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Language, Mind, and Human Nature
Hailed as one of the world’s most influential people, experimental psychologist Steven Pinker’s interests span all aspects of language, mind, and human nature. In his classic book The Language Instinct, Pinker argues that languages are
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A second language may help sustain the brain
The Washington Post: Being able to speak more than one language may help you think more clearly in later life, even if you’ve learned the second language as an adult, according to a new study.
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Learning a New Language at Any Age Helps the Brain
LiveScience: Learning a second language may help improve brain function regardless of when you start, according to a new study. Researchers found that young adults proficient in two languages performed better on attention tests and
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Use of Gestures Reflects Language Instinct in Young Children
Young children instinctively use a “language-like” structure to communicate through gestures, according to research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. The research, led by the University of Warwick, shows that
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Speed-Reading Reborn for Smartphones, Smartwatches
Scientific American: Speed-reading is either a productivity enhancer or a gimmick that lets people gobble up content without really understanding or retaining what they’ve read. This debate—dating back to the late 1950s—resurfaced recently when Samsung
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‘Self Talk’: When Talking to Yourself, the Way You Do It Makes a Difference
The Wall Street Journal: Do you ever talk to yourself? Be honest. Researchers say talking to yourself, out loud, is more common than many of us might care to admit. Psychologists call it “self talk” and
