 |
|
Human language and dolphin movement patterns show similarities in brevity
July 31, 2009Two researchers from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC) and the University of Aberdeen in the United Kingdom have shown for the first time that the law of brevity in human language, according to which the most frequently-used words tend to be the shortest, also extends to other animal species. The scientists have shown that dolphins are more likely to make simpler movements at the water surface.
"Patterns of dolphin behaviour at the surface obey the same law of brevity as human language, with both seeking out the simplest and most efficient codes", Ramón Ferrer i Cancho, co-author of the study published in the journal Complexity and a researcher in the Department of Languages and IT Systems at the UPC, tells SINC. The law of brevity, proposed by the American philologist George K. Zipf, along with others, shows that the most frequently-used words are the shortest ones.
Ferrer i Cancho, together with the scientist David Lusseau from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland (although they actually carried out this study while working at the Universities of Barcelona and Dalhousie in Canada, respectively) have shown that when dolphins move on the surface of the water they tend to perform the most simple movements, in the same way that humans tend to use words made up of less letters when they are speaking or writing, in so-called "linguistic economy".
The research study includes the case of Oscar Wilde's novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. The most-used word is the three-letter article "the", while other larger ones, such as "responsibilities" are hardly found at all. Among bottlenose dolphins in New Zealand, the researchers looked at their behaviour patterns at the surface of the water. Each pattern is made up of up to four basic units.
So, the "tail slap" pattern is made up of the units "slap", "tail" and "two", while the "spy hop" pattern is made up of the units "stop", "expose" and "head", and the "side flop" pattern" comprises "leap" and "side", and the "tail-stock dive" only involves the "dorsal arch" unit.
In total, the scientists counted more than 30 patterns of behaviour and their related units, and have shown that dolphins carry out more behaviour patterns made up of just one unit, while those involving four units are used less frequently.
"The results show that the simple and efficient behaviour strategies of dolphins are similar to those used by humans with words, and are the same as those used, for example, when we reduce the size of a photographic or video image in order to save space", says Ferrer.
The researcher says that studies such as this one show that human language is based on the same principles as those governing biological systems, "which leads us to the conclusion that the traditional barriers between disciplines should be removed".
FECYT - Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology
The research study includes the case of Oscar Wilde's novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. The most-used word is the three-letter article "the", while other larger ones, such as "responsibilities" are hardly found at all. Among bottlenose dolphins in New Zealand, the researchers looked at their behaviour patterns at the surface of the water. Each pattern is made up of up to four basic units.
So, the "tail slap" pattern is made up of the units "slap", "tail" and "two", while the "spy hop" pattern is made up of the units "stop", "expose" and "head", and the "side flop" pattern" comprises "leap" and "side", and the "tail-stock dive" only involves the "dorsal arch" unit.
In total, the scientists counted more than 30 patterns of behaviour and their related units, and have shown that dolphins carry out more behaviour patterns made up of just one unit, while those involving four units are used less frequently.
"The results show that the simple and efficient behaviour strategies of dolphins are similar to those used by humans with words, and are the same as those used, for example, when we reduce the size of a photographic or video image in order to save space", says Ferrer.
The researcher says that studies such as this one show that human language is based on the same principles as those governing biological systems, "which leads us to the conclusion that the traditional barriers between disciplines should be removed".
FECYT - Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology
Human Language Current Events and Human Language News RSSWhat's the semantic organization of human language?
Language networks are small-world and scale-free, although they are built based on different principles. Similar global statistical properties shown by language networks are independent of linguistic structure and typology.
Mouse Model Provides Clues to Human Language Development
Scientists of the German Mouse Clinic at Helmholtz Zentrum München have made a major contribution to understanding human language development.
Great Ape Trust graduate student's paper sheds light on bonobo language
What happens when linguistic tools used to analyze human language are applied to a conversation between a language-competent bonobo and a human?
Yerkes researchers identify language feature unique to human brain
Researchers at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, have identified a language feature unique to the human brain that is shedding light on how human language evolved. The study marks the first use of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), a non-invasive imaging technique, to compare human brain structures to those of chimpanzees, our closest living relative. The study will be published in the online version of Nature Neuroscience.
Bird brains suggest how vocal learning evolved
Though they perch far apart on the avian family tree, birds with the ability to learn songs use similar brain structures to sing their tunes. Neurobiologists at Duke University Medical Center now have an explanation for this puzzling likeness.
Bats add their voice to the FOXP2 story
When it comes to the FOXP2 gene, humans have had most to shout about. Discoveries that mutations in this gene lead to speech defects and that the gene underwent changes around the time language evolved both implicate FOXP2 in the evolution of human language.
Eavesdropping comes naturally to young song sparrows
Long before the National Security Agency began eavesdropping on the phone calls of Americans, young song sparrows were listening to and learning the tunes sung by their neighbors.
Researchers discover genetic cause for word-finding disease
Northwestern University researchers have discovered a genetic cause of a mysterious neurological disease in which people have trouble recalling and using words.
Where the brain organizes actions
Researchers have discovered that Broca's area in the brain—best known as the region that evolved to manage speech production—is a major "executive" center in the brain for organizing hierarchies of behaviors.
'Uniquely human' component of language found in gregarious birds
Although linguists have argued that certain patterns of language organization are the exclusive province of humans - perhaps the only uniquely human component of language.
More Human Language Current Events and Human Language News Articles
 |
Eve Spoke: Human Language and Human Evolution by Philip Lieberman (Author) If we were to summon the first man and woman from their prehistoric graves, what would they--indeed, what could they--say to us? The human imagination never ceases to be captivated by the quest for its own roots. Who were our ancestors? In the evolutionary clash of brains and brawn, what was it that prevailed and made us, Homo sapiens, uniquely human? Today scientists cite language as the distinctively human feature. But what is language--a sign, a grunt? a sound with collective symbolic meaning? This remarkable book seeks to set the record straight with a critical refinement of the language theory, providing us for the first time with a scientific explanation of how Eve came to speak at all. Wrestling with the age-old question of why such a large gulf exists between humans and other... |
 |
Human Traffic Starring: Jo Brand, Richard Coyle, Dean Davies, Danny Dyer, Bradley Freegard Here's the hip, adrenaline-pumped comedy about one wild weekend in the lives of five young friends ... and how their latest raved-up adventure just might change their outlook before the next weekend arrives! For Jip, Lulu, Koop, Nina, and Moff, workdays are merely the dreary downtime between frenetic 48-hour binges of clubbing, pubbing, and partying without rules or limits! But when these friends spend a wild weekend in search of some meaning and real connections, they'll see things in ways they've never imagined! Fast, funny, and excitingly original -- discover for yourself this widely acclaimed hit! |
 |
Human Japanese by Brak Software Human Japanese is software for Windows PCs that presents the Japanese language from square one in a warm, engaging tone. It packs more than 1,800 recordings of vocabulary words and example sentences, an instantly searchable dictionary for vocabulary words and grammar terms, and dozens of interactive reviews. While other products focus on memorizing vocabulary, Human Japanese draws the student into the real mechanics of the language, while maintaining a warm tone and a sense of humor. The goal of Human Japanese is not just to turn out students capable of repeating canned phrases, but to lay the foundation for real linguistic and cultural understanding. |
|
Story of Human Language 36 30 Minute Lectures | |
 |
Aumla : Journal Of The Australasian Universities Language And Literature Association by Macquarie Univ/Aulla/Human Dpt A journal of literary criticism, philology and linguistics. |
 |
A Book Of Human Language (Accompanied By Mumbles) by Aceyalone As a member of the influential L.A. hip-hop group Freestyle Fellowship and on his solo debut, Aceyalone pushed the boundaries of lyrical possibilities via tricky cadences and abstract wordplay. Independent of any major-label restraints, A Book of Human Language, Aceyalone's sophomore effort, is an attempt to "redefine your hip-hop guidelines," as the MC creates a highly conceptual album based on no less than the whole of human experience. Since this record is a "book," each song is a chapter that builds onto the song prior and lays the foundation for the next, all made conceptually cohesive with interludes, narratives, and the dark, jazzy production of longtime collaborator Mumbles. With Human Language, Aceyalone manages to insightfully and provocatively cover a universe of subjects,... |
 |
Adam's Tongue: How Humans Made Language, How Language Made Humans by Derek Bickerton (Author) How language evolved has been called “the hardest problem in science.” In Adam’s Tongue, Derek Bickerton—long a leading authority in this field—shows how and why previous attempts to solve that problem have fallen short. Taking cues from topics as diverse as the foraging strategies of ants, the distribution of large prehistoric herbivores, and the construction of ecological niches, Bickerton produces a dazzling new alternative to the conventional wisdom. Language is unique to humans, but it isn’t the only thing that sets us apart from other species—our cognitive powers are qualitatively different. So could there be two separate discontinuities between humans and the rest of nature? No, says Bickerton; he shows how the mere possession of symbolic... |
 |
09 - Body Language in Business Starring: Richard Mulvey Directed By: Richard Mulvey Also With: Richard Mulvey (Producer) |
|
The Human Animal: The Language of the Body VHS by Discovery Education Learn why zoologist Desmond Morris thinks human survival rests on our ability to communicate nonverbally. | |
 |
Fun With the Human Language Lauren Hayworth (Primary Contributor) |
| © 2009 BrightSurf.com |