Some speakers of British English fear that the creeping Americanization of English is threatening their language. Morton: There's a sense that there's a one true language and we all ought to speak it, but it doesn't really have any proper basis. Language scientists in general have always been pushing very hard against this idea that there’s a right way to speak," he says.
Morten Christiansen is Professor of Psychology at Cornell University and Nick Chater is Professor of Behavioural Science at Warwick Business School. Together, they've written The Language Game, a new book which explores the science and psychology of language and some of its mysteries too. Hosting the discussion is journalist Christine Ro, whose work covers areas ranging from science and culture to international development.
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