For sure...there are many "baby-years" without language, and many "baby-experiences!" before children have words.
A lot is going on in those years, including the baby learning to distinguish the various sounds of the native tongue and also practicing saying those sounds. Language is a fascinating topic!
Of course! We ever thought of that! All that babbling is an attempt to express thoughts before they have words. It's so interesting when you learn something that you always knew without knowing you knew it.
I should never have said "We" never thought of it. We never talked about it, but Barbara surely had thought of it. Your mentioning the thoughts of babies reminded me of an incident with my grandson. When he was an infant, I used to sing Frere Jacques to him; one afternoon, when he was barely walking, the song came on the radio and he toddled over excitedly to me to "tell" me it was our song.
It is pretty astounding and fun to think about! The Nature paper does reference the neural networks that are used for the various cognitive functions that comprise "thought." So, for instance, there are networks for social reasoning and other networks for executive functioning. The authors of the paper have examined a huge amount of research before coming to the conclusion that there is a "double-dissociation" between language and thought.
This is fascinating and lines up with my personal experience. I used to tell people that this was the reason I have kept a journal for most of my life, to reveal and understand what I am thinking.
I'm so glad this idea — that thoughts are wordless— resonated with your journal-writing motivation. Isn't it fascinating how a scientific finding can validate a personal experience?!
Very, very cool. And, when you think about it, it makes sense, because babies must think long before they start talking.
For sure...there are many "baby-years" without language, and many "baby-experiences!" before children have words.
A lot is going on in those years, including the baby learning to distinguish the various sounds of the native tongue and also practicing saying those sounds. Language is a fascinating topic!
Of course! We ever thought of that! All that babbling is an attempt to express thoughts before they have words. It's so interesting when you learn something that you always knew without knowing you knew it.
I should never have said "We" never thought of it. We never talked about it, but Barbara surely had thought of it. Your mentioning the thoughts of babies reminded me of an incident with my grandson. When he was an infant, I used to sing Frere Jacques to him; one afternoon, when he was barely walking, the song came on the radio and he toddled over excitedly to me to "tell" me it was our song.
Astounding! Thank you. Is all of the brain used to think? If the language area doesn’t light up, what does? Is this in the Nature paper?
It is pretty astounding and fun to think about! The Nature paper does reference the neural networks that are used for the various cognitive functions that comprise "thought." So, for instance, there are networks for social reasoning and other networks for executive functioning. The authors of the paper have examined a huge amount of research before coming to the conclusion that there is a "double-dissociation" between language and thought.
This is fascinating and lines up with my personal experience. I used to tell people that this was the reason I have kept a journal for most of my life, to reveal and understand what I am thinking.
I'm so glad this idea — that thoughts are wordless— resonated with your journal-writing motivation. Isn't it fascinating how a scientific finding can validate a personal experience?!