LING496 Study Guide - Quiz Guide: Theoretical Linguistics, Psycholinguistics, Syntactic Movement
10 Oct 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
What%is%Psycholinguistics?%
•!A"scientific"field"that"asks,"“how"people"acquire"language,"how"people"use"language"to"
speak,"and"how"language"is"represented"and"processed"in"the"brain”"
•!Intersection"of"psychology"and"theoretical"linguistics:"developmental"psychology,"
cognitive"psychology,"speech"and"hearing"science,"computer"science,"philosophy""
Experimental%methods%applied%to%theoretical%linguistics%
•!Are"rules"and"representations"from"theoretical"linguistics"psychologically"real?"
o!Phonemes"
o!Phonotactic"rules"
o!Morphological"processes"
o!Syntactic"tree"structure"
o!Movement"and"traces"
Rules%and%Representations%and%Operations%
•!Rules"and"representations"are"stored"in"the"mind"
•!Operations"performed"on"those"representations"
8/31/18%
Defining%language%
•!You"can"produce"infinitely"many"sentences"
•!you"can"understand"sentences"you’ve"never"heard"
•!you"can"judge"grammaticality"
Mental"Grammar"
•!contains"rules:"
•!build"language"structure"
•!parse"language"structure"
•!how"are"strings"of"words"combined"
•!patterns"of"patterns"
•!categories:"verb,"noun,"adjective,"etc."(knowledge"of"patterns)"
•!what"kinds"of"representations"are"being"used?"
•!What"is"the"relationship"between"thoughts/concepts/sensory"information"and"linguistic"
structure"
•!Words"and"morphemes"and"combinatorial"rules"stored!"can"we"“see”"this"anywhere"in"
the"brain?"
Competence=what%you%know%
•!what’s"in"your"mental"grammar"
•!what"can"be"generated"by"your"mental"grammar"
•!generated"by"rules"stored"in"mental"grammar"
Performance%
•!what"can"actually"be"executed"
•!subject"to"physical"constraints"
o!you"can’t"produce"an"infinite"sentence"(you"will"die)"
•!subject"to"hardware"constraints"
•!affected"by"things"such"as"attention"attention"
Rules%
•!S!"NP"VP"
•!NP!"NP"whom"NP"Vs"
•!Produces"Structure"like"
o!NP"whom"NP"Vs"VP"
Operations%
•!What"operations"are"performed"on"linguistic"representations"
Linguists%
•!Formal"grammar"
•!Defines"well"formed"expressions"in"a"given"language"
•!Exists"independently"of"real"time"processing"
•!What"kind"of"structure"can"be"generated"
Psycholinguists%
•!Real"time"processing"system"
•!Computes"some"representation"in"response"to"input"(in"order"to"produce"output)"
•!Exists"in"the"heads"of"speakers"
•!Produces"mental"representations"in"real"time"and"space"
•!Executes"the"structure"
Communication%
•!Thought!"language!"motor"activity!"sensory"information!"language!"thought"
•!Decoding"into"mental"image"
•!Mental"representation:"word,"proposition"
One%system%with%both%capacities%
•!Phonological"structure"">"syntactic"structure"">"thought"
Representational%Levels%and%Processing%
•!Lexical"
o!Mechanisms"for"mapping"sound"waves"to"abstract"speech"sound"representations"
o!Format"of"representation?""
•!Sentence"
Levels%of%Analysis%
•!What"is"language?"The"output"of"a"generative"engine;"complex"computational"system"
•!Theoretical"linguistics:"model"of"the"output"
•!Many"theoretical"models"include"processes"(derivation)"
•!How"is"output"generated?"
o!How"does"the"mind"work?"Irreducible"complexity?"
•!Computational"
o!What"is"the"goal"of"the"system?"
#!Abstract"description"of"basic"components;"function,"goals,"etc."
o!The"WHAT"and"WHY"
o!Models:"relates"input"to"output"
o!Specifies"structure"and"relationships"within"the"complex"system"
o!Fundamentally,"description"of"shape/behavior"of"the"system"is"in"isolation"from"
how"the"system"is"computed/executed"
•!Algorithmic"
o!What"specific"steps"can"be"taken"to"reach"the"goals?"
#!Representations"and"operations"
o!THE"HOW"
o!Step"by"step"process;"type"of"representation"
o!Psycholinguistics:"
#!How"is"linguistic"structure"assembled"in"the"mind?"
#!What"kinds"of"representations"are"created?"
#!How"are"they"manipulated"
•!Implementation"
o!What"is"the"physical"realization"of"the"system?"
#!Hardware"
o!THE"WHERE"
o!How"are"the"steps"executed"physically?"(physical"medium"for"the"mind)"
o!Neurolinguistics:"
#!What"brain"regions"are"active"during"language"processing?"
#!What"are"the"physical"processes?"
The%Mind%
•!Complex"information"processing"system"
o!Performs"processes"and"mental"operations"computed"in"the"mind"
•!Think"of"the"mind,"like"computer"software"
•!How"is"information"represented?"
o!Form"of"representation"
•!What"processes"or"computations"are"done"on"those"representations?"
o!Specific"operations"
•!What"is"the"physical"medium"or"hardware"in"which"information"is"represented"and"
computations"are"performed?"
Relationships%Between%Levels%
•!What"can"models"in"theoretical"linguistics"tell"us"about"the"processes"in"the"mind"
•!What"experimental"results"from"psycholinguistics"tell"us"about"patterns"in"language?"
Questions%in%Psycholinguistics%
•!Does"the"language"system"make"use"of"the"rules?"
•!Is"any"part"of"language"innate?"
•!How"modular"is"the"language"system"
o!Modularity:"Information"is"processed"in"modules:"fast/automatic/mandatory,"
stimulus"driven,"hard"wired/genetic"
o!Domain"specific"vs."Domain"general"
#!Domains"processed"by"corresponding"modules"
#!Language"appears"to"be"domain"specific"(i.e."brain"damage,"aphasia,"brain"
imaging)"
#!HOWEVER,"Language"shares"resources"with"other"parts"of"the"brain"(can"
be"processed"in"other"parts"of"the"brain)"
Stroop%Effect%
Document Summary
Experimental methods applied to theoretical linguistics: are rules and representations from theoretical linguistics psychologically real? o phonemes o phonotactic rules o morphological processes o syntactic tree structure o movement and traces. Performance: what can actually be executed, subject to physical constraints o you can"t produce an infinite sentence (you will die, subject to hardware constraints, affected by things such as attention attention. Representational levels and processing: lexical o mechanisms for mapping sound waves to abstract speech sound representations o format of representation, sentence. Representations and operations o the how o step by step process; type of representation o psycholinguistics: Hardware o the where o how are the steps executed physically? (physical medium for the mind) o neurolinguistics: Is any part of language innate: how modular is the language system o modularity: information is processed in modules: fast/automatic/mandatory, stimulus driven, hard wired/genetic o domain specific vs. domain general.
