These dolphins talk to each other. Why do we insist it isn’t language?

Re:These dolphins talk to each other. Why do we insist it is... by spatulan on Thursday April 21, 2016 @06:22AM (#11540826)

There probably isn't enough data to render a full image, but how many lines do we need to draw to give the impression of a person, or a tree? Surprisingly few. Couldn't the same apply to a sonar image?

It's just an idea. I'm not saying its true, just that its an interesting possibility.

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Re:These dolphins talk to each other. Why do we insist it is... by thaumasiotes on Thursday April 21, 2016 @07:44AM (#11541257)

> how many lines do we need to draw to give the impression of a person, or a tree?

Context sensitive, but yes, surprisingly few.

大 is three lines.

木 is four.

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Re:These dolphins talk to each other. Why do we insist it is... by inimino on Saturday April 23, 2016 @12:50AM (#11554207)

人 is just two.

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Re:These dolphins talk to each other. Why do we insist it is... by thaumasiotes on Saturday April 23, 2016 @06:41AM (#11554988)

I'm aware, but you need special training before you can recognize that as a person. 木 is "wood" in the modern day; does 树 really make you think "that looks like a tree"?

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Re:These dolphins talk to each other. Why do we insist it is... by inimino on Saturday April 23, 2016 @08:13AM (#11555227)

So perhaps any visual representation of meaning would require shared context to interpret, and would then inevitably become symbolic rather than directly representational.

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Re:These dolphins talk to each other. Why do we insist it is... by thaumasiotes on Sunday April 24, 2016 @01:12AM (#11558634)

I don't understand what you're trying to say here, but e.g. Michelangelo's David is widely recognized as representing a person, and no shared context is required for that.

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