The First Idea: How Symbols, Language, and Intelligence Evolved from Our Primate Ancestors to Modern Humans

Greenspan, Stanley I.; Shanker, Stuart G.

ISBN 10: 0306814498 / ISBN 13: 9780306814495

Published by Da Capo Press, 2006

May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G0306814498I4N00

Synopsis:

In the childhood of every human being and at the dawn of human history there is an amazing and, until now, unexplained leap from simple genetically programmed behaviour to language, symbolic thinking, and culture. In The First Idea , Stanley Greenspan and Stuart Shanker explore this missing link and offer brilliant new insights into two longstanding questions: how human beings first create symbols and how these abilities evolved and were transmitted across generations over millions of years. From fascinating research into the intelligence of both human infants and apes, they identify certain cultural practices that are vitally important if we are to have stable and reflective future societies.

About the Author: Stanley I. Greenspan, M.D., author of the widely used and praised books The Challenging Child and (with Serena Wieder, Ph.D.) Engaging Autism, is Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at George Washington University Medical School and lives in Bethesda, Maryland. Stuart G. Shanker, D.Phil., is Professor of Philosophy and Professor of Psychology at York University, in Toronto. At the forefront of research into ape and child language, his acclaimed books include Apes, Language and the Human Mind (with Sue Savage-Rumbaugh and Talbot Taylor) and Wittgenstein's Remarks on the Foundations of AI. Dr. Shanker's critiques of genetic determinist theories of human development have been the subject of television specials, including "The Today Show," "Discovery," and "The Pamela Wallin Show."

Bibliographic Details

Title: The First Idea: How Symbols, Language, and ...
Publisher: Da Capo Press
Publication Date: 2006
Binding: Paperback
Condition: Very Good
Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket