Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 16, 2025

Experimental Paradigm for Measuring the Effect of Induced Emotion on Grammar Learning
05:33

Experimental Paradigm for Measuring the Effect of Induced Emotion on Grammar Learning

Published on: January 29, 2020

6.1K

Information-theoretic principles in incremental language production.

Richard Futrell1

  • 1Department of Language Science, University of California, Irvine, CA 92617.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
|September 19, 2023
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

Language and Cognition01:27

Language and Cognition

373
Language serves as a bridge between ideas and communication, influencing how individuals perceive and interact with the world. Psychologists have long debated whether language shapes thought or vice versa. This discussion gained grip with Edward Sapir and Benjamin Lee Whorf in the 1940s, who proposed that language determines thought, a concept known as linguistic determinism. They suggested that the vocabulary and structure of a language influence how its speakers think and perceive reality.
373
Language Development01:22

Language Development

394
Children master language quickly and with relative ease, supported by both biological predisposition and reinforcement. B. F. Skinner (1957) proposed that language is learned through reinforcement, while Noam Chomsky (1965) argued that language acquisition mechanisms are biologically determined.
The critical period for language acquisition suggests that the ability to acquire language is at its peak early in life. As people age, this proficiency decreases. Language development begins very...
394
Components of Language01:24

Components of Language

313
Language, whether spoken, signed, or written, consists of specific components: lexicon and grammar. The lexicon is the vocabulary of a language, comprising its words. Grammar is the set of rules used to convey meaning through the lexicon. For example, English grammar adds “-ed” to most verbs to indicate past tense. Words are formed by combining phonemes, which are the basic sound units of a language. Different languages have different sets of phonemes (e.g., “ah” vs.
313
Language01:16

Language

249
Language is a unique communication system that uses words and systematic rules to organize and transmit information. Unlike other forms of communication, which may involve postures, movements, odors, or vocalizations, language relies on symbols and grammar. This makes human communication distinct from that of other species, who also communicate but do not use language in the same way humans do.
Corballis and Suddendorf (2007) and Tomasello and Rakoczy (2003) highlight the role of language in...
249
Information Processing Approach01:30

Information Processing Approach

71
The information-processing theory of cognitive development centers on fundamental mental processes, including attention, memory, and problem-solving skills. Researchers in this field examine how cognitive abilities, such as working memory, evolve and influence children's overall development. Studies indicate that children with stronger working memory tend to excel in reading comprehension, math, and problem-solving compared to peers with less efficient memory skills. Low working memory is...
71
Higher Mental Functions of the Brain: Language01:10

Higher Mental Functions of the Brain: Language

909
Language is a system of communication that allows the expression of thoughts, ideas, and feelings. The brain processes language in both hemispheres.
Language formation and comprehension take place in the dominant hemisphere. The dominant hemisphere is responsible for understanding the meaning of spoken, written, or sign language, as well as the ability to communicate. For most people, the left hemisphere is the dominant one. The right hemisphere, then, gives tone and emotional context to the...
909

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Cross-cultural structures of personal name systems reflect general communicative principles.

Nature communications·2026
Same author

Linguistic structure from a bottleneck on sequential information processing.

Nature human behaviour·2025
Same author

A resource-rational model of human processing of recursive linguistic structure.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2022
Same journal

The TaMYB55-TaSnRK1α1-TabZIP9 module confers heat stress tolerance in wheat.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
Same journal

Superstatistics approach to turbulent circulation fluctuations.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
Same journal

A molecular timescale for evolution of cobamide biosynthesis.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
Same journal

Pierre Chambon, a pioneer of molecular biology and gene regulation in eukaryotes.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
Same journal

Granulosa cell glycogen fuels the avascular corpus luteum.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
Same journal

Synthetic essentiality of TRAIL/TNFSF10 in VHL-deficient renal cell carcinoma.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
See all related articles

This study models human language production errors using rate-distortion theory, explaining phenomena like word choice, word order, and disfluencies through cognitive control constraints.

Area of Science:

  • Computational linguistics
  • Cognitive science
  • Information theory

Background:

  • Human language production involves complex action selection.
  • Existing models do not fully capture errors and difficulties.
  • Rate-distortion theory offers a novel perspective on control under constraints.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a computational-level model of language production errors.
  • To apply rate-distortion theory to understand cognitive control in language.
  • To explain key phenomena in human language production.

Main Methods:

  • Formulating a computational model based on rate-distortion theory.
  • Conducting theoretical calculations and computational simulations.
  • Analyzing linguistic corpora and comparing model predictions to experimental data.
Keywords:
control theoryinformation theorylanguage productionpsycholinguisticsreinforcement learning

More Related Videos

Experience is Instrumental in Tuning a Link Between Language and Cognition: Evidence from 6- to 7- Month-Old Infants' Object Categorization
05:35

Experience is Instrumental in Tuning a Link Between Language and Cognition: Evidence from 6- to 7- Month-Old Infants' Object Categorization

Published on: April 19, 2017

6.7K
Augmenting Large Language Models via Vector Embeddings to Improve Domain-Specific Responsiveness
03:14

Augmenting Large Language Models via Vector Embeddings to Improve Domain-Specific Responsiveness

Published on: December 6, 2024

617

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 16, 2025

Experimental Paradigm for Measuring the Effect of Induced Emotion on Grammar Learning
05:33

Experimental Paradigm for Measuring the Effect of Induced Emotion on Grammar Learning

Published on: January 29, 2020

6.1K
Experience is Instrumental in Tuning a Link Between Language and Cognition: Evidence from 6- to 7- Month-Old Infants' Object Categorization
05:35

Experience is Instrumental in Tuning a Link Between Language and Cognition: Evidence from 6- to 7- Month-Old Infants' Object Categorization

Published on: April 19, 2017

6.7K
Augmenting Large Language Models via Vector Embeddings to Improve Domain-Specific Responsiveness
03:14

Augmenting Large Language Models via Vector Embeddings to Improve Domain-Specific Responsiveness

Published on: December 6, 2024

617

Main Results:

  • The model predicts semantic interference and predictability effects in word choice.
  • It explains accessibility-based preferences in word order.
  • It accounts for the occurrence and distribution of disfluencies (e.g., filled pauses, corrections).

Conclusions:

  • Rate-distortion theory provides a unified framework for understanding language production errors.
  • The model connects information theory and control theory to linguistic phenomena.
  • This approach has implications for both human language and machine-generated language.