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Talk Talk Talk: Decoding the Mysteries of Speech
With a mixture of erudition and humor, Canadian radio personality Jay Ingram discusses the sociology of the dynamics of conversation, men and women's different propensities for interrupting, and even the proper use of "you know." But he also delves into the mystery-riddled physiology of talking. While we now know that certain areas of the brain seem to control specific aspects of speech—from articulating words to creating meaningful sentences—how do scientists explain the extraordinary case of the young stroke victim who lost only the words for fruits and vegetables? Is it possible that the ability to talk is actually encoded in our genes, as some scientists believe?
From the language roots of North America to the speech differences between Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons, from modern children creating whole new languages in one generation to Freudian slips, from talking to yourself to speaking in tongues, Talk, Talk, Talk covers the gamut of humankind's most enigmatic and intriguing skill. Impeccably researched, lively, and accessible, Talk, Talk, Talk is a book you won't be able to keep quiet about.
From the language roots of North America to the speech differences between Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons, from modern children creating whole new languages in one generation to Freudian slips, from talking to yourself to speaking in tongues, Talk, Talk, Talk covers the gamut of humankind's most enigmatic and intriguing skill. Impeccably researched, lively, and accessible, Talk, Talk, Talk is a book you won't be able to keep quiet about.
336 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1992
3 people are currently reading
126 people want to read
About the author
Jay Ingram
56 books42 followersJay Ingram CM (born March 20, 1945) is a Canadian author and broadcaster. He was host of the television show Daily Planet (originally titled @discovery.ca), which airs on Discovery Channel Canada, since the channel's inception in 1995. Ingram's last episode of Daily Planet aired on June 5, 2011. Ingram announced his retirement but stated he will make guest appearances on Daily Planet. He was succeeded by Dan Riskin. His book The End of Memory: A Natural History of Aging and Alzheimer’s is forthcoming from St. Martin's Press in 2015.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 9, 2007
A great basic overview of how speech is processed in the brain. A little different from most of the other language books I read, it's not about etymology or language history at all, but rather the physical mechanics of language.
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April 19, 2021Hardcover
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 11, 2016
Some really interesting studies.
March 15, 2015
The book that got me into linguistics! Although I haven't picked it up in at least a decade, so I have no idea whether it's aged well.
November 8, 2016
Some really interesting studies.
Want to read
January 30, 2019I want to read this book in order to achieve more knowledge on language science.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews