Language and Language Comphrension

Beginning of Unit 3

Chapters 9, 11, 12 in Book

Language is one of the most complex systems studied by scientists on Earth.
Communication involves vibrating vocal cords, generating air pressure, and producing sound waves.
These sounds travel through the air, are amplified by bones in the ear, and interpreted as neural impulses.

Lexicon refers to the mental repository of words and their meanings.
Average North American: 20,000 - 40,000 words.
College-educated North American: 75,000+ words.
The combination of these words leads to a vast number of sentence constructions.
- Example: Constructing 20-word sentences with 40,000 words could take 10 trillion years to exhaustively utter.

Encoding: The sender's voice and signals.
Understanding: Comprehending the incoming information.
Meaning Assessment: Evaluating word meanings and their context.
Syntax: Knowing the proper structure and order of words.
Intonation: Recognizing speaker mood and intentions based on tone (e.g., polite vs. commanding).
Communication takes place at a microsecond level, yet humans manage to process this with ease.

Vocabulary influences career opportunities and hiring decisions.
Articulate individuals with a rich vocabulary are often selected over those with higher GPAs but poorer communication skills.
Keeping a record of unfamiliar words within your field enhances understanding and improves communicative ability.

Phonemes: Basic building blocks of language that do not convey meaning (e.g., individual sounds like "k" and "th").
Morphemes: The smallest units of meaning (e.g., plurals like "cats"). The term "reactivated" has four morphemes: re-, active, -ate, -ed.

Syntax: Rules that govern sentence structure.
Grammar: Combination of syntax and morphology that shapes how words form sentences.
Semantics: The study of meanings of words and sentences.
Pragmatics: Context-dependent meaning accounting for the listener's perspective.

Psycholinguistics focuses on how language influences thought and perception.
Language varies by culture, affecting interpretation and perspective.
Example: Gendered words in languages such as Spanish and German reflect cultural values and perspectives.

Noam Chomsky is a significant figure asserting that language is governed by rules and is modular (specific brain structures dedicated to language).
His work is foundational in understanding syntax and language capacity.
The Cognitive Functional Approach emerged as a counterpoint, suggesting that language requires interaction with other cognitive processes and focuses on what language accomplishes.
This approach emphasizes the flexible, creative use of language in social contexts rather than only rigid rules.

The ability to communicate effectively hinges on mastering vocabulary, understanding language processes, and recognizing the importance of context in communication. Language matters profoundly, shaping not only how we express ourselves but also how we think and perceive the world around us.