|
|
Words are bundles of meanings and sounds (or signs). As mature language users, we have sophisticated knowledge about how words work, both on their own and as part of a lexicon. How does that knowledge emerge? In my talk, I will consider recent work focused on how infants and toddlers track statistical properties of the input to discover the forms of words, and how they construe the meanings of words and integrate them into their nascent semantic networks. I’ll conclude by considering some of the factors that may drive infants to learn complex systems like human languages. NICHD Grant R37 HD037466 to Jenny R. Saffran, NIDCD Grant R01 DC012513 to Susan Ellis Weismer, Jan Edwards, and Jenny R. Saffran, James F. McDonnell Scholar Award to Jenny R. Saffran. |
|