m2 cgsci review

What are the four key questions in language acquisition?

1. What does it look like? 2. Where does it come from? 3. What form does it take? 4. Why do we need it?

What is phonetics?

The scientific study of the physical nature of speech, including how sound waves are produced and perceived.

What is the difference between sounds and spelling?

Sounds do not always correspond directly to spelling; for example, the same sound can be represented by different spellings.

What is phonology?

The mental representation of sounds as part of a discrete symbolic cognitive system, involving phonemes.

What is the McGurk Effect?

An audiovisual effect where the perception of a sound is influenced by the corresponding mouth movements, even if the sound remains unchanged.

What is morphology?

The structure and formation of words, including the study of morphemes, which are the smallest units of meaning.

What are bound and free morphemes?

Bound morphemes cannot stand alone (e.g., '-s'), while free morphemes can (e.g., 'walk').

What is the difference between inflectional and derivational morphology?

Inflectional morphology changes a word's form without changing its class (e.g., 'girl' to 'girls'), while derivational morphology changes a word's class (e.g., 'create' to 'creation').

What is syntax?

The structure and formation of sentences, involving the arrangement of words and phrases to create grammatical sentences.

What is the difference between prescriptive and descriptive grammar?

Prescriptive grammar sets rules for how language should be used, while descriptive grammar describes how language is actually used.

What is do-support in English grammar?

A grammatical structure where 'do' is used to help form negatives or questions, as in 'He doesn't know.'

What is expressiveness in syntax?

The ability of word order to define meaning, allowing for complex communication using a finite set of rules.

What are thematic roles in syntax?

Roles that indicate the function of a noun in a sentence, such as subject, object, or indirect object.

What is case assignment in syntax?

The process by which nouns are assigned grammatical cases, indicating their role in a sentence, such as nominative or accusative.

What is structural ambiguity?

When a sentence can be interpreted in multiple ways due to its structure, leading to different meanings.

What is semantics?

The study of meaning in language, including how words and sentences convey meaning.

What is pragmatics?

The study of how context influences language use and meaning, including the application of Gricean Maxims.

What are Gricean Maxims?

Principles that guide effective communication: quality, quantity, relevance, and manner.

What is an example of the maxim of quantity?

Providing just enough information without over-explaining, such as answering a question directly without unnecessary details.

How do evidential morphemes relate to pragmatics?

They mark the source of knowledge in a statement, aligning with the maxim of quality by indicating how the speaker knows what they are saying.

What is the goal of syntax?

To describe the rules governing the relationships between different parts of speech to determine grammaticality.

What is the significance of syntactic structure?

It helps in understanding how different components of sentences interact and conform to grammatical rules.

What is the role of auxiliaries in syntax?

Auxiliaries help form questions and negatives and indicate tense in sentences.

What is a case study in syntax?

An examination of how varying the form of a word indicates its grammatical role, such as in pronouns.

What is the difference between intransitive, transitive, and ditransitive verbs?

Intransitive verbs do not require an object, transitive verbs require one, and ditransitive verbs require two objects.

What is psycholinguistics?

The study of how language is processed and how people determine the meaning of words in practice.

What is an example of a garden path sentence?

A sentence that initially leads the reader to a misinterpretation, such as 'The raft floated down the river sank.'

What is the difference between active verbs and passive clauses?

Active verbs indicate the subject performs the action, while passive clauses indicate the subject receives the action.

What are 'transitive' and 'intransitive' verbs?

Transitive verbs require a direct object, while intransitive verbs do not.

What does 'universal grammar' refer to?

The theory that the ability to acquire language is innate to humans and that all languages share a common structural basis.

What is parameterization in language acquisition?

The process of setting specific parameters or switches in universal grammar during language learning.

What is the critical period in language acquisition?

A developmental phase during which the acquisition of language is most effective and occurs naturally.

What is a 'pidgin' language?

A simplified language that develops as a means of communication between speakers of different native languages.

What is the significance of the book 'Don't Sleep There Are Snakes' by Daniel Everett?

It challenges the idea of universal grammar by presenting evidence from the Pirahã people, who lack certain grammatical features thought to be universal.

What are the two key purposes of language?

To connect people and to divide groups, creating in-groups and out-groups.

What is a 'shibboleth'?

A linguistic marker that distinguishes members of one group from another, often based on pronunciation.

What is instinct blindness in perception?

The phenomenon where our perception seems effortless, obscuring the complex processes involved.

Why is studying perception important?

It helps us understand fundamental aspects of who we are and how we interact with the world.

What is the role of shadows in visual perception?

Shadows provide cues for depth perception and help the visual system recover the structure of the physical world.

How do languages differ by region and class?

Languages can vary significantly in vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammar based on geographical and social factors.

What is the relationship between languages and their evolution?

Languages can develop from one another, and understanding their syntactic regularities can reveal their evolutionary history.

What is the significance of the 1937 Parsley Massacre in relation to language?

It highlights the deadly consequences of linguistic discrimination, where pronunciation determined life or death.

What are the implications of language acquisition for cognitive science?

It intersects with neurobiology, psychology, and linguistics, providing insights into human cognition and development.

What is the importance of modularity in language acquisition?

Modularity allows for the study of language in isolation, facilitating understanding of its underlying processes.

What is the role of social cognition in language acquisition?

Social cognition influences how infants respond to language, preferring speakers of their native language even before they can speak.

What is the significance of the looking time studies in language acquisition?

They demonstrate that infants show preferences for familiar languages and accents, indicating early social divisions based on language.

What is the goal of the visual system in perception?

To recover useful structure from the physical world by interpreting shifting retinal images.

What is the primary goal of the visual system?

To recover the useful structure of the physical world from certain parts of the electromagnetic spectrum via shifting retinal images.

What is the 'inverse problem' in vision?

The challenge of recovering 3D structure from 2D retinal images, as multiple world configurations can produce the same pattern of light.

How does motion affect visual perception?

Motion does not resolve the ambiguity of 2D images, as multiple configurations can still produce the same light pattern.

What is an example of an illusion that illustrates the inverse problem?

The spinning dancer silhouette illusion, where the same light pattern can be interpreted in multiple ways.

What are natural constraints in visual perception?

Heuristic assumptions made by the brain to resolve ambiguities, such as avoiding coincidences and exploiting irregularities.

What does visual perception as unconscious inference mean?

We perceive objects and events that are most likely to produce the received sensory stimulation, as the brain makes educated guesses based on limited information.

What is coincidence avoidance in visual perception?

The brain's tendency to avoid interpreting coincidental alignments in visual stimuli, leading to the perception of coherent objects.

How does stereovision contribute to depth perception?

Stereovision uses the slightly different images received by each eye to perceive depth, with the brain interpreting the disparity.

What is stereopsis?

The ability to perceive depth based on the differences in the images received by the right and left eyes.

What happens when the brain cannot resolve visual disparity?

The brain may ignore or fill in the gaps, leading to phenomena like motion-induced blindness or scotomas.

What is a scotoma?

A blind spot in the visual field that the brain fills in, often unnoticed by the individual.

How do robots serve as 'evocative objects' in cognitive science?

They help investigate boundary conditions and the distinctions we make in our responses to robotic behavior.

What was the outcome of the robot experiment with children?

Children engaged with a robot that babbled nonsense, revealing insights into human interaction with non-intelligent devices.

What is the significance of the champagne example in visual perception?

It illustrates the impossibility of perception, where the brain's interpretation may not align with reality.

What role do heuristics play in visual perception?

Heuristics guide the brain's assumptions to make sense of incomplete visual information, allowing for perception despite inherent limitations.

What is the relationship between luminance and perception?

Luminance is influenced by both the material's reflectance and the light source's illumination, complicating the recovery of true reflectance.

What is the significance of the 'Pacman' example in visual perception?

It demonstrates how our brain interprets illusory contours and avoids coincidences, leading to the perception of shapes that aren't physically present.

How does the brain handle fixed objects in the visual field?

The brain may ignore fixed objects that do not align with the surrounding visual context, as seen with blood vessels in the retina.

What is the impact of aging on visual perception?

Aging can lead to declines in visual function and the development of scotomas, which the brain compensates for by filling in missing information.

What happens to visual perception when fixating on a distant point?

Objects in the peripheral vision may disappear, illustrating how coincidence avoidance affects what we consciously perceive.

What effect do robots have on our thinking about their agency?

Robots prompt us to reveal our thought processes and decision-making.

What are two advantages of robots as stimuli?

Robots are infinitely replaceable and allow for precise control of individual parameters.

What was the purpose of the study involving 59 undergraduates and robots?

To investigate the impact of embodiment on learning through different teaching conditions.

What were the three conditions tested in the robot study?

Embodied robot, live video conference, and enhanced video conference.

What was the outcome when students interacted with an embodied robot?

Students learned faster and were more likely to follow the robot's instructions.

How does physical presence of a robot affect student behavior?

Students are more likely to follow instructions from a physically present robot than from a screen.

What evolutionary aspect influences human learning from robots?

Humans evolved to learn from physical interactions rather than from screens.

What was the finding regarding group dynamics and learning with robots?

Students learn slower when singled out, but this effect diminishes in group settings.

How do robots challenge established dogma in social behavior?

They provide new insights into human social interactions and learning processes.

What was observed in children with ASD when interacting with robots?

Robots can engage children, leading to improved social skills and interactions.

What is the significance of minimal language input in deaf infants?

Deaf infants with hearing parents lag behind in developmental milestones compared to those with deaf parents.

What design challenge do robots face in assisting deaf infants?

Robots lack the dexterity and expressiveness needed for effective communication.

What is the impact of robots on collaborative tasks?

Robots help reveal and enhance our skill sets through collaborative interactions.

What was the outcome of using robots in social skills training for children with ASD?

Children showed engagement and improvement in social skills while interacting with robots.

What does visual perception involve?

Recovering the structure of the world from retinal images, but not the whole world due to computational limits.

What are the three main aspects of attention?

Selectivity, capacity limitation, and effort.

What does the multiple object tracking task demonstrate?

It shows the brain's capacity limitations in tracking multiple objects simultaneously.

How does poverty affect attention and performance on tasks?

Poor individuals have less attention to spare for tasks, impacting their performance, especially under stress.

What was the finding regarding Indian sugarcane farmers and attentional tasks?

Farmers performed worse on attentional tasks when they were financially strained before harvest.

What is feature search in the context of visual attention?

A method where attention is directed to find a specific feature, such as a color or shape.

What does the red circle in a field of red squares indicate?

Fast response.

What does a yellow circle in a field of yellow and red circles and squares indicate?

Noticeably slower response.

What is the significance of the yellow bar tilted to the left in conjunction search?

It indicates a search on the conjunction of two different features, affecting response time based on the number of distractors.

What is the inverse problem in perception?

It refers to the challenge of having insufficient information from the eyes to fully understand the local environment, leading to multiple interpretations.

What is change blindness?

A phenomenon where individuals fail to notice significant changes in their visual field due to a lack of attention.

What experiment illustrates change blindness with text?

A person reading text fails to notice that every other letter is changing case as they move their eyes.

What is the Flicker Paradigm?

An experiment demonstrating change blindness where participants do not notice changes in an image due to flickering.

What does the Cornell professor's experiment on change blindness reveal?

Participants failed to notice a person was replaced while giving directions, highlighting inattentional blindness.

What is inattentional blindness?

The failure to notice an unexpected stimulus in one's visual field when attention is focused elsewhere.

How does expectation influence inattentional blindness?

Having the wrong expectation can lead to missing stimuli that do not match what one anticipates.

What is the cocktail party effect?

The ability to focus on a single conversation in a noisy environment, relying on the activation level of the signal.

What are the two sources of activation for conscious awareness in the cocktail party effect?

The strength of the actual signal and the individual's threshold for activation, particularly for personal identifiers like one's name.

What is motion blindness?

A phenomenon where attention to one object causes another object to disappear from perception.