Date and time: 25/05/21, 15:30-17:00
Location: RSSS 6.71
Zoom link: https://anu.zoom.us/j/89376839319?pwd=ZkFCMXNlQjN6N3dORkpXQytYNTA3UT09

Abstract: In this talk I argue that making stone tools was an important precursor to the evolution of language. Recent experimental work suggests a neuroanatomical overlap between toolmaking and language production; here I examine the case for overlap in information processing demands. I propose a prediction error minimisation account of these demands, and argue that this adds some clarity to the various ways in which cognition, action and language are understood as 'hierarchical'. I then situate my account within the broader logical geography of theories of the evolution of language, with a focus on recent work by Planer and Sterelny (2021).