Jacob L. Mey

Cognitive Technology—technological cognition

Technology, in order to be human, needs to be informed by a reflection on what it is to be a tool in ways appropriate to humans. This involves both an instrumental, appropriating aspect (‘I use this tool’) and a limiting, appropriated one (‘The tool uses me’).Cognitive Technology focuses on the ways the computer tool is used, and uses us. Using the tool on the world changes the way we think about the world, and the way the world appears to us: as an example, a simple technology (the leaf blower) and its effects on the human are discussed.Technology, in order to be human, needs to be informed by a reflection on what it is to be a tool in ways appropriate to humans. This involves both an instrumental, appropriating aspect (‘I use this tool’) and a limiting, appropriated one (‘The tool uses me’). Cognitive Technology focuses on the ways the computer tool is used, and uses us. Using the tool on the world changes the way we think about the world, and the way the world appears to us: as an example, a simple technology (the leaf blower) and its effects on the human are discussed.

Barriers to communication in a computer age

When people speak about “communication barriers”, what they usually think about are such things as the limitations set by human nature itself, or the constraints that are inherent in the tools we use for communicating. As an example of the first, consider the limited range of the naked human voice; for the second, we may think of the limitations imposed by such primitive communicative devices as the bonfire, the heliograph, or an old-fashioned megaphone.Our contribution draws attention to the fact that, despite enormous advances on the technological side of human communication (such as demonstrated by the existence and use of computers as communication devices), there still are some barriers to be removed as far as the human side is concerned. We call these barriers the “stumble-blocks of the mind”. Their existence is demonstrated by the study of two case stories, which show that understanding the communicative implications of computerizing information is more important than increased emphasis on ever fancier and more expensive hardware products.The next question has to do with the reasons for these “stumbling blocks” to occur. Current communicative and linguistic theoretical findings are used in an effort to explain and solve the communicative dilemmas that are encountered in the organization of our communication, among others in the area of human-computer interface. In particular, the notion of “privacy” in speech acting is suggested as an overlooked aspect, and the notion of “information transfer” is replaced by that of “creating mental activity”.Finally, some conclusions are drawn, and a number of practical applications are offered.

Dutch treat: A reply

Abstract This contribution is a reply to Hubers & Kooijs attack on my account of the phenomenon of voice assimilation in Dutch (this issue, pp. 25-33).

Murphy's surfers or: where is the green? Lure and Lore on the Internet

In this paper, we explore some characteristics of the Information Superhighway and the World Wide Web metaphors in the light of the current developments in information technology. We propose that these characteristics constitute a form of conceptual slippage (often in the form of ‘lexical leakage’), which helps us detect and predict the tacit impact that the currently available information delivery systems are having on human cognition. We argue that the particular language associated with these systems evolves as a direct result of human cognitive adaptation to the demands, resources, and constraints of highly technological environments. It reflects a growing alienation of the users of computerized systems from the physical aspects of the natural environment in which the disseminated information was originally grounded. We believe that a careful investigation of the pragmatic phenomena which are operative when the information media jargon is used is appropriate to the aims of Cognitive Technology. The role of metaphor as a vehicle for self-expression, as mediated by criteria of relevance, is discussed from this perspective.

What's in the data?

Abstract In his article ‘Fieldwork among spirits’, Jorgen Rischel (1989) tells us about the dangers that beset the fieldworking linguist, when he or she is trying to elicit crucial linguistic information from the native speakers, the ‘informants’. The problem is that in many cases the questioner is not aware of the way his or her questions are received by the prospective informants, and there are a host of anecdotes around that tell us how wrong we can be when interpreting the answers we get out there in the bush, or when writing up the ‘data’ at our desks after returning to our home base.

A pragmatic look at artificial intelligence

Based on recent claims and counter-claims about the nature of human mental processing, this article reviews some of the evidence presented, and tries to dispel some myths surrounding the ‘new’ cognitive science (also called ‘PDP’, ‘connectionism’, ‘neural network theory’, and so on).