Linguistics & Cognitive Science Colloquium Series presents Dr. Tyler Knowlton, a Postdoc at the University of Pennsylvania

​Title: Universal quantifiers: logically equivalent, psychologically distinct​

Abstract: The English universal quantifiers “each” and “every” are obviously similar, perhaps even logically equivalent (each frog is green if and only if every frog is green). But it’s long been observed that “each” is somehow ‘more individualistic’ whereas “every” is somehow ‘friendlier to groups’. Inspired by this observation, I’ll propose that the meanings of “each” and “every” are formally distinct mental representations that naturally interface with different non-linguistic cognitive systems. The idea is this: an expression like "every frog" has a meaning that calls for grouping the frogs, leading it to more naturally connect with the mind’s system of ensemble representation. An expression like "each frog", on the other hand, has a (purely first-order) meaning that calls for treating the frogs as independent individuals, leading it to more naturally connect with the mind’s system for individuation, object-files. This ‘psycho-logical’ distinction helps make sense of various differences between "each" and "every": (1) when evaluating sentences with "each circle", participants show signs of mentally representing the circles as a series of individual object-files, but when evaluating sentences with "every circle", they show signs of mentally grouping the circles as an ensemble collection; (2) speakers use "each" to quantify over smaller numbers of things, in line with the working memory limit imposed by object-file representations; (3) expressions like "every frog" are better able to provide a plural antecedent than expressions like "each frog". This case study in psychosemantics shows how details of non-linguistic cognition can inform and enrich theories of meaning.​

Date: Friday, Dece​​​mber 1st 2023

Time: 3p​​m-4:30pm

Location: Room 107, De​​partment of Linguistics & Cognitive Science (125 E. Main St)

Zo​​om: https://udel.zoom.us/my/ahafri​