You just got a job working as a research assistant with an acknowledged expert in primate language. You are helping to train a chimpanzee to communicate using American Sign Language, and you must write your observations after each session. To prepare for your training sessions, you have already done some research on the Internet about two other primates who learned American Sign Language: Washoe, trained by Beatrice and Allen Gardner, and Nim Chimsky, trained by Herbert Terrace.
Using the following outline as a guide, complete a lab report for your first day of assisting in the observation and language training of the chimpanzee. Try to use at least six to eight vocabulary wordsin your report.
Lab Report
August 4
Methods
• Description of subject (agt
i, gender, etc.)
• Description of equipment
(audiovisual aids,
computer, etc.)
• Description of objectives and procedures
Observations
• Results of learning activities
• Linguistic interactions
• Specific examples
Discussion
• Were the objectives met?
• Were the results similar to
previously cited o
bservations?
• What will be the objectives
and procedures for the next training session?
Essential Academic Vocabulary
Paragraph Writing
Write a response to oneof the following topics. Include at least six to eight vocabulary words
in your paragraph.
1. Write a paragraph describing your experiences learning a foreign language. What are your strengths and weaknesses in trying to communicate in a different language? How have you dealt with such issues as different writing systems, grammar, and pronunciation? Do you feel confident interacting with native speakers of the language(s) you have learned?
2. Describe an experience you have had listening to young children learning to speak. At what age do they start to speak? What kinds of words do they say first? How do they learn to build sentences, and what lands of errors in grammar do they tend to make? How do children learn a first language differently from older people who are learning a foreign language?
8. Speaking
m Linguistic Analysis
In the following illustration, the speaker on the right has interpreted the speaker's message in a way that differs from the speaker's intended message. With a partner, analyze the illustration and the message to understand the linguistic confusion between the speaker and the listener. Discuss your experiences of similar linguistic misunderstandings, with specific examples.
SPEAKER'S IDEA
LISTENER'S IDEA
"The shooting of the psychologist was terrible."
Adapted from Douglas A. Bernstein, Louis A. Penner, Alison Clarke-Stewart, and Edward J. Roy, Psychology, 6th ed. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2003), 294.
Chapter 14 • Linguistics
E3 Role-Plays
Using new vocabulary words from this chapter, act out the following role-plays.
1. You are thinking about taking a course in linguistics next semester, but you want to know more about the course before you sign up for it. You visit the linguistics professor during her office hours to find out more about the content of the course, the required assignments, special projects, and the class hours.
2. Your friend just got a job in the primate language training lab at your university. He is very excited to participate in training a chimpanzee to communicate using a computer keyboard. However, you feel that it is unethical to try to humanize animals in this way and to keep them in an artificial environment in the lab. Tell your friend how you feel about his new job and suggest that he find another position that does not exploit wild animals or violate ethical standards.
I
http://wvw.coilege.hmca.com/e5l/students
>
For more activities related to this chapter, go to the Essential Academic Vocabulary website.
Preview Sentences
What do you know about polygraphs (lie detectors)? Test your knowledge by deciding whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F).
1.
2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
A polygraph is a pen and paper test.
A polygraph test records specific physical reactions when a person tells a lie.
Doctors use polygraphs during medical checkups.
Polygraphs are always accurate.
Polygraphs may be used to convict criminals in the United States.
Some people can manipulate the test to "cheat."
Innocent people never have inaccurate results with a polygraph test.
There is considerable debate about the usefulness of polygraph tests.
A person who fails a polygraph test is automatically considered to be guilty.
The word polygraph is made up of two word parts that describe the test. Poly means "many" and graph means "write."
Chapter 15 • Review 155
1. Vocabulary in Context
Write the appropriate word from each group of words in the numbered blanks in the text.