PSYB57H3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Nim Chimpsky, Dyslexia, Kanzi
Document Summary
Learn words and meanings (they can comprehend an instruction such as "grab that knife and place it near the watermelon and they will follow those instructions): construct simple sentences. "shoes" is a content morpheme - a noun - and is a functional morpheme. "and" is a functional morpheme only used between sentences - not on its own. "human" is a content morpheme: content morphemes carry more meaning in conveying ideas, which is why infants learn them first, content morphemes consist usually of nouns and verbs. Later on, we learn the mechanics of grammar (how to use pronouns, "the," "and," "or," and so on) - these are functional morphemes. Semantics: the study of semantics is the study of meaning in language corresponding to full words (not just units of words). (potential) sources of confusion - effect of context. Syntax: syntax is the technical word for grammar - how do we put together words for them to be communicated properly, syntactical rules.
