How Infants Crack the Speech Code

scupper writes "Infants learn language with remarkable speed, but how they do it remains a mystery. New data shows that infants use computational strategies to detect patterns in language, according to UW's Dr. Patricia K. Kuhl in the Nature article "Early Language Acquisition: Cracking the Speech Code" [PMID: 15496861] Interesting excerpt from the article: 'There is evidence that infants analyse the statistical distributions of sounds that they hear in ambient language, and use this information to form phonemic categories. They also learn phonotactic rules -- language-specific rules that govern the sequences of phonemes that can be used to compose words.'"

Doesn't explain

[vivin]

It doesn't explain why they pick up swearwords much easier than normal words :)

ga ga goo goo.

Babies are smart?

[Anonymous Coward]

Golly, babies can do all this statistical analysis and yet they still poop their pants.

The first time I heard "DA-DA"

[Prophetic_Truth]

it went like this..

"DA-DA, where's MA-MA?"

Not all infants

[Anonymous Coward]

After all, George W Bush is 57, and he's still trying to learn English.

The Matrix

[RomSteady]

So in other words, if we create a Beowulf cluster of infants, and only allow them to hear sounds from "The Matrix" trilogy, the only words they would be able to say would be, "Keanu Reeves can't act?"

Sounds like a plan to me. [grin]

How'd they figure this out?

[ConceptJunkie]

Did they find a non-functional baby and dump the ROMs?

But can they...

[chia_monkey]

But can they run Linux?

So what you are saying is..

[Anonymous Coward]

That Bill Gates wrote Windows when he was an infant?

Someone needs to do something

[SeanTobin]

This is a problem. Children, not only in the US but all across the world are using simple statistical analysis to break and decypher our national language. Nearly all of our nuclear, biological, chemical, and conventional weapons are created and deployed using this language. We must act.

But what can we as a nation do? We do not need any additional laws, we must only enforce the laws we have. Reverse engineering of this and other national secrets is strictly forbidden by the DMCA. Just because they are minors doesn't mean we can't sue them.

Wow

[IamNotAgeek]

After reading this I have been underestimting how smart babies are. Makes me wonder where all that intelligence goes after they grow up.

And for parents

[JohnGrahamCumming]

What I need is "How to Crack the Infant Code?" for parents.

Not sure what the hell "la la da ta bwa bwa" means.

John/

I remember it well in '59

[Skiron]

New data shows that infants use computational strategies to detect patterns in language...

I used the 'hot wire' method, 'cos Cobol wasn't invented.

Explains a lot

[mr_z_beeblebrox]

'There is evidence that infants analyse the statistical distributions of sounds that they hear in ambient language, and use this information to form phonemic categories.

No wonder babies are so socially awkward, they're statisticians.

Yeah

[DoctorHibbert]

That's pretty much how I remember learning to talk.

Re:Great...

[TheGavster]

And then someone, somewhere, will be bored enough to implement it in PHP.

Re:How'd they figure this out?

[selderrr]

nope. They took a functional baby and analyzed its core dump :-)

Re:In other words...

[sik0fewl]

I'm sure if babies could talk they would spend a lot less time listening.

Re:grammar

[Anonymous Coward]

Wow, that must be hard for them, knowing that someone has bad grammer, but not being able to tell them.

Re:Doesn't explain

[NatasRevol]

Actually, my 3.5 yr old son is in his mimicing stage right now.

However, he seems to realize that he shouldn't repeat some 'bad' words that we use. He has never mimiced any curse words that he has heard, yet can spew whole phrases about what I'm telling my wife to do :-)

Re:How'd they figure this out?

[Tackhead]

> Did they find a non-functional baby and dump the ROMs?

"I am writing to you to avail Myself of My rights under the Genetic Millenium Copyright Act (GMCA). This letter is a Notice of Infringement as authorized under section 1024(c) of the Divine Copyright Law. I wish to report an instance of what I feel in good faith is an instance of Copyright Infringement. The infringing genetic code is hosted in the gene bank for which you are the designated agent.

1. The material which I contend belongs to Me, and has appears illegally in the research journal is the following: [see attached gene sequences for self-organizing neural networks for rapid acquisition of linguistic comprehension and synthesis in embryonic homo sapiens]

2. Links to the material appear at the website address: www.slashdot.org [slashdot.org]

3. My contact information is as follows: [IPv7-over-carrier-dove to root@257.257.257.257, or visit your nearest confessional booth and accept an oral donation of DNA and other assorted proteins from the chap in the dark suit and snappy collar]

4. I have a good faith belief that the use of the material that appears on the service is not authorized by the copyright owner, My vicar, or by operation of law.

5. The in formation in this notice is accurate, and I am either the copyright owner or I am authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner.

I declare under the perjury laws of My Omniscient, Omnipresent, and Omnipotent Self that this declaration is true and correct.

- The Pope, agent for Gawd Awmighty Inc."

What they dont explain

[antifoidulus]

is how Stewie can speak with a Rex Harrison accent and an articulate vocubulary depsite living in Rhode Island with a bunch of people who aren't exactly geniouses......

Re:Doesn't explain

[stanmann]

And THAT, is why you should lock your bedroom door. :)

Re:grammar

[Haydn Fenton]

"FYI, infants do something early in life called "saying their first word"."

You must be new here. Here at slashdot we teach our young to do something early in life called "getting their first 'first post'". It earns them respect for many months onward and gives them time to culminate an emotional system, although it wont be used much, apart from to feel anger, disappointment and astonishment at the rate of articles with old or duplicated, often even multiple times, content. Oh, and not to forget jealousy and awe towards what we here call "pr0n". Then a few years down the line they learn how to type one handed and structure not only sentences with words consisting of 40 or so phonemes, but also 10 numerical digits, for example;

"7h15 c4k3 15 t45t3y m4n!!1!"

Although this habbit is soon dropped at later life when they realise how lame it looks, and how difficult it is to read. It is around this time that the child becomes aware to Microsoft's evil scummy contribution to the world and Linux/Mac gains another trusty young, propeller-headed, google-loving, virgin fanboy.

Re:Maybe that explains...

[chinton]

Speak for thouself...

In Soviet Russia....

[LittleGuy]

goo goo ba ba ga ga GOO!

Re:Not all infants

[mdielmann]

After all, George W Bush is 57, and he's still trying to learn English.

Pretty much kiboshes the "brain still empty" [slashdot.org] theory, too.

Re:And for parents

[robsteele]

Not sure what the hell "la la da ta bwa bwa" means.

It means "I'll have what the dog is having."

Re:Confirms a suspicion I've had all along

[Random_Goblin]

Yeah, we're probably setting her up to get ostrasized in school, but then again, if she'd just pick up on some of those fighting techniques, that might not happen either!,

Indeed! Once she can master shooting fireballs from her fists and jumping over buildings, i doubt she'll have much trouble in kindergarten!

Re:Doesn't explain

[Bloater]

Same reason people swear the moment they hurt themselves. Small children are pissed off.

They can't walk properly, they can't put objects where they want them, they can't stop themselves from pissing or worse. And above all, they keep getting picked up. You'd want to swear under those conditions.

Re:I think babies learn everything better than adu

[Anonymous Coward]

Perhaps you would have benefitted from this as I presume you meant 'command' rather than 'demand'.

Statistics

[maydog]

Its hard to believe that someone who soils oneself and eats dirt has a better grasp of statistics than myself. Time to bring my infant daughter to my signal processing classes.

How Long Until...

[Cruxus]

How long is it going to be before we learn how to harness the awesome computational power of the infant mind for the betterment of humanity?

What?

[badmammajamma]

'There is evidence that infants analyse the statistical distributions of sounds that they hear in ambient language, and use this information to form phonemic categories. They also learn phonotactic rules language-specific rules that govern the sequences of phonemes that can be used to compose words.'"

I'm an adult and I don't understand what the fuck they are talking about. I sure as hell wouldn't know how to "analyse statistical distributions of sound" that I hear in ambient language. Whatever the hell that even means.

Re:How about children with two native languages?

[Lord Kano]

English and Malayalam are two radically different languages -- in sound and in grammar.

How do you say "Palindrome" in Malayalam?

LK

Introducing OEDSource

[xixax]

The Oxford English Dictionary Shared Source Programme, OEDSource.

We have invested huge amounts of Intellectual Property developing language as a tool that has greatly enabled the progress of science, literature, engineering and more. It is absurd that there aren't stronger safeguards to protect this investment and ensure that the rightful owners of this work are properly compensated for the benefits spoken language has brought to society.

As a Commonwealth nation with clear links to the United Kingdom, who originally developed English, we plan on vigorously enforcing our IP in this matter. We will give all US citizens a one-off opportunity to acquire English language licences, and thereby protect themselvs against future litigation. Conversational licences will cost $699 USD per node, whilst professional vocabulary and group discussion licences will start at $1399 per node.

Developers of slang or jargon will need to purchase our development tools, as will developers engaged in porting of forgeign language words into our core infrastructure.

We will be subpoena Webster's dictionary, and demonstrate that it contains millions of practically identical entries to the Oxford English Dictionary dictionary that we acquired when we bought our constitution from the United Kingdom.

Re:Doesn't explain

[justforaday]

And above all, they keep getting picked up.

Yes, the worst fear of any /.er... : p

Re:Huh?

[yourmom16]

If not, do you think geeks would still be around?

Re:How about children with two native languages?

[Anonymous Coward]

as well as opening yourself up to slew of bad jokes...

What a half wit.

(Sorry, ugh I know.. but it had to be said.)