Information density as a predictor of communication dynamics

Gary Lupyan; Pablo Contreras Kallens; Rick Dale

doi:10.1016/j.tics.2024.03.012

Information density as a predictor of communication dynamics

Trends Cogn Sci. 2024 Jun;28(6):489-491. doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2024.03.012. Epub 2024 Apr 16.

Authors

Gary Lupyan¹, Pablo Contreras Kallens², Rick Dale³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA. Electronic address: [email protected].
² Department of Language Science and Technology, Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany. Electronic address: [email protected].
³ Department of Communication, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA. Electronic address: [email protected].

PMID: 38632006
DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2024.03.012

Abstract

In a recent paper, Aceves and Evans computed information and semantic density measures for hundreds of languages, and showed that these measures predict the pace and breadth of ideas in communication. Here, we summarize their key findings and situate them in a broader debate about the adaptive nature of language.

Keywords: adaptation; big data; communication; culture; information theory; language.

MeSH terms

Communication*
Humans
Language*
Semantics