An angry dispute over linguistics and racism in the Amazon... "A former missionary discovers that the language (that the Piraha) people speak doesn't follow one of the fundamental tenets of linguistics, a finding that would seem to turn the field on its head, undermine basic assumptions about how children learn to communicate, and dethrone the discipline's long-reigning king, who also happens to be among the most well-known and influential intellectuals of the 20th century.
"It feels like a movie, and it may in fact turn into one—there's a script and producers on board. It's already a documentary that will air in May on the Smithsonian Channel..."
for the complete article see http://chronicle.com/article/Researcher ... he/131260/
I wonder if the Piraha have a bicameral culture, and that's the basic cause of the dispute?
Angry Words: Chomsky, Everett and Amazon linguistics
Re: Angry Words: Chomsky, Everett and Amazon linguistics
Interesting article, thanks for sharing. Will comment further soon...
Re: Angry Words: Chomsky, Everett and Amazon linguistics
Here is a link to the Smithsonian documentary "The Grammar of Happiness," on Daniel Everett's work with the Pirahã:
http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/sc/we ... -happiness
http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/sc/we ... -happiness