Syntax allows us to combine sounds into sequences with almost infinite meanings. How long ago did this capacity appear? Studies from researchers of the University of Neuchâtel, the University of Lyon 1 and the NCCR Evolving Language investigated this trait in sooty mangabey monkeys.
How do we know that a sentence was said by a woman? How do we know that what she told us was a question? Researchers from the University of Zurich and the NCCR Evolving Language described the complex processes happening in our brain, that allow us to understand the information contained in pitch.
Scientific expertise of local specialists is critical in animal behaviour research, but often under-recognized and under-appreciated. Based on research conducted at the Budongo Conservation Field Station in Uganda, former NCCR Evolving Language member Adrian Soldati, guest researcher at the University of Zurich, explored the phenomenon in a new study published in the scientific journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
A new study from researchers at the University of Neuchâtel, published in The Royal Society Open Science, compared the preference for prosocial behaviour, e.g. cooperation, in humans and chimpanzees. Their results uncover surprising similarities that add to our knowledge on the origins of the extraordinary human collaborative and communicative abilities.
When populations meet, they typically exchange genes. Their languages meet too, and such encounters can change languages. But how much do languages actually change through contact, and do these changes differ depending on the type of contact? To address these questions, an international study led by the University of Zurich links global patterns of genetic exchange with linguistic data.
The northern coast of Peru is a region known for its rich archaeological heritage, but its people’s history is still underexplored. An international team of geneticists and linguists investigated the deep genetic roots and historical continuity of the region, in a new study published in Scientific Reports.
A team of researchers from the University of Neuchâtel studied the ability to associate a new sound with an object, amidst a noisy but familiar environment. This cognitive faculty of rapid association is attested in humans, as well as domesticated animals like cats and dogs. This new research shows that neither gorillas nor orangutans, though they are primates like us, make use of this so-called “fast mapping” ability.
To study the behaviour of chimpanzees in a non-intrusive fashion, a team of researchers from the University of Neuchâtel and Idiap Research Institute, in Martigny, members of the NCCR Evolving Language, have proposed a new approach based on artificial intelligence (AI), to automatically analyse primate videos.
Humans from different cultures speak to their children using a form of speech known as “child-directed speech”, or “baby talk”. Though to us, it may seem natural to communicate directly with our little ones, it appears that this characteristic is far from prevalent in non-human great apes, new research on the cover of the journal Science Advances shows.
What do monkeys, ChatGPT, and we have in common? According to Quentin Gallot, a PhD candidate at the University of Neuchâtel and researcher at NCCR Evolving Language, they all possess extraordinary predictive abilities that manifest in similarities in their communication systems.