I hate to pile on, what with the "sense of shell shock" and "a bit of a meltdown" at the BBC. However, I have to take BBC News Online environment correspondent Alex Kirby to task, for sexing up this story about N'kisi the African grey parrot.
I yield to no one in my admiration for parrots' communicative efforts, and N'kisi does sound like a remarkable fellow, with a vocabulary said to number 950 words, but you have to wonder what is happening at the BBC when Mr. Kirby writes that:
N'kisi's remarkable abilities, which are said to include telepathy, feature in the latest BBC Wildlife Magazine.
[Update: if you've noticed that BBC News has removed the "telepathy" reference, see here for discussion and a link to an earlier version of the article.]
As a mere linguist, I'll leave this one to the experts at the Skeptical Inquirer, but let's just say that throwing in a claim about pet telepathy doesn't do a lot for my confidence in the rest of the story. It's like reading about a hypothetical engineering genius whose remarkable new windmill design and perpetual motion machine are both covered enthusiastically in the latest issue of National Geographic.
But I do feel that I have some standing to comment on Mr. Kirby's observation that
About 100 words are needed for half of all reading in English, so if N'kisi could read he would be able to cope with a wide range of material.
Mr. Kirby seems to think that since the commonest 100 words cover about half of typical English text (about 47% of the New York Times, for instance), those 100 words would allow you to read half the material. Say, the international news and the sports page, but not the national news or the wedding announcements. Or in terms of more enduring texts, you could read Pride and Prejudice but not Sense and Sensibility.
Well, needless to say, that's not how it works. If you could read just the commonest 100 words in English, Mr. Kirby's own text would begin like this (replacing the letters in unknown words with x's):
Xxxxxx'x xxxxxxx xxxxx xxxxxxxxxx
By Xxxx Xxxxx
XXX News Xxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxx
The xxxxxxx of a xxxxxx with an xxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxx to xxxxxxxxxxx with people has xxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx up xxxxx.The xxxx, a xxxxxxx Xxxxxxx xxxx xxxxxx X'xxxx has a xxxxxxxxxx of xxx xxxxx, and xxxxx xxxxx of a xxxxx of xxxxxx
He xxxxxxx his xxx xxxxx and xxxxxxx if he is xxxxxxxxxx with xxxxx xxxxx with which his xxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxx xxxx -- just as a xxxxx xxxxx would do.
X'xxxx'x xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx, which are said to xxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx. xxxxxxx in the xxxxxx XXX Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxxxx.
If N'kisi's 950-word vocabulary were the 950 commonest words, the same passage would look to him like this:
Xxxxxx'x xxxxxxx xxxxx xxxxxxxxxx
By Xxxx Xxxxx
XXX News Xxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxx
The xxxxxxx of a xxxxxx with an almost xxxxxxxxxxxx power to xxxxxxxxxxx with people has brought xxxxxxxxxx up short.The xxxx, a xxxxxxx Xxxxxxx xxxx called X'xxxx, has a xxxxxxxxxx of xxx words, and shows xxxxx of a sense of xxxxxx.
He xxxxxxx his own words and xxxxxxx if he is xxxxxxxxxx with xxxxx xxxxx with which his xxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxx xxxx -- just as a human child would do.
X'xxxx'x xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx, which are said to include xxxxxxxxx, xxxxxxx in the xxxxxx XXX Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxxxx.
No doubt N'kisi's vocabulary choice is not strictly frequentistic -- but that will just mean that fewer of the words in the passage will be covered. For your convenience, the original is below:
Parrot's oratory stuns scientists
By Alex Kirby
BBC News Online environment correspondent
The finding of a parrot with an almost unparalleled power to communicate with people has brought scientists up short.The bird, a captive African grey called N'kisi, has a vocabulary of 950 words, and shows signs of a sense of humour.
He invents his own words and phrases if he is confronted with novel ideas with which his existing repertoire cannot cope - just as a human child would do.
N'kisi's remarkable abilities, which are said to include telepathy, feature in the latest BBC Wildlife Magazine.
At first, I thought that "Alex Kirby" might be a pseudonym for Andrew Gilligan, hiding out on the talking parrot beat and perhaps a bit out of his depth. But no, there really has been for some time an Alex Kirby who is the Beeb's "environment correspondent". Let's hope that his coverage of global warming is less credulous and more mathematically sophisticated than his coverage of talking parrots.
[Update: see this post by Geoff Pullum for more on N'kisi and talking animals in general.]
[Update: Ray Girvan has also blogged on this, with links to other Parrot tall tales.]
Posted by Mark Liberman at January 28, 2004 11:14 PM