Limor Raviv 🐘🤗🦒🍄🦄
@limorraviv.bsky.social
Group leader LEADS MPI_NL & Radboud ➡️ Language Evolution; Cultural Evolution; Animal & Human Cognition; Open Science; DON'T DREAM IT - BE IT!
Reposted by Limor Raviv 🐘🤗🦒🍄🦄
We hope this paper leads to renewed discussions and can provide a roadmap for future research comparing human language and non-human animal communication and for the study of language evolution.
Full paper here: doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...
Press release: www.mpi.nl/news/65-year...
Full paper here: doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...
Press release: www.mpi.nl/news/65-year...
65-year-old framework challenged by modern research | Max Planck Institute
www.mpi.nl
November 25, 2025 at 7:49 PM
We hope this paper leads to renewed discussions and can provide a roadmap for future research comparing human language and non-human animal communication and for the study of language evolution.
Full paper here: doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...
Press release: www.mpi.nl/news/65-year...
Full paper here: doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...
Press release: www.mpi.nl/news/65-year...
Please find an available version here:
bsky.app/profile/prof...
bsky.app/profile/prof...
If you are unable to download the full version of our newly published language evolution article in Science, there is a link for direct free access on the Max Planck Institute website here:
November 23, 2025 at 10:49 PM
Please find an available version here:
bsky.app/profile/prof...
bsky.app/profile/prof...
Reposted by Limor Raviv 🐘🤗🦒🍄🦄
Despite their allure, “silver bullet” arguments (in which uniqueness of our species is defined by one explanatory factor) are untenable in light of modern biology. Many scholars now view language emergence as dependent on convergence of multiple facets (physical, cognitive, social, cultural). 4/n
November 23, 2025 at 11:54 AM
Despite their allure, “silver bullet” arguments (in which uniqueness of our species is defined by one explanatory factor) are untenable in light of modern biology. Many scholars now view language emergence as dependent on convergence of multiple facets (physical, cognitive, social, cultural). 4/n
Just emailed it to you! :)
November 21, 2025 at 10:32 PM
Just emailed it to you! :)
Thank you so much Cedric! Means so much coming from you! :)
November 21, 2025 at 9:52 AM
Thank you so much Cedric! Means so much coming from you! :)
Yes 100%!! Children are the most prototypical language learners in RL, which makes their cognitive constraints & learning biases super relevant for cultural evolution. We should replicate adult findings with children in order to validate / understand them better, e.g., share.google/6oq9RqdIzciR...
Systematicity, but not compositionality: Examining the emergence of linguistic structure in children and adults using iterated learning
Recent work suggests that cultural transmission can lead to the emergence of linguistic structure as speakers’ weak individual biases become amplified…
share.google
September 11, 2025 at 8:35 AM
Yes 100%!! Children are the most prototypical language learners in RL, which makes their cognitive constraints & learning biases super relevant for cultural evolution. We should replicate adult findings with children in order to validate / understand them better, e.g., share.google/6oq9RqdIzciR...
Haha fair enough, no worries! 😊 I think the important take-home message is that we all share Lauren's frustration that knowledge from one domain is often not easily transferred and/or recognized by folks in another domain. Hopefully this paper helps to build better bridges between our communities!
September 10, 2025 at 3:17 PM
Haha fair enough, no worries! 😊 I think the important take-home message is that we all share Lauren's frustration that knowledge from one domain is often not easily transferred and/or recognized by folks in another domain. Hopefully this paper helps to build better bridges between our communities!
Indeed. This is (sadly) not as entrenched in developmental psychology, formal linguistics, and even in the EvoLang community. We tried to do justice to scholars who have been arguing this for years by presenting their arguments in opposition to these misconceptions. See also
bsky.app/profile/limo...
bsky.app/profile/limo...
Indeed, in cases where the field is split it's always hard to strike a balance between "this is novel, pay attention" to "this is trivial and known". While many of our own-crowd luckily share our position, many others sadly don't (inc non-experts and the public, who often believe this misconception)
September 10, 2025 at 2:29 PM
Indeed. This is (sadly) not as entrenched in developmental psychology, formal linguistics, and even in the EvoLang community. We tried to do justice to scholars who have been arguing this for years by presenting their arguments in opposition to these misconceptions. See also
bsky.app/profile/limo...
bsky.app/profile/limo...
Our goal was therefore to engage with the classic & contemporary arguments given by folks in the child-innovator camp, specifically by reviewing (and crediting!) all those who worked hard to dispute their claims over the years. Hope that gives some clarity, alongside the obvious press release 'buzz'
September 10, 2025 at 10:59 AM
Our goal was therefore to engage with the classic & contemporary arguments given by folks in the child-innovator camp, specifically by reviewing (and crediting!) all those who worked hard to dispute their claims over the years. Hope that gives some clarity, alongside the obvious press release 'buzz'
Indeed, in cases where the field is split it's always hard to strike a balance between "this is novel, pay attention" to "this is trivial and known". While many of our own-crowd luckily share our position, many others sadly don't (inc non-experts and the public, who often believe this misconception)
September 10, 2025 at 10:59 AM
Indeed, in cases where the field is split it's always hard to strike a balance between "this is novel, pay attention" to "this is trivial and known". While many of our own-crowd luckily share our position, many others sadly don't (inc non-experts and the public, who often believe this misconception)