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Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents

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IBleedGlitter: The High Priestess of Tinsel
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
Well, there go my dreams of having a cute little English-accented baby.
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Edited by IBleedGlitter: The High Priestess of Tinsel at 11/06/09 12:16 PM

notheretomakefriends
11/07/09

@IBleedGlitter: The High Priestess of Tinsel: maybe you're better off without a maniacal toddler plotting your demise #babiescryinmothersaccent
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BAngieB
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
I've noticed that most of the babies I have been around would cry if a ridiculous excuse for a president was holding them. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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la.donna.pietra
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
Babies definitely pick up on voices in utero. My coworker spent 8-9 hours a day in a shared office with me 5 days a week throughout her entire pregnancy (she worked until the day before her C-section, because she is a badass). Once her daughter was born, she would gravitate towards me whenever I'd talk around her--lots of eye movement and eventually head movement. She wasn't even remotely interested in the other people in our office who spoke relatively rarely to her mom.

No word yet on whether she learned to cuss more efficiently or picked up Excel tips, though. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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Highsmith
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
wählingichkeitding! wääääädichten! wäääwiesskeitmöchten!!!!! #babiescryinmothersaccent
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PetiteGal
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
Oh: Valley Girl Baby - "like-WAHHHHH! like-WAHHHHHH!!"

Canadian baby (well, Anglo-Canadian, anyway): WAHHH-eh?!! WAHHH-eh?! #babiescryinmothersaccent
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DrPookie
11/06/09

@PetiteGal: Well, the Quebecer baby is close enough: WAHHH-lo?! #babiescryinmothersaccent
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PaigeTurner
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
which accent is the quietest in public places? i'll need this information so i can perfect a fake accent in order to fool my future baby into well-mannered crying. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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Grim Reaper of the Forest
11/06/09

@lolabee: I am actually newly pregnant, and you just gave me the best idea. I am going to speak in a fake British accent throughout my entire pregnancy so my baby is confused when it is born. You always need to stay one step ahead of those suckers. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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PaigeTurner
11/06/09

@Grim Reaper of the Forest: congratulations! you know how people put headphones on their belly and play like bach or miles davis? well, you should do this but play absolutely fabulous or something. babies can't understand what the words mean, right? #babiescryinmothersaccent
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Charlotte Beer
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
And to think, these researchers could have been doing something useful with their time, like maybe finding a cure for AIDS or cancer. Or seeing what taste's better - chocolate ice cream or chocolate pudding? #babiescryinmothersaccent
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doodley is not amused promoted this comment Charlotte Beer was starred Charlotte Beer was unstarred

doodley is not amused
11/06/09

@Charlotte Beer: Your definition of useless and mine may not be the same. Basically, this tells us that children's language maps develop even in utero, and that likely will lead to further research about how to begin evaluating and treating for speech delays at earlier ages. One example of where this research may make a difference: many children who are adopted internationally face expressive speech delays and issues, even if they are adopted as very young infants. The more we understand about how speech and language develop, the better we can treat those children. This is one more piece in the puzzle of understanding how language develops and how we can better help correct speech issues early, before they begin to affect a child emotionally or have an impact upon their education.

So, yeah, it's not AIDS or cancer, but it's still important. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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ucelluccia
11/06/09

@doodley is not amused: I'm glad you said that -- I knew there had to be a good reason for this, but I couldn't think of one. You explained it really well; two thumbs up! #babiescryinmothersaccent
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IndignationCoordinator
11/06/09

@doodley is not amused: Nice.

@Charlotte Beer: Assuming this isn't a sarcastic statement, you do realize that not all researchers are equipped to tackle the same problems right? I actually study child language, but if I gave it all up tomorrow to take on AIDS or cancer, we'd be no further along than where we'd started. Maybe I could help with that chocolate query, though. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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dreamypisces
11/06/09

@doodley is not amused:
@IndignationCoordinator: I think the problem is we don't know what else the research is meant to prove. As long as this isn't the stopping point in the project and it is meant to show more or meant to accomplish more than all of us nay-sayers will totally be behind such projects but when all you read is what is posted above those of us not in the field are left scratching our heads wondering - why? #babiescryinmothersaccent
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doodley is not amused
11/06/09

@dreamypisces: See, I'm not in the field and I'm not scratching my head and wondering why. I'm looking at this and thinking "OK, this is really interesting and how can we build on this?"

This research, in and of itself, may not have a lot of practical application, but it does tell us something about child language development. All research is a matter of putting together bits and pieces; this is just one piece, but every piece brings us closer to completing the puzzle.

Also: If all you read is what is posted, you miss the part where the researchers explain the significance of their research, which you can find simply by clicking the link that Margaret posted. Among other things, one researcher states:

"Contrary to orthodox interpretations, these data support the importance of human infants' crying for seeding language development." #babiescryinmothersaccent
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IndignationCoordinator
11/06/09

@dreamypisces: Because studies like these are like puzzle pieces - every time we find a new piece, we can link it to the overall puzzle, and the picture becomes clearer. In this case, the domain of early language acquisition. The overall picture is: how do human beings learn language? Do you not find that important? #babiescryinmothersaccent
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IndignationCoordinator
11/06/09

@doodley is not amused: Ha, just realized you used to puzzle analogy too. Great minds and all. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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lurkerbynature
11/06/09

@doodley is not amused: Except, from the data, there's no way of saying that the infants under question aren't affected by just a few days of hearing speech after being born.

Of course, that isn't to say that it isn't worth study, just that the data doesn't yet seem to support the argument and it would be interesting to see if it can be replicated with better controls and less cherry picking of things like "typical cry."
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doodley is not amused promoted this comment Edited by lurkerbynature at 11/06/09 1:47 PM lurkerbynature was starred lurkerbynature was unstarred

doodley is not amused
11/06/09

@lurkerbynature: I completely agree with you -- it sounds like more research is required. I was merely responding to the argument that studies such as this are complete wastes of money because they aren't, for example, finding a cure for cancer. My point was that seemingly idiosyncratic research may have much more practical application than initially meets the eye. This study may well not be definitive but it certainly raises interesting possibilities. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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lurkerbynature
11/06/09

@doodley is not amused: Well, I do think that badly conducted research is a waste of money no matter what the subject, and there were a few things pointed out on the Language Log blog that raised some yellow flags if not quite red flags. But, you did have a very good point about how even the oddest research subjects can have surprisingly practical applications.

(And considering I'm in the Arts and Humanities and studying something completely "useless," I strongly believe that subjects that don't have any apparent "practical" applications are worthwhile.) #babiescryinmothersaccent
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PetiteGal
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
So in Cantonese, the baby says Ai-YAHHHHHHH!!!! Ai-YAHHHHHHHH!!!!!! ??? #babiescryinmothersaccent
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dreamypisces
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
Whew, good thing my baby will cry with my accent. If I hear a french t'wang in it's tears, I'll instantly know they've switched my baby...

Seriously, couldn't that money have gone to research something ten times more important... #babiescryinmothersaccent
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NellMood
11/06/09

@dreamypisces: Well, I disagree that this isn't important, but it's not like they were taking away money slotted for cancer or something. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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elijabet
11/06/09

@dreamypisces: It might not be super important, but it does make a really interesting claim that crying is essentially an early form of language development.

From the article: "Contrary to orthodox interpretations, these data support the importance of human infants' crying for seeding language development."

So I could definitely see this as a potentially important contribution to our understanding of how we learn to communicate. In just a quick run-down of some babies/toddlers/kids I know of, I'm able to think of a number who were BIG criers and then turned out to be really early talkers. I wonder if these things could be related? #babiescryinmothersaccent
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doodley is not amused
11/06/09

@elijabet: It would be interesting if they found that crying somehow correlates to early speech development. I hadn't thought of that, but it would make sense. Crying is simply a form of communication. My recollection is that teaching pre-verbal children sign language has been shown to have a positive effect on expressive language development. It wouldn't seem so far-fetched that children who have developed other means of communication early in life (such as crying to express their needs) would also have an advantage in speech development.To draw again on the international adoptee example, as I did above: many children who have been in orphanages cry very rarely because, in most institutions, they learn that crying doesn't get you any additional attention. As I said in another comment, it also isn't uncommon for those children to be speech delayed. Obviously, there are many parts to that delay -- the change of language following adoption being one of them -- but it would be interesting to know if the fact that they lost a significant method of communication during their time in the orphanage also affects their ability to develop expressive verbal communication. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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Edited by doodley is not amused at 11/06/09 11:29 AM

dreamypisces
11/06/09

@elijabet: & @NellMood: When it comes to raising money for anything, typically there are several research projects that put together packages and explain what the research is set to prove (not sure if that's how its done in Germany but bare with me).

Maybe this research project was up against another project that wanted funding to find out why dogs bark in a certain fashion and the baby crying project won the funding sometimes the competing project is wholly more (according to me mind you) interesting than testing that babies cry in the accent of their mothers.

And sometimes a really rich person just forks over the money because they can. Funding for projects happens in a wide range of ways. Can we be a hundred percent sure that money for cancer research or a cure for HIV wasn't used to do this project - no, but if in the long run something more profound can come from this, if this bit of information may lead to higher level of understand language development than great!

But if this is where it begins and ends, I still think its a waste of cash. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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doodley is not amused
11/06/09

@dreamypisces: You do know that, for a long time, research relating to HIV/AIDS was considered a waste of cash, right? #babiescryinmothersaccent
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Triana Orpheus
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
So essentially "wah!" translates into "I vont to suck your tits!" #babiescryinmothersaccent
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GirlFailer
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
My mind went straight to stereotypical American accents.

Southern babies: WAAAAHHH, YA'LL!
Northeastern babies: WICKED WAHHHH GUY!
West Coast babies: LIKE, FREAKIN' WAAAH!
Midwestern babies:WAHHH DONCHAKNOW? #babiescryinmothersaccent
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i dream of gene shalit
11/06/09

@GirlFailer: haha, I was thinking that my cry must have been a very drawn-out and Southern waaah-yuuuh!! #babiescryinmothersaccent
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TheExperience
11/06/09

@GirlFailer: You forgot NJ babies - Waahhh you prostitution whore!!! #babiescryinmothersaccent
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SomeAuthorGirl
11/06/09

@GirlFailer: Mine cried in a Philadelphia Jewish accent.

"WAAAA-OYYYYY!" #babiescryinmothersaccent
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SharonTaint
11/06/09

@TheExperience: And Brooklyn babies go "WAAAAAHFUGGEDDABOUTIT!!!!" #babiescryinmothersaccent
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GirlFailer
11/06/09

@SomeAuthorGirl: Mine just screamed FUUUUUUUCCCCK! #babiescryinmothersaccent
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CurtCole
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
French babies also pick up on the ability to yell offensive things to knights from the tops of castles. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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QoB
11/06/09

@CurtCole: and the prodigious ability to fart in our general direction. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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the glamwich
11/06/09

@CurtCole: only if their mothers are hamsters, and their fathers smell of elderberries. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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Grim Reaper of the Forest
11/06/09

In reply to Babies Cry In Mothers' Accents
Nice try babies. I'm not going to fall for that one. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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morninggloria
11/06/09

@Grim Reaper of the Forest: All this time, I just thought that babies were trying to mock their mothers, not bond. You know, because they're well-established jerks. #babiescryinmothersaccent
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