Adam's Tongue: How Humans Made Language, How Language Made Humans
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Condillac, Etienne Bonnot de, 74
Congo, 112
consciousness, 5, 208
continental drift, theory of, 154
continuity paradox, 35–36
cooperation, 58
cotton-top tamarin monkeys, 175–76
courtship dances, 19
coyotes, 203
creationism, 94, 149
creativity, 209, 245
credibility, 28; language and, 28, 30–32
Creole languages, 38, 176, 187, 234
crickets, 16, 24
Cro-Magnons, 214, 246
crows, 88
culture, n, 104, 107; wars, 7, 178
Current Anthropology, 45
cut marks, on bones, 125–26, 220
D
dams, beavers’, 93, 99
dances, courtship, 19
Dart, Raymond, 112
Darwin, Charles, 5, 7, 19, 25, 62, 74, 86, 87, 95, 195–96; earthworms and, 100–101; The Origin of Species, 148
Darwinism, 7, 9, 29, 74, 75, 95–97, 171, 195–96, 197
Dawkins, Richard, 10, 99, 103, 153; The Extended Phenotype, 99; The Selfish Gene, 55; on “variable speedism, ” 153
Deacon, Terrence, 49–50, 226; The Symbolic Species, 49, 52
decorated bower, 19
deforestation, n deinotheriums, 122, 158
de La Mettrie, Julien, 74, 75; L’Homme Machine, 74
Dennett, Daniel, 35, 98, 223; Darwin’s Dangerous Idea, 98
Dessalles, Jean-Louis, 221
de Waal, Frans, 59, 90, in Dezzani, Ray, 122, 123
Diana monkeys, 42, 200–201
Diderot, Denis, 74
Diogenes, 5
discontinuity, 8–9
displacement, 50–51, 140, 145, 160, 216; bee, 131–34; in recruitment signals, 216–18
DNA, 30, 55, 104; discovery of, 55
Dobzhansky, Theodosius, 92, 148
dogs, 21, 22, 24, 33, 87; wild, 119
dolphins, 16, 85, 86, 87, 88, 101
domesticated animals, 97, 247
donkeys, 150
dualism, 81
Dunbar, Robin, 27, 185; “grooming and gossip” theory, 27–28
E
eagles, 43, 114; alarm calls, 44, 45, 68–70, 200–201
earthworms, 100–102
East Africa, 43, 63, 123
ecology, 58; ancestors and, 112, 114, 116–17, 155–57, 165; language and, 28, 30; niche, 100; see also environment; habitat; niche
construction ego-centered ape conversation, 78–79
Einstein, Albert, 3, 48
Ekorus, 114
Eldredge, Niles, 153; theory of punctuated
equilibrium, 153–54
elephants, 20; carcasses, as food source, 122–24, 158; population, 124–25;
trunk, 20–21; tusks, 124
Eliot, T. S., 245
ELIZA program, 170
e-mail, 4, 91, 185
Encyclopedia Britannica, 5
endurance hunting, 118–19
energy, 33, 159, 192
Enlightenment, 62, 74
environment, 10, 11, 63–64; adaptation and, 10–11, 94, 105; behavior and, 63–64; climate change, 94, 109, 112, 117, 154; genetics and, 10, 84, 94, 99–103, 109–10, 115; language and, 30; niche construction and, 99–100, 109–27, 155–57, 164–68; see also ecology; habitat
estrus, 19, 111
Everett, Dan, 238, 239
evo-devo, 129, 130
evolution, 5–12, 19, 146–48, 231, 248; agenda, 7–8; Chomsky on, 169–91; Darwinism vs. Lamarckism, 95–96; dogma, 7–9; evolution of, 95–97; genetics and, 55, 102–103, no; history of, 95; niche construction and, 99–105, 148–56, 161; speciation and, 148–56; see also human evolution; language evolution
F
Falk, Dean, 70–72, 212, 213
Feldman, Marcus, 98; Niche Construction: The Neglected Process in Evolution, 99
female choice, 19, 29–30; language and, 29–30
Fibonacci numbers, 185
figment, 223
finches, 101
fire, 213, 222
fireflies, 16
fish, 24
fission-fusion social structure, 63, 136, 139, 140, 156
Fitch, Tecumseh, 139, 171; Science paper on language evolution, 128, 171–91, 245
fitness, 18–20, 21, 22–23, 25, 132, 205, 216
221, 222, 234; ACSs and, 18–20, 22–23, 132; inclusive, 132; mating signals and, 19; social signals and, 19–20; survival
signals and, 18–19
FLB, 173, 180
flight, 9; insect, 9
FLN, 173, 179, 180, 239
floods, 222
Florida State University, 70
Foley, Robert, 149, 150, 151
food, 61, 142, 150; ancestors and, 111–27, 150–53, 161–68, 218–21; of ants, 135–39, 141–42; of bees, 132–34; bone marrow, 120–21, 127, 151, 152, 155, 220; large animals as, 122–27; meat, 56, 100, 117–18, 121–27, 150–51, 161–68, 218–21; megafauna carcasses, 121–27, 155–56, 161–68, 218–21, 247; niches and, 100, 117–27, 133, 154–68; optimal foraging theory, 125, 126–27, 54–56; plants, in, 112, 117, 157; regurgitation, 138; see also specific food sources
food calls, 18, 19, 45–46, 51, 132
“food peep” vocalization, 60
foraging, 100, in, 134, 136, 139, 140, 155–57, 165, 167; gender roles in, 156–57; habitat and, 155–57; optimal foraging theory, 125, 126–27, 154–56
forests, 64, in, 112, 117
Forrest, Nathan Bedford, 127
fossil record, 30, 104, 112, 125, 149, 148, 212
Fourth International Conference on Language Evolution (2002, Cambridge, Mass.), 172
foxes, 203
FOXP2, 110
frogs, 16, 33, 100
functional reference, 44, 115, 165, 215–16
G
Galapagos Islands, 101
games, 4
game theory, 31
Gardner, Allen, 73–74, 76
Gardner, Beatrice, 73–74, 76
gender roles, prehuman, 156–57, 161–64
generativists, 244
genetics, 10, 12, 54, 55, 83–84, 95, 129–30, 176; behavior and, 96–97, 99–100, 106, 130, 142, 184; discovery of double helix structure of DNA, 55; environment and, 10, 84, 94, 99–103, 109–10, 115; evolution and, 55, 102–103, 110; language and, no; mutations, 10, 84, 97, 110, 134; niches and, 99–103, 110, 131, 132, 134, 176, 214–15; selfish gene notion, 32; speciation and, 149–50, 214; variation, 10, 94, 95–97, 110, 130, 171, 183
gestures, 59–60 “getting it, ” 81–83
gibbons, 16, 56; singing, 61–65; see also bonobos giraffes, 20, 130
goats, 11
Goodall, Jane, In the Shadow of Man, 57
gorillas, 24, 55, 56, 61, 85, 146
gossip, 10, 27–28, 185; “grooming and
gossip” theory, 27–28
Gould, Stephen Jay, 93; theory of
punctuated equilibrium, 153–54
gracile australopithecines, 112–15, 117
grammar, 52, 66, 76, 186, 188; Chomsky
on, 241–45
grasshoppers, 16
grasslands, 56, 63, 112, 116, 117–18
great apes, 10, 13, 54, 55–56, 114, 200; ACSs of, 56–57, 59–61, 116–17; carnivores and, 117–18; DNA of, 55; language abilities of, 73–91, 201–202; niches of, 109–110, in; singing-ape
hypothesis, 61–65; social competitiveness, 56; see also apes; bonobos; chimpanzees;
gorillas; orangutans Griffin (parrot), 85
grizzly bears, 203
grooming, 27; “grooming and gossip” theory, 27–28; language as substitute for, 27 “grooming and gossip” theory, 27–28
group selection, 32, 115
group size, 28
guano, 11
H
habitat, 63–64, 100, 112; ancestors and, 112, 116–17, 155–57, 165; beaver, 93–94; foraging and, 155–57; see also specific habitats
hairl
essness, 20
hand ax, see Achulean hand ax
Hauser, Marc, 16, 50, 170, 171; The Evolution of Communication, 172, 175, 177–78; Science paper on language evolution, 128, 171–91, 245
Hawaii, n, 85, 225, 234
Hayes, Cathy, 74
Hayes, Keith, 74
Hebb, Donald, 82
Hebb’s Rule, 82, 202
Heinrich, Bernd, Ravens in Winter, 139
herding, 97, 213; niche, 109, 246
Herman, Lou, 85
Herrnstein, Richard, 198; The Bell Curve, 198
hippopotami, 122, 124
Hockett, Charles, 45, 174–75; “The Human Revolution, ” 45
holistic signals, 65–70
HÖlldobler, Bert, 137
Holyoak, Keith, 195
homocentric bias, 13, 47, 57, 107, 134
Homo erectus, 146, 147, 151–52, 213
Homo ergaster, 146, 225
Homo habilis, 120, 121, 146, 151–52, 164
homology, 59, 86–87, 120, 129-31, 144
Homo sapiens, 5, 142, 146, 147, 224
horses, 75–76, 150
human ancestors, 49, 58, 63, 109–27; climate change and, 112, 117; food sources, in-27, 150–56, 161–68, 218–21; gender roles, 156–57, 161–64; habitat and, 112, 116–17, 155–57, !65; hunting, 117–19; megafauna carcass diet of, 121–27, 155–56, 161–68, 218–21, 247; niches of, 109–27, 150–68, 219–21; prédation and, 113–14, 117–19, 155–68; recruitment and, 138, 159–68, 215–19; scavenging, 119–27, 143, 145, 154–68, 218–21; social life of, 113–15; speciation and, 150–56, 214; see also specific ancestors
human evolution, 6, 7, 55, 114, 146–48, 213, 248; mother-child communication, 70–72; niche construction and, 103–105, 107, 109–27, 148–56, 161–68, 219–21; “Out of Africa” vs. multiregional hypotheses, 147; speciation and, 148–56; see also evolution; language evolution
hummingbirds, 160
hunting, 10, 13, 26, 100, 213; ambush, 118; ancestors and, 117–19; endurance, 118–19; gender roles in, 157, 161
hunting-and-gathering niche, 109, 156–57, 167, 214, 248
hurricanes, 222
hyenas, 100, 114, 119, 127, 158
hymenoptera, 131–34
I
ichthyosaurs, 86
iconic signs, 52–54, 160–61, 190, 218, 221
imagination, 5
indexical signs, 47–49, 51, 52, 53, 190, 218, 221
India, 248
industrialization, 213, 246
infants, 70–72, 218; human, 70–72; mother-child communication, 70–72; “nursing poke” in apes, 19; weaning, 96
informative vs. manipulative
communication, 47–49
insects, 9, 17, 24; flight in, 9; as food, 113; recruitment strategies, 131–39; see also specific insects instinct, 133–34, 42, vs. learning, 105–108
intelligence, 33–34, 56, 58, 109, 195, 199, 213, 214, 249; brain size and, 32–34, 213; concepts and, 195–210; language and, 58; niche and, 199; social, 26–27, 56
Intelligent Design, 8, 34, 94, 149
intonation, 188, 238
IQ.34
Itard, Jean, 74
Ivory Coast, 26, 104, 120, 203
Tablonski, Nina, 33
J
jackals, 26
Jackendoff, Ray, 179–80
Japanese macaque monkeys, 104, 203
Tespersen, Otto, 62
K
kangaroos, 20
Kanzi (bonobo), 78, 81, 84, 85, 89
keystone species, 93
kin, 114–15
Kissinger, Henry, 29
Knight, Chris, 31
Koran, 134
L
lactose intolerance, 96–97, 248
ladder-to-language theory, 56–57, 60, 116
Lahr, Marta, 149, 150, 151
Laland, Kevin, 98; Niche Construction: The Neglected Process in Evolution, 99
Lamarck, Jean-Baptiste, 95
Lamarckism, 95–97
Lana, 82, 84
language: acquisition in children, 77–79, 185–86, 222; as autocatalytic process, 234; definition of, 3–4; FLB, 173, 180; FLN, 173, 179, 180, 239; instantaneity in acquisition of, 185–87; ladder-to-language theory, 56–57, 60, 116; music and, 61–65; properties vs. mechanisms of, 175; vs. protolinguistic modes, 234–38; see also créole languages; grammar; language evolution; linguistics; pidgin languages; protolanguage; syntax; words; vocabulary
Language and Species (Bickerton), 35, 40
language evolution, 3–15; ACSs as precursors of words, 43–47, 116, 144; barriers to, 215–18; big-brain fallacy, 32–34; Chomsky on, 168, 169–91, 192, 245; continuity paradox, 35–36; credibility and, 28, 30–32; ecology and, 28, 30; gestures, 59–60; Hauser-Chomsky-Fitch model of, 128, 171–91, 245; ladder-to-language approach, 56–57, 60, 116; natural selection and, 171–72, 183–85; need and utility issues, 242–48; niche construction and, 92–108, 121, 164–68, 176, 219–21; pidgins and, 38–41; primate-centric bias in, 10, 30, 46–47, 55–57, 58; recruitment and, 132–42, 164–68, 215–19; recursion and, 173–74, 79, 238–45; selfishness and, 28, 32, 166; singing-ape hypothesis, 61–70; slow development of language, 211–31; uniqueness and, 20–24, 28–30, 165, 167, 173, 178
leaf-cutter ants, 105–106
Leakey, Maeve, 151
learning vs. instinct, 105–108
Lennenberg, Eric, 6; Biological Foundations of Language, 6
leopards, 43, 182; alarm calls, 43, 44, 116, 182, 200, 206; concept of, 206–207
Leptothorax, 138
Lewontin, Richard, 99
lexigrams, 167, 169–70, 234–35
linguistics, 167, 169–70, 234–45; Chomsky and, 169–91, 235–45
Linnaeus, Carl, 5
lions, 26, 119, 150
lizards, 16, 113
London, 31
Lorenz, Konrad, 17
Lower Paleolithic, 225
lumpers, 148
lying, 26, 31
M
macaque monkeys, 104, 203
MacArthur, Robert, 126
Machiavellian strategies, 114, 141
Macphail, Evan, 33, 34
macroevolution, 149–50
mammoths, 122, 208, 209, 218, 219
manipulation, 47–49, 79; vs. informative
communication, 47–49
Marcus, Gary, 192, 193
marrow, bone, 120–21, 127, 151, 152, 155, 220
marsh, 100
mating, 10, 19, 63; female choice in, 19, 29–30; see also mating signals mating signals, 16–17, 18, 19–20, 51; courtship dances, 19; fitness and, 19; swelling of female genitalia, 19; see also sexual display Matrix, The (film), 34
Maupertuis, Pierre, 74
Mayr, Ernst, 129
meat, 49; diet, 56, 100, 117–18, 121–27, 150–51, 161–68, 218–21; megafauna carcasses, 121–27, 155–56, 161–68, 218–21, 247; natural decay, 122; women as butchers of, 162–64
memes, 98, 192
memory, 206–207
Mendel, Gregor, 95
mental representation systems, 35
Merge, 181, 182, 186–90, 234, 235, 242–45
microevolution, 149–50
milk, 96–97; lactose intolerance, 96–97, 248; weaning, 96
Miller, Geoffrey, 29, 62
mind, 192–210; brain function, 192–95; concepts, 195–210; nonhuman vs. human, 195–97; see also brain; intelligence
Mithen, Steven, 65, 68; The Singing Neanderthals, 62
monkeys, 16, 26, 42–44, 104, 200–201; ACSs of, 60–61, 116, 144, 175–76; alarm calls, 42–44, 47, 53, 60–61, 68–69, 116–17, 200–201, 206; “boom” vocalization, 42; as chimp prey, 117–18; concepts and, 200–201
monogamy, 62, 63
morphology, 38
Morse code, 144
mother-child communication, in humans, 70–72
Müller, Max, 74–75
multiple births, 96
music, 27; language and, 61–65
mus
ilanguage, 62–65
N
natural selection, 11, 13, 96, 122, 149, 183–85, 199; language evolution and, 171–73, 183–85
Nature, 177
Nauru, 11
Neanderthals, 5, 146, 147, 213, 246
need, 24; language and, 24–28
negation, 222
neurons, 82–83, 194, 195, 201, 205, 207, 233
New Caledonian crow, 197
Newton, Isaac, 3
New Yorker, The, 238
New York Times, The, 33
niche, definition of, 100
niche construction, 11–12, 35, 92–108, 130–31, 231, 246, 247–49; ancestors and, 109–27, 150–68, 219–21; bees and, 131–34; cofounders of theory, 98–99; definition of theory, 99–103; evolution and, 99–105, 148–56, 161; food and, 100, 117–27, 133, 154–68; genetics and, 99–103, 110, 131, 132, 134, 176, 214–15; great apes and, 109–10, in; human evolution and, 103–105, 107, 109–27, 148–56, 161–68, 219–21; intelligence and, 199; language evolution and, 92–108, 121, 164–68, 176, 219–21; recruitment and, 132–42, 215–19; scavenging and, 109, 119–27, 154–68, 219–21; speciation and, 150–56, 214; see also specific niches
nouns, 237–38, 241, 242
“nursing poke, ” 19
O
oceans, 100
O’Connell, James, 164
Odling-Smee, John, 98–99, 103, 105, 246; Niche Construction: The Neglected
Process in Evolution, 99
Odum, Eugene, 100; Fundamentals of Ecology, 100
Oldowan toolmaking, 120, 123
Old Stone Age, 225
optimal foraging theory, 125, 126–27, 154–56
orangutans, 25, 55, 56, 85, 147 “Out of Africa” hypothesis, 147
oxygen, 102
P
pair-bonding, 63
paleontology, 148, 212–13
pantomime, 65
Papua New Guinea, 230
parrots, 10, 25, 85, 86, 87, 88, 196; language
potential of, 10, 85
peacocks, 20; tail, 20, 29
Penn, Derek, 8, 9, 195
Pepperburg, Irene, 10, 55, 85, 86, 196
Pepys, Samuel, 73–74
Percrocuta, 114
Pfungst, Oskar, 75–76
phenotype, 99, 214
phonology, 37–38
photosynthesis, 102
Pianka, Eric, 126
pidgin languages, 38–41, 65, 88, 187–88, 223–26, 230, 231, 232, 234
pigeons, 198–99
Pinker, Steven, 115, 172, 179–80; The Language Instinct, 20–21
Pirahā, 238, 239
plants, 102, 155; food source, in, 112, 117, 157; photosynthesis, 102
plate tectonics, 154
Plato, 4–5, 103, 204
Pleistocene, 113, 156
Pliocene, 71, 113
pointing, 65