
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
In 2007, Dan Dediu and Bob Ladd published a paper claiming there was a non-spurious link between the non-derived alleles of ASPM and Microcephalin and tonal languages. The key idea emerging from this research is one where certain alleles may bias language acquisition or processing, subsequently shaping the development of a language within a population of . . . → Read More: Genetic Anchoring, Tone and Stable Characteristics of Language... Read more »
Dediu D. (2010) A Bayesian phylogenetic approach to estimating the stability of linguistic features and the genetic biasing of tone. Proceedings. Biological sciences / The Royal Society. PMID: 20810441
Järvikivi J, Vainio M, & Aalto D. (2010) Real-time correlates of phonological quantity reveal unity of tonal and non-tonal languages. PloS one, 5(9). PMID: 20838615
- September 6, 2010
- 01:49 PM
- 748 views
More on Phoneme Inventory Size and Demography
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
On the basis of Sean’s comment, about using a regression to look at how phoneme inventory size improved as geographic spread was incorporated along with population size, I decided to look at the stats a bit more closely (original post is here). It’s fairly easy to perform multiple regression in R, which, in the case of . . . → Read More: More on Phoneme Inventory Size and Demography... Read more »
John Fox. (2005) Nonparametric Regression. Encyclopedia of Statistics in Behavioral Science. DOI: 10.1002/0470013192.bsa446
- August 30, 2010
- 01:11 PM
- 759 views
Phoneme Inventory Size and Demography
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
It’s long since been established that demography drives evolutionary processes (see Hawks, 2008 for a good overview). Similar attempts are also being made to describe cultural (Shennan, 2000; Henrich, 2004; Richerson & Boyd, 2009) and linguistic (Nettle, 1999a; Wichmann & Homan, 2009; Vogt, 2009) processes by considering the effects of population size and other . . . → Read More: Phoneme Inventory Size and Demography... Read more »
Hay, J., & Bauer, L. (2007) Phoneme inventory size and population size. Language, 83(2), 388-400. DOI: 10.1353/lan.2007.0071
Lupyan G, & Dale R. (2010) Language structure is partly determined by social structure. PloS one, 5(1). PMID: 20098492
Lycett, S., & Norton, C. (2010) A demographic model for Palaeolithic technological evolution: The case of East Asia and the Movius Line. Quaternary International, 211(1-2), 55-65. DOI: 10.1016/j.quaint.2008.12.001
Trudgill, P. (2004) Linguistic and social typology: The Austronesian migrations and phoneme inventories. Linguistic Typology, 8(3), 305-320. DOI: 10.1515/lity.2004.8.3.305
- August 16, 2010
- 05:13 PM
- 1,152 views
Experiments in communication pt 2: Human Iterated Learning
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
In the last post, I discussed some of the literature into experimental communication, with the intention of then following it up by looking at recent experiments done at Edinburgh (and beyond). But as Hannah pipped me to the post, with a great overview of the wide range of experiments into language evolution, I’ll instead limit this . . . → Read More: Experiments in communication pt 2: Human Iterated Learning... Read more »
Kirby, S., Cornish, H., & Smith, K. (2008) Cumulative cultural evolution in the laboratory: An experimental approach to the origins of structure in human language. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105(31), 10681-10686. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0707835105
Cornish, H., Tamariz, M., & Kirby, S. (2009) Complex Adaptive Systems and the Origins of Adaptive Structure: What Experiments Can Tell Us. Language Learning, 187-205. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9922.2009.00540.x
- August 9, 2010
- 03:30 PM
- 924 views
Genetic Components and Cultural Differences: The social sensitivity hypothesis
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
Cultural differences are often attributed to events far removed from genetics. The basis for this belief is often based on the assertion that if you take an individual, at birth, from one society and implant them in another, then they will generally grow up to become well-adjusted to their adopted culture. Whilst this is more than . . . → Read More: Genetic Components and Cultural Differences: The social sensitivity hypothesis... Read more »
Way, B., & Lieberman, M. (2010) Is there a genetic contribution to cultural differences? Collectivism, individualism and genetic markers of social sensitivity. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 5(2-3), 203-211. DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsq059
- August 3, 2010
- 04:20 PM
- 1,182 views
Experiments in Communication pt 1: Artificial Language Learning and Constructed Communication Systems
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
Much of recent research in linguistics has involved the use of experimentation to directly test hypotheses by comparing and contrasting real-world data with that of laboratory results and computer simulations. In a previous post I looked at how humans, non-human primates, and even non-human animals are all capable of high-fidelity cultural transmission. Yet, to apply this . . . → Read More: Experiments in Communication pt 1: Artificial Language Learning and Constructed Communication Systems... Read more »
Hudson Kam, C., & Newport, E. (2009) Getting it right by getting it wrong: When learners change languages. Cognitive Psychology, 59(1), 30-66. DOI: 10.1016/j.cogpsych.2009.01.001
Kam, C., & Newport, E. (2005) Regularizing Unpredictable Variation: The Roles of Adult and Child Learners in Language Formation and Change. Language Learning and Development, 1(2), 151-195. DOI: 10.1207/s15473341lld0102_3
WONNACOTT, E., NEWPORT, E., & TANENHAUS, M. (2008) Acquiring and processing verb argument structure: Distributional learning in a miniature language☆. Cognitive Psychology, 56(3), 165-209. DOI: 10.1016/j.cogpsych.2007.04.002
VOULOUMANOS, A. (2008) Fine-grained sensitivity to statistical information in adult word learning. Cognition, 107(2), 729-742. DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2007.08.007
Galantucci, B. (2005) An Experimental Study of the Emergence of Human Communication Systems. Cognitive Science, 29(5), 737-767. DOI: 10.1207/s15516709cog0000_34
Selten, R., & Warglien, M. (2007) The emergence of simple languages in an experimental coordination game. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 104(18), 7361-7366. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0702077104
Selten R, & Warglien M. (2007) The emergence of simple languages in an experimental coordination game. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 104(18), 7361-6. PMID: 17449635
- July 27, 2010
- 01:57 PM
- 1,337 views
Culture-driven population dynamics: sustainable or unsustainable?
by Wintz in A Replicated Typo 2.0
When looking at culture-driven population dynamics, a common assumption is that there’s a positive feedback between cultural evolution and demographic growth. The general prediction, then, is for unlimited growth in population and culture. Yet models based on these assumptions tend to ignore important aspects of cultural evolution, namely: (1) cultural transmission . . . → Read More: Culture-driven population dynamics: sustainable or unsustainable?... Read more »
Ghirlanda, S., Enquist, M., & Perc, M. (2010) Sustainability of culture-driven population dynamics☆. Theoretical Population Biology, 77(3), 181-188. DOI: 10.1016/j.tpb.2010.01.004
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