Return to Previous Press Release
Enter your name and a friend's email address in the fields below and click "Submit" to email this Press Release to a friend.
Your message will look like this:
[YOUR NAME HERE] thought you might be interested in this story from the University of Rochester.
MEDIA CONTACT: Jonathan Sherwood (585) 273-4726
January 24, 2002
Two scientists from the University of Rochester were elected as fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world's largest federation of scientists. Elissa Newport and Richard Aslin, both professors of brain and cognitive sciences, were honored for their work in shedding light on the acquisition and development of language and cognition. The new fellows will be presented with a certificate at the Fellows Forum during the 2002 AAAS Annual Meeting in Boston on Feb. 16.
Newport, chair of the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and George Eastman Professor of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, works to understand how children learn both spoken and sign languages to understand the language-learning process. She studies how children are able to grasp patterns and meanings without any formal instruction. Her research settled a once-controversial hypothesis that there are crucial periods in a child's development when they are "primed" to learn. Newport found that there is a distinct curve showing that fluent language skills arise when a child is exposed to the language very early. Even at age four, a child learning a new language will have noticeable differences from a native speaker.
Aslin, professor of brain and cognitive sciences, works toward understanding how normal development progresses in human infants and young children, ranging in age from one month to two years. His research attempts to reveal how infants make sense of the sights and sounds of the world around them, essentially giving babies specialized eye and hearing tests. He is also interested in how babies learn and form categories. For example, do they understand that a red ball and a green ball are both balls, and do they understand that the word "ball" spoken by a male and a female voice refer to the same object.
Founded in 1848, AAAS works to advance science for human well-being through its more than 138,000 members. The tradition of honoring those members who have excelled in their chosen fields began in 1874. AAAS publishes the prestigious peer-reviewed journal Science.
The University of Rochester (www.rochester.edu) is one of the nation's leading private universities. Located in Rochester, N.Y., the University gives students exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary study and close collaboration with faculty through its unique cluster-based curriculum. Its College of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering is complemented by the Eastman School of Music, Simon School of Business, Warner School of Education, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, Schools of Medicine and Nursing, and the Memorial Art Gallery.
PR 1430, MS 0