Where did Words Come from? A Linking Theory of Sound Symbolism and Natural Language Evolution

Where did words come from? The traditional view is that the relation between the sound of a word and its meaning is arbitrary. An alternative hypothesis, known as sound symbolism, holds that form-meaning correspondence is systematic. Numerous examples of sound symbolism exist across natural language phyla. Moreover, cross-linguistic similarities suggest that sound symbolism represents a language universal. For example, many unrelated languages affix an "ee" sound to words in order to emphasize size distinctions or express affection (e.g., look at the teeny weeny baby); other such phonetic universals are evident for object mass, color, brightness, and aggression. We hypothesize that sound symbolism reflects sensitivity to an ecological law (i.e., Hooke's Law) governing an inverse relation between object mass and acoustic resonance. In two experiments healthy adults showed high agreement in matching pure tones to color swatches and nonwords to novel objects as linear functions of frequency and luminance. These results support a degree of non-arbitrariness in integrating visual and auditory information. We discuss implications for sound symbolism as a factor underlying language evolution

Structured Language Intervention for a Case of Advanced Frontotemporal Dementia

The semantic dementia (SD) form of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) can cause deficits in naming and comprehension (Hodges, 2003). This study attempted to use an errorless learning approach in to preserve functional vocabulary in an advanced case of Frontotemporal Demenentia (FTD). EP received this treatment for 8 months. After those 8 months it was found that she initially increased in her naming abilities, then plateaued, and ultimately fell to her pre-treatment baseline. We concluded that are findings could be due to the progression of her disease but also due to a low amount of training due to vacation

Brood hosts of Oriental Cuckoo Cuculus saturatus in Sabah, Malaysia

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