TED-Ed: Do animals have language? - Michele Bishop

The video explores how animals communicate and whether their systems qualify as language. It examines four language qualities: discreteness, grammar, productivity, and displacement. While some animals like bees and prairie dogs show traits like displacement, none exhibit all four qualities. Human language is unique due to its combination of these traits, allowing infinite message creation and complex communication. The video suggests that human and animal communication may exist on a continuum.

Which of the following is NOT one of the four qualities often associated with language?

• Discreteness

• Productivity

• Simplicity

• Grammar

What quality of language do bees exhibit through their waggle dance?

• Displacement

• Discreteness

• Grammar

• Productivity

Which animal is known for using alarm calls to indicate predator details?

• Cuttlefish

• Prairie dogs

• Dolphins

• Crabs

Which animal has been taught a modified sign language and demonstrated discreteness?

• Honeybees

• Washoe the chimpanzee

• Dolphins

• Prairie dogs

What is a unique feature of human language compared to animal communication?

• Ability to talk about food

• Use of gestures

• Limited topics of conversation

• Combination of grammar and productivity