Cognitive development

One the the great things about being a father and a social scientist is that you get to directly observe all this great cognitive development, in the form of various milestones -- some subtle, some not.

This morning, as I was playing with The Kid, on a whim I said to her ''Hello, Daddy!'' She thought this was fairly funny: it made her laugh. Aha! Humor! The recognition of incongruity!

Just to double-check, I used the same tone of voice to address her by her own name. Just a mild smile. But calling her ''Daddy'' again made her laugh.


She's starting to point to things and name them -- albeit with lousy pronounciation: ears, nose, mouth, etc.

And, for a month or two, if you ask her "What does a doggie say?" or "What does a lion say?" (and even ''What does Ralphie say?''), she'll respond with the correct sound: either ''Rrrroar!!!'' or ''wuff.''


Cognitive stuff: spiffy!


--GG