E105 - Born to Be a Genius
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Please note: This paper will be due on Wednesday Feb 28th. It should be no longer than four pages, double-spaced.
We have discussed in this class the point of view that human language and animal communication, including instances where human languages have been taught to animals, are fundamentally different. We have argued that the differences concern both how humans use language and how human languages are structured. Humans and animals have different purposes for speaking (or making meaningful sounds), signing (or gesturing), or comprehending a message. Also, human and animal communication systems have a different basic design.
For the first half of this paper, we want you to provide a set of arguments and to present relevant evidence to justify proposing the following two hypotheses.
For the second half of the paper we want you to devise an experiment that would test whether some aspect of the structure or use of human language can be found in an animal communication system. The choice of which of the hypotheses to test will be left to you. We will discuss in the next two section meetings how to design experiments that provide valid and reliable data that address research questions.
Your paper will be graded on how well it provides a rationale for the two hypotheses, on how well the experiment is designed, and on how well the content of the paper is structured. Follow the rules of expository writing; for example, do not use contractions (e.g., don't). The quality of your arguments will be evaluated on how well the evidence you present supports your claims, not on how strongly you say you believe a claim. Be sure to address all aspects of the issues presented. Please carefully proofread and spell-check your work.
| Dr. Phil Connell pconnell@indiana.edu |
HOME | Dr. Steven Franks franks@indiana.edu |
| Andrea Sept asept@indiana.edu |
Sean McLennan mmclenna@indiana.edu |