Language, Generative Grammar, and the Cognitive Revolution (Killian Lecture)
Institute Professor Emeritus of Linguistics
Examines the poverty-of-the-stimulus argument, hierarchical syntactic recursion, and the philosophical foundations of cognitive science since Descartes.
Noam A. Chomsky, MIT faculty member since 1955 (later, Institute Professor), delivered the 20th annual Killian Award lecture. Often referred to as the “father of modern linguistics,” Professor Chomsky revolutionized the field of linguistics and paved the way for transformational grammar and universal grammar. His book Syntactic Structures (1957) was considered groundbreaking. He also made significant contributions to the fields of psychology, cognitive science, philosophy of language, and philosophy of mind. MIT’s Tech Talk interviewed Professor Chomsky on April 1, 1992.