Carl Zimmer reports on whether language is needed for thinking

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/19/science/brain-language-thought.html?unlocked_article_code=1.1U0.Kfbn.cWqiYcis-fKE&smid=url-share&utm_source=carlzimmer&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=fridays-elk-just-when-i-thought-i-was-out "Strokes and other forms of brain damage can wipe out the language network, leaving people struggling to process words and grammar, a condition known as aphasia. But scientists have discovered that people can still do algebra and play chess even with aphasia. In experiments, people with aphasia can look at two numbers — 123 and 321, say — and recognize that, by using the same pattern, 456 should be followed by 654. If language is not essential for thought, then what is language for? Communication, Dr. Fedorenko and her colleagues argue. Dr. Chomsky and other researchers have rejected that idea, pointing out the ambiguity of words and the difficulty of expressing our intuitions out loud. “The system is not well designed in many functional respects,” Dr. Chomsky once said."