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Livingstone, D. and Fyfe, C. (2000) Modelling language-physiology coevolution. In Chris Knight and James R. Hurford and Michael Studdert-Kennedy, editors, The Evolutionary Emergence of Language: Social Function and the Origins of Linguistic Form. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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Modelling Language­Physiology Coevolution
Daniel Livingstone and Colin Fyfe
Applied Computational Intelligence Research Unit
University of Paisley
livi­ci0@paisley.ac.uk

Introduction A feature of current computational models of language evolution is that the individuals in later populations are not structurally, `physiologically', different from those in the first. Evolution may be working on the language itself, as learned by agents which do not evolve, or on an innate communication scheme. A number of models specifically demonstrate self­organisation of communication schemes and grammars in populations that are already capable of language. Such models do not show communities evolving from those capable of some simple proto­language towards those capable of some fuller language. In contrast, in human evolution, vocalisations and speech provided a selective advantage that led to the exaptation and adaptation of aspects of human physiology to support improved language capacity (Deacon 1992; Lieberman 1992). This led to a process of language­physiology coevolution. From the coevolution of physiology and language, hominids developed differences from other primates, such as increased brain size and a supralaryngeal vocal tract. The coevolution of speech and physiology in humans was also not without cost. The larger brain costs more energy to maintain and requires a longer infancy to allow brain growth to complete. The dropped epiglottis allows greater clarity and distinctiveness in speech, but increases risk of choking. While some vocalisations are evolved responses ­ crying, laughter, etc. ­ speech is learned afresh with every individual. Learning allows quicker adaptation to changes in the environment and faster solutions to environmental problems. The Baldwin effect (Baldwin 1896) relates how learning can influence evolution: individuals most capable of successfully adapting to their environment will be more likely to contribute to future generations. Thus an ...
BibTex
@incollection{livingstone00modellingLanguage,
  author={D. Livingstone and C. Fyfe},
  title={Modelling language-physiology coevolution},
  year={2000},
  address={Cambridge},
  editor={Chris Knight and James R. Hurford and Michael Studdert-Kennedy},
  publisher={Cambridge University Press},
  booktitle={The Evolutionary Emergence of Language: Social Function and the Origins of Linguistic Form},
  url={http://www.isrl.uiuc.edu/~amag/langev/paper/livingstone00modellingLanguage.html}
}

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