Why Does Your Friend Understand What You Mean When You Refer to Your Dog as a, Well, Dog?
Have you ever said a word , then felt that it was wrong in your mouth? Have you ever read a passage in a book and stumbled upon a common word that suddenly seemed foreign? I'm not talking about developing dementia or reading things in a foreign language. But think about it. Hasn't there ever been a time when you were thinking about a word it suddenly seemed like one you've never seen before? Now a philopsopher, through game theory, says he may know why, when we say "dog" to a friend, that person understands that we mean the animal panting beside us, according to newswise.com. Kansas State University philosopher Elliott Wagner aims to address these types of questions in his latest research, which focuses on long-standing philosophical questions about semantic meaning. Wagner, assistant professor of philosophy, and two other philosophers and a mathematician are collaborating to use game theory to analyze communication and how it acquires meaning, the Web ...