Psychology

A Science Of Human Language - Part #3 In Part #1of this series, I suggested that a grammar heavily based in syntax was not sufficiently scientific as a general theory of how language functions. Part #2 was an overview of how linguistic error-handling processes can add to the reliability and predictability of communication using human language. This current part is a discussion of the evolution of the shared rules of communication, some of which, after writing was invented,  came to be formalised as pedagogic 'rules of grammar'. Rules Of Conformity Before any two people can communicate…

A Science Of Human Language - Part #2 Quistic Grammar : A New Universal Grammar In Part #1 of this series, I suggested that a grammar heavily based in syntax was not sufficiently scientific as a general theory of how language functions.  In developing the current theory I shall try to demonstrate that various observations about human language can be tied together into an inclusive theory of how language functions.  The first, and to my mind most important observation about human language is its redundancy, its apparent inefficiency in the use of the resources of sounds and symbols.…

In the first article on this topic, I suggested that we can measure what people prefer and value, but we don’t know the “why” behind those preferences and values. An evolutionary psychologist from the London School of Economics, Satoshi Kanazawa, wrote a paper on the origin of individual values and preferences that suggests values are tied to IQ, and you can theoretically predict the values of a nation based on its average intelligence. Evolutionary psychology may be able to help answer that “why,” as it can in theory explain both universal and individual preferences – the study of…

A Science Of Human Language - Part #1 Quistic Grammar : A New Universal GrammarIn this series of articles I hope to build, on a sure foundation, a theory which explains language as a means by which evolution can encode information of value to the survival of a species so that it may be transmitted between individuals without the use of genes.  The core of the theory suggests that language, in order to transmit information most effectively, encodes that information as 'packets of ideas' which form the answers to simple questions. Introductory RemarksA grammar is simply a description of…

After the Pandora vase of Berlusconi's private life got opened, there are news trickling out from it every day. In the last few days we learned that the parties thrown by the Italian premier in his billionaire villa in Sardinia, or at his residence in Rome, Palazzo Grazioli, included scores of young women that were not there by chance, but allegedly with the purpose of entertaining -offering sex- the male participants. There is, in fact, a judiciary action going on, which is trying to ascertain the declarations of a few women who participated to those parties, and who declare they were…

People make value judgements about others based on their facial expressions, according to a new study carried out by Spanish and Brazilian researchers. After looking at a face for only 100 milliseconds, we can detect expressions of happiness and surprise faster than those of sadness or fear. Our brains get a first impression of people's overriding social signals after seeing their faces for only 100 milliseconds (0.1 seconds). Whether this impression is correct is another question. An international research group has carried out an in-depth study into how we process emotional expressions,…

We can measure what people prefer and value, but do we know why? And can we predict whether a nation will be liberal or conservative, atheist or religious, polygynous or monogamous? While researching for a forthcoming article I stumbled upon a paper by Satoshi Kanazawa, an evolutionary psychologist at the London School of Economics, on the origin of individual values and preferences that indicate that the values of a nation are tied to its IQ. The article, to be published in the July issue of Journal of Biosocial Science, is a quick read (despite being 20 pages long), and offers one…

Can you tell when your dog has done something wrong by his appearance?   Not really, says Alexandra Horowitz, Assistant Professor from Barnard College in New York, in Behavioural Processes.   It's mostly what you want to see. Horowitz was able to show that the human tendency to attribute a "guilty look" to a dog was not due to whether the dog was indeed guilty. Instead, people see 'guilt' in a dog's body language when they believe the dog has done something it shouldn't have – even if the dog is in fact completely innocent of any offense. During the study, owners were asked to leave…

Obsessive-Compulsive Language Disorder If you have never heard of Obsessive-Compulsive Language Disorder, don't worry.  I just invented the expression to get your attention. In my article We Have Ways of Making You Conform,  I state: "The natural laws of conformity give rise to the patterns in language that we call grammar." and "In opposition to the natural drift of language is the set of communal rules of conformity."  In this follow-up, I hope to demonstrate a scientific foundation for this 'rules of conformity' theory.  Of course, the foundation came first, else I…

In previous posts I have made the argument that the brain constructs a data organization framework which represents our worldview (or belief systems). It is against this structure that new information will be evaluated, accepted, or rejected. I also want to be clear that the idea of a worldview or belief system is not optional. All humans have one, since it is a requirement to provide a minimal framework against which data is acquired and classified. It should also be understood that the concept of a belief system carries no special connotation be it religious, superstitious, supernatural, or…