On Sat, Jan 28, 2012 at 3:48 AM, Charles Haynes <[email protected]> wrote: > On Jan 28, 2012 5:32 PM, "gabin kattukaran" <[email protected]> wrote: >> Language, which allowed communication even before writing should be >> considered, no? > Isn't language innate, not "invented?" Don't other species besides humans > have language?
A linguist friend of mine says that while many species communicate, it is only homo sapiens that have language. I have a strong intuition (based on many previous claims of such human exceptionalism that proved to be untrue) is that this is an arbitrary distinction that will fall away. > Mathematics is about abstraction and the manipulation of abstractions. An > entirely new way of thinking about the world. What if it is shown that bird brains are capable of doing basic arithmetic? Thaths -- Homer: Hey, what does this job pay? Carl: Nuthin'. Homer: D'oh! Carl: Unless you're crooked. Homer: Woo-hoo! Sudhakar Chandra Slacker Without Borders
