R10 Questions

Question 1

According to this author, what problem stands in the way of making a clear scientific case that language is unique to humans.

Answer 1

There wasn’t anything unique found in the human genome or the human brain that explained language.

Question 2

What is the metamorphosis perspective on language evolution?

Answer 2

the idea of a critical biological event that started complex language 50,000 years ago.

main points from this: language is more of a distinctive trait compared to other mental activity, is the evolutionary adaptation, and is wired into humanity’s DNA.

Question 3

What are the authors’ alternative perspective?

Answer 3

language grew out of a “platform of abilities”, in which some are very ancient—shared with other animals–and others are more modern.

Question 4

The author’s discussion of apes’ (non)-use of pointing as a gesture ultimately links the difference, not to an evolutionary difference, but instead to a simple difference in….

Answer 4

culture or learning

Question 5

What other animals show sensitivity to some basic elements of syntax or structure in messaging?

Answer 5

zebras, dolphins, and some monkeys

Question 6

Name the so-called “language gene”.

Answer 6

FOXP2 gene

Question 7

Michael Arbib makes the point that making sense of the human world requires, not only a brain in a body, but a …….

Answer 7

group of brains that interact as part of the human social world

Question 8

A major conclusion of Kriby’s digital experiments on language evolution is that “Language seems to emerge out of a combination of _________, ___________, and ____________.

Answer 8

Biology, individual learning, and the transmission of language from one individual to another