Language

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Language
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Three Minute Review

• INTELLIGENCE
• history of testing and intelligence tests
• how to make a proper test (valid, reliable,
  standardized)
• verbal vs. performance subtests
• Spearman
• factor analysis logic
• one main factor (g) specific factors (ss)
• could the g-spot be in lateral prefrontal
  cortex
• Cattell
• two main factors
• fluid intelligence
• crystallized intelligence
• validity of IQ tests
• not bad (.4), not great

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• Other types of intelligence
• savants
• Gardner -- multiple intelligences
• Goleman -- emotional intelligence
• Heredity of intelligence
• strong genetic component
• some environmental component
• Flynn effect
• IQ has increased over time
• genes havent changed that quickly -- what has?
• Bad question Is a persons intelligence due to
  genes or environment?
• Better question Are differences in peoples
  intelligence due to differences in genes or
  differences in environment?

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Test Yourself

• Rashi is given several intelligence tests and is
  found to do well above average on most areas,
  including mathematical, verbal, and spatial
  abilities. Spearman would attribute Rashi's high
  performance across this variety of tests to
• g (general intelligence).
• s (specific ability).
• fluid intelligence.
• crystallized intelligence.
• mental age.

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Assembling Sounds
Sounds ? phonemes ? morphemes ? words ? sentences
? meaning

• hard to identify word transitions in speech
• speech recognition systems require slow, paused
  speech
• misunderstandings
• mondegreens
• Its a doggy-dog world
• Our father wishart in heaven Harold be thy
  name
• Jimi Hendrix
• scuse me while I kiss this guy
• Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Wait for the shed its a lonely view?
• Flight 301 hijack

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Assembling Words
Sounds ? phonemes ? morphemes ? words ? sentences
? meaning
(Gray, Fig 11.9, p. 436)
Morpheme vs. word? The boy-s kick-ed the ball
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Assembling Meaning
Sounds ? phonemes ? morphemes ? words ? sentences
? meaning

• Grammar
• the rules of language
• phonology -- assembling sounds
• morphology -- combining word parts
• The boy hit the ball vs. The boy hitted the
  ball
• syntax -- word order
• The boy hit the ball vs. The ball hit the boy
• Semantics
• meaning
• The boy hit the ball vs. The boy went to the
  ball
• Deep Meaning
• the underlying ideas based on context and culture
• She I am leaving you.
• He Who is he?

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Ambiguous Phrasing
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When things go wrong

• Translation errors based on alternative word
  meanings
• In a Bangkok dry cleaner's
• "Drop your trousers here for best results."
• Outside a Paris dress shop
• "Dresses for street walking."
• In an Acapulco hotel
• "The manager has personally passed all the water
  served here."
• Headlines with noun/verb ambiguity
• British Left Waffles on Falklands
• Stud Tires Out
• Chou Remains Cremated
• Teacher Strikes Idle Kids
• Squad Helps Dog Bite Victim
• Hershey Bars Protest
• Deer Kill 130,000
• Translation software
• The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
  translated into Russian became The vodka is good
  but the meat is rotten.

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Mentalese

• Is language the basis of thought?
• Do words that exist in other languages allow new
  concepts?
• Schadenfreude (German, damage joy)
  experiencing pleasure at someone elses
  misfortune
• Do our words bias our thoughts?
• stewardess vs. flight attendant
• fire man vs. fire fighter
• chairman vs. chair or chairperson
• Do Eskimos (Inuit) really have so many (e.g.,
  300) words for snow?
• Linguistic Relativity (Sapir Whorf)
• Whorfs problem with empty oil containers
• culture, through language affects the way we
  think
• another language, another soul

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Language in the Brain
The brain of Brocas patient Tan
Paul Broca

• Brocas aphasia
• follows damage to left frontal lobe
• problems generating speech
• not a problem moving mouth muscles
• often accompanied by right hemiparesis
• why?

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Brocas Area

• Wernickes aphasia
• occurs with left hemisphere damage
• problems with language comprehension
• fluent nonsense

visual cortex
Wernickes area (language comprehension)
Brocas area (language generation)
motor cortex (mouth, lips tongue)
auditory cortex
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Nonverbal Communication
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What is nonverbal communication?

• interpersonal distance
• physical touch
• facial expression
• eye contact
• body posture and movement
• gestures
• tone of voice
• dress

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Thin Slices of Behavior

• subjects watched soundless video clips of
  teaching assistant for 2, 5 or 10 seconds
• students rated how accepting, empathic,
  optimistic, professional, or supportive the
  teacher seemed
• correlation with teaching ratings of students in
  the instructors class .76

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Physical Space

• depends on how well you know the other person
• depends on situation (e.g., elevator, subway)
• larger for pairs with status difference than for
  peers
• distance is set by higher status person
• smaller for women than men

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Physical Space

• need more space face-to-face than back-to-back
• how to freak people out in an elevator (or at a
  urinal)

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Where do we touch each other?
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Facial Expressions
Fake vs. zygomatic smiles

• In this picture, an experienced flight attendant
  demonstrates a facial expression she uses at
  work. Is she performing genuine warmth, or is it
  concealed irritation?
• a. Genuine Warmth
• b. Concealed Irritation

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Eye Contact

• indicates attentiveness, credibility
• conveys intensity of feelings
• couples in love
• makes people more likeable
• higher tips
• when does a gaze become a stare?
• aggressive, causes discomfort
• culturally specific
• Asians lt Americans lt Arabs
• higher status individuals make more eye contact,
  lower status individuals look away more
• more common in women (but confounded with status)

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Body Language

• twitching nervousness
• open posture (e.g., arms open)
• closed posture (e.g., arms crossed)
• leaning toward you positive attitude
• leaning back negative attitude or defensiveness
• higher status person
• more open posture

Who just won the basketball game?
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Gesturing while on the phone
Why do you gesture when no one is watching?
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Evolution of Language?

• One theory (Giacomo Rizzolatti)
• through evolution, a brain area in left frontal
  cortex (F5 in monkey Brocas in human) becomes
  specialized for
• own hand actions
• others hand actions
• others gestures
• others verbal communication

• mirror neurons
• monkey see, monkey do

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Interactional Synchronycongruent posture,
congruent minds
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Intonation

• I really enjoyed myself!
• I really enjoyed myself!
• I really enjoyed myself!
• sarcasm
• rapid speech -- happy, frightened or nervous
• slow speech uncertainty, emphasis
• loud speech anger
• high pitch anxiety
• e-mail emoticons )

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Detecting Deception
I did not have sexual relations with ltpause,
gaze avertedgt that woman, Ms. Lewinsky.
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Accuracy at Lie Detection