Is Language Unique to Humans? & Beyond Apes - Chapter 8

Question 1

Can Animals Use Language?

Answer 1

Cross-fostering studies

Question 2

Cross-fostering studies

Answer 2

• Individual raised as a member of a different species
  
  • Viki (chimpanzee)
    - Four words (mama, papa, up, cup)

Question 3

Ape Language Studies

Answer 3

• Focus shifted to sign language
  
  • Washoe taught ~350 ASL signs
  • Koko taught ~1000 GSL signs
  • Nim study questioned all of it

Question 4

The Lexigram Approach

Answer 4

• Kanzi (bonobo)
  
  • Lexigram board comprised of symbols that
    represent various objects and ideas
  • Understood 350 symbols and 3,000 spoken words

Question 5

Language Use in Other Animals

Answer 5

• Dolphins learn syntactic rules in an artificial gestural language
• Chaser (border collie) learned over 1000 words
• Alex (African grey parrot) could say ~150 words to identify shapes, colours, numbers, etc

Question 6

Complex Animal Communication

Answer 6

• Honeybee waggle dance
  
  • Displacement
• Referential alarm calls
  function as primitive words
  
  • Semanticity

Question 7

Vocal Learning Species

Answer 7

• Like humans, some select animal groups also need to learn species-typical vocalizations to communicate properly
• ‘Cultural transmission’ of whale songs

Question 8

Is Human Language Unique?

Answer 8

• Yes…and no
• All forms of animal communication, human or otherwise, exist along a continuum
• Evolutionary building blocks of language can be found in other species