Lecture 10
Exam
3-5 questions per lecture
big picture, applying the information, how do kids know these things
Language
Define 8 aspects that define the human language
milestones (new, 6-9, 12, 2-3, 4-6)
non-human animals
baby’s challenge → how do babies reach all these milestones → finding sounds
and words → link words to meaning (fast-mapping) → 3-5 biases (syntactic
bootstrapping)
each question will be worth 2 points
Perception: a brief overview
Vision: not very good
1/10 as good as adults
by 1 year it is fairly close to adult level
newborns can distinguish red from white
by 4 months color vision appears more adult-like
prefer complex stimuli but prefer face-like stimuli more
Hearing
can hear before birth; newborns prefer their native language, stories read
before birth
newborn auditory threshold is 10-50 decibels higher than adults
hear high-frequency sounds better than low-frequency
newborns localize sounds
Intermodal perception
by 3-4 months, infants link sights and sounds
Taste: newborns have a highly developed sense of taste
they can differentiate salty, sour, bitter, and sweet tastes
babies who are exposed to certain foods during pregnancy/breastfeeding are
more likely to enjoy those foods
Touch: highly sensitive
newborns are sensitive to touch, and many areas of their body respond
reflexively when touched
