Invited speaker: Bryan Gick

Towards an organic phonetics-phonology: Implications of modular motor organization for theories of speech sounds 

Recent work in movement systems from locomotion to deglutition reveals operational modules perhaps best described as “organs”, i.e., parts of organisms that are typically self-contained and that perform specific prescribed functions. The implications of such a system, where every operational unit comprises structure, mechanics, control and function, has not been explored for theories of phonetics and phonology. I outline such an approach, bringing findings in the neurophysiology and biomechanics of motor control to bear on common concepts and problems in phonetics and phonology, including how organs may be harnessed, built and rebuilt by learners, how they interact with existing theories of phonetic and phonological representation and action, and, as time permits, how they come to bear on age-old chestnuts such as coarticulation, harmony, language-specific articulatory settings, allophony, phonotactics, frequency-dependent behavior, and overlapping semi-independent tiers (e.g., Cs and Vs or segmental and prosodic levels).

When: Wednesday, August 24th, 2016, at 14:00

Where: Goodman Cancer Research Centre, 1160 Avenue des Pins, Montréal, QC H3A 1A3, room #601