Media: NYT: The Deeper Meaning of Babbling
| Submitter: |
Karen S. Chung
|
| Submitter Email: | karchung@ccms.ntu.edu.tw |
| Media Body: |
The October 1, 2002 online edition of the _New York Times_ has an article entitled "Seeking Deeper Meaning in the Babbling of Babies". A few sample paragraphs: An 11-month-old baby, her face spattered with food and her lips wet with drool, pushes her chin toward the camera and says, "Da da da da da" in a soft singsong voice. A few seconds later, though, the picture freezes and a small grid appears, superimposed over the baby's mouth. Look carefully and the lines enable you to see that as the baby babbles, her mouth opens wider on the right side than on the left. Suddenly, what was merely cute becomes scientifically interesting. If the baby babbles mainly on the right, the researchers say, it means that babbling is a form of language. ...But many experts argue that language is not hard-wired into the brain. Babies are not born with language, these scientists say, but rather learn language as they grow, making use of the brain's capacity for complex tasks, the tongue's ability to articulate and the instinct for socialization. Through imitation and practice, they learn to speak and understand the language they hear. The URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/01/science/social/01BABB.html?8vd Karen Steffen Chung karchung@ccms.ntu.edu.tw Explore phonetics resources at: http://ccms.ntu.edu.tw/~karchung Now searchable! </body> |
| Issue Number: | 13.2512 |
| Date Posted: | October 02, 2002 |
