Psych 156A/ Ling 150: Acquisition of Language II
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Announcements Psych 156A/ Ling 150: Acquisition of Language II Review questions available for poverty of the stimulus ! Be working on HW3 (due: 5/27/14) Lecture 12 Poverty of the Stimulus I About language About language One way to think about how to classify the knowledge that you have One way to think about how to classify the knowledge that you have when you know a language: when you know a language: ! ! You know what items (sounds, words, sentences, questions, etc.) are You know what items (sounds, words, sentences, questions, etc.) are part of the language. You can tell whether or not a given item is part of the language. You can tell whether or not a given item is grammatical in the language. grammatical in the language. ! ! ! ! Hoggle is definitely an ornery dwarf. [grammatical] Hoggle is definitely an ornery dwarf. [part of English] * Hoggle an dwarf definitely ornery is. [ungrammatical] * Hoggle an dwarf definitely ornery is. [not part of English] ! ! ! ! About language About children learning language One way to think about how to classify the knowledge that you have Adult knowledge: rules & patterns that generate the items that are when you know a language: part of the language. (mental grammar) ! ! You know what items (sounds, words, sentences, questions, etc.) are ! part of the language. You can tell whether or not a given item is The child’s job: figure out the rules that generate the items that grammatical in the language. belong in the language and that don’t generate items that don’t ! belong in the language. The reason you can do this is because you know the rules & patterns ! that generate the items that are part of the language. For example, the child wants rules to generate (mental grammar) “Hoggle is definitely an ornery dwarf” but not ! * “Hoggle an dwarf definitely ornery is”. Want to learn rules that generate this set of items… Not in English Not in English Hoggle a In English Hoggle a In English dwarf ornery is Fairies bite dwarf ornery is Fairies bite Hoggle is an ornery Hoggle is an ornery adventurers adventurers dwarf dwarf Bite Can the girl who can Bite Can the girl who can adventurers summon the Goblin adventurers summon the Goblin fairies King solve the fairies King solve the Labyrinth? Labyrinth? Can the girl who summon the Goblin King can Can the girl who summon the Goblin King can solve the Labyrinth? solve the Labyrinth? …and exclude this set of items So what’s the problem? Not in English It’s not clear that children encounter all the items that are part of the language (they have finite time to learn). ! Hoggle a In English dwarf ornery is Fairies bite If they only encounter a subset of the language’s items, how do they Hoggle is an ornery adventurers know everything that belongs in the language? dwarf Bite Can the girl who can adventurers summon the Goblin fairies King solve the Items in English Items not in Labyrinth? English Items Can the girl who summon the Goblin King can Encountered solve the Labyrinth? So what’s the problem? So what’s the problem? One solution: children generalize One solution: children generalize ! ! But how do they generalize? But how do they generalize? To here To here? (only what they’ve Items in English Items not in Items in English Items not in heard)? English English Items Items Encountered Encountered So what’s the problem? So what’s the problem? One solution: children generalize One solution: children generalize ! ! But how do they generalize? But how do they generalize? To here? To here? Items in English Items not in Items in English Items not in English English Items Items Encountered Encountered So what’s the problem? A numerical analogy Suppose you encounter the numbers 3, 5, and 7. The problem is that children must make the right generalization What set are these numbers drawn from? That is, what is the right from data that are compatible with multiple generalizations. In this “number rule” for this language that will allow you to predict what sense, the data (stimulus) encountered are impoverished. They do numbers will appear in the future? not single out the correct generalization by themselves. Numbers less Prime numbers than 20 9 Odd numbers Items in English Items not in 15 13 11 English 12 Items 18 5 2 Encountered 3 7 6 4 Impoverished data in word learning Impoverished data in word learning “birdie” = “birdie” = data hypothesis 1 data encountered encountered Blue things! Impoverished data in word learning Impoverished data in word learning “birdie” = “birdie” = correct hypothesis hypothesis 1 data hypothesis 1 data encountered encountered hypothesis 2 hypothesis 2 Things on branches! [BIRD] Poverty of the Stimulus: Logic Poverty of the Stimulus: Logic Children encounter data that are compatible with many hypotheses Specifically, the data encountered are compatible with both the about the correct rules and patterns of the language. correct hypothesis and other, incorrect hypotheses about the rules and patterns of the language. Items in English Items not in Items in English Items not in English English Items Items Encountered Encountered Poverty of the Stimulus: Logic Poverty of the Stimulus: Logic A rational learner would consider all compatible hypotheses, and Expectation for rational learners: errors in performance. Children will perhaps choose the wrong hypothesis in the end, or at least make behave as if they think ungrammatical items are part of the language errors during acquisition. at some point in their development. Items in English Items not in Items in English Items not in English English Items Items Encountered Encountered Argument about prior knowledge Argument about prior knowledge But what if children never behave as if they consider the incorrect Conclusion: children have some prior knowledge that causes them hypotheses? That is, they never produce errors compatible with the never to consider the incorrect hypotheses. Instead, they only incorrect hypotheses. They only seem to produce items that are consider the correct hypothesis for what the rules and patterns of compatible with the correct hypothesis. the language might be. Prior knowledge restricts children’s Items in English Items not in hypothesis to this Items in English Items not in English English Items Items Encountered Encountered Specific example: Yes/No question formation Specific example: Yes/No question formation Jareth can alter time. Rule? Can Jareth alter time? Jareth can alter time. ! To turn the sentence into a yes/no ! question, move the auxiliary verb ! (“can”) to the front. Other ! examples of auxiliary verbs: could, Can Jareth alter time? should, might, would, will, did, do, may The child’s task: figure out a rule that will form yes/no questions from their corresponding sentences. Specific example: Yes/No question formation Specific example: Yes/No question formation Jareth can alter time. Rule: Move first auxiliary? Jareth can alter time. Rule: Move first auxiliary? Can Jareth alter time? Can Jareth alter time? Anyone who can wish away their brother would be tempted to do it. Would anyone who can wish away their brother be tempted to do it? Specific example: Yes/No question formation Specific example: Yes/No question formation Jareth can alter time. Rule: Move first auxiliary? Jareth can alter time. Rule: Move first auxiliary? Can Jareth alter time? Can Jareth alter time? Rule? Rule: Move last auxiliary? Anyone who can wish away their brother would be tempted to do it. Anyone who can wish away their brother would be tempted to do it. Would anyone who can wish away their brother be tempted to do it? Would anyone who can wish away their brother be tempted to do it? Specific example: Yes/No question formation Specific example: Yes/No question formation Jareth can alter time. Rule: Move first auxiliary? Jareth can alter time. Rule: Move first auxiliary? Can Jareth alter time? Can Jareth alter time? Rule: Move last auxiliary? Rule: Move last auxiliary? Anyone who can wish away their brother would be tempted to do it. Anyone who can wish away their brother would be tempted to do it. Would anyone who can wish away their brother be tempted to do it? Would anyone who can wish away their brother be tempted to do it? Rule??? Someone who can solve the labyrinth can show someone else who can’t how. Someone who can solve the labyrinth can show someone else who can’t how. Can someone who can solve the labyrinth show someone else who can’t Can someone who can solve the labyrinth show someone else who can’t how? how? Specific example: Yes/No question formation Specific example: Yes/No question formation Jareth can alter time. Rule: Move first auxiliary? Jareth can alter time. Can Jareth alter time? Can Jareth alter time? Rule: Move last auxiliary? Anyone who can wish away their brother would be tempted to do it. Anyone who can wish away their brother would be tempted to do it. Would anyone who can wish away their brother be tempted to do it? Would anyone who can wish away their brother be tempted to do it? Rule??? Someone who can solve the labyrinth can show someone else who can’t how. Someone who can solve the labyrinth can show someone else who can’t how. Can someone who can solve the labyrinth show someone else who can’t Can someone who can solve the labyrinth show someone else who can’t how? how? Need a rule that is compatible with all of these, since they’re Idea: Try looking at the sentence structure, not just the all grammatical English questions. linear order of the words in the sentences.