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Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/114769
Commentary on 'Labels, cognomes, and cyclic computation: An ethological perspective'
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For the past two decades, it has widely been assumed by linguists that there is a single computational operation, Merge, which is unique to language, distinguishing it from other cognitive domains. The intention of this paper is to progress the discussion of language evolution in two ways: (i) survey what the ethological record reveals about the uniqueness of the human computational system, and (ii) explore how syntactic theories account for what ethology may determine to be human-specific. It is shown that the operation Label, not Merge, constitutes the evolutionary novelty which distinguishes human language from non-human computational systems; a proposal lending weight to a Weak Continuity Hypothesis and leading to the formation of what is termed Computational Ethology. Some directions for future ethological research are suggested.
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BOECKX, Cedric and THEOFANOPOULOU, Constantina. Commentary on 'Labels, cognomes, and cyclic computation: An ethological perspective'. Frontiers in Psychology. 2015. Vol. 6, num. 784. ISSN 1664-1078. [consulted: 14 of June of 2026]. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/114769