Language and Mind
Course facts
- Payment: Free, no certificate
- Credits: Non Credit
- Learning style: Self-paced, start anytime
- Resources: Lecture Notes
- Before you start: This course is intended for undergraduates. No background in psychology or linguistics is required.
MIT OpenCourseWare details
- As taught in: January IAP 2003
- Department: Brain and Cognitive Sciences
| Course Details | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
||||||
| Outcomes | ||||||
|
||||||
| Price & Terms | ||||||
|
||||||
| Technical | ||||||
|
||||||
| Specification | ||||||
|
||||||
A short primer on how language is learned, processed and linked to thought, covering speech, sentences, acquisition and neuroimaging.
How do children pick up language, how do adults process it, and what does it have to do with thought? This short primer introduces those questions for people new to linguistics and psychology. It also looks at how language changes with aging, how it returns after trauma or surgery, and how brain imaging and computational models are used to study it.
What You Will Achieve
- Describe how language is represented in the mind
- Explain how children acquire words
- Discuss how adults process speech and sentences
- Explain what neuroimaging can show about language
Program Overview
Speech and Sentence Processing
The first lectures introduce the building blocks of language and how listeners and readers handle them.
- The atoms of language
- Speech
- Sentence processing
Language Acquisition and Neuroimaging
The middle lectures look at how words are learned and how the brain can be studied while using language.
- Language acquisition: words
- Neuroimaging of language
Language Thought
The closing lectures return to processing and ask how language connects to thinking.
- Language processing
- The relationship between language and thought
Course Completion
Job Outlook
These ideas give useful background for further study in linguistics, psychology and cognitive science, and for work involving language development.
Good for: Curious beginners who want a short overview of language and the mind, and undergraduates deciding whether to study linguistics or psychology further.
Keep in mind: It is a brief January class from 2003 with lecture notes only, so the neuroimaging and modeling material is dated. Use it as a starting point and not as a full course.
Bottom line: A quick and approachable first look at the science of language, limited by its age and brevity.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long is this class?
The schedule lists eight lectures, offered as a January class. The published resource is lecture notes, so you can read through it in far less time than a term-long subject.
Does it cover brain imaging?
Yes. One lecture is on the neuroimaging of language, and the description says the class explores how language is represented and processed using brain imaging methods.
What study aids does it mention?
The syllabus describes study questions meant to prepare students for a final exam. It suggests answering each one, so check the notes for what is available to you.
User Reviews
Write your review
You must be logged in to post a review.
Reviews can only be posted by registered learners. Log in or create a free account, then you will return here to post.
There are no reviews yet.