Question

Does the successful development of computer-generated speech, which allows computers to communicate with one another, orally, effectively eliminate the nature-nurture debate regarding human language development?

Answer 1

In my view, the successful development of computer-generated speech does not effectively eliminate the nature-nature debate of language development. Machines do not yet possess any understanding of language as such, in the sense that, they merely respond to stimulus based on the vast amounts of information that is fed into them by human efforts. They lack the ability to comprehend the nuances of language and although it may appear that they are interacting with one another effectively, we should remember that had they been designed to use colours instead of words to communicate, the internal mechanisms would be the same. Based on this knowledge, we cannot yet eliminate the nature-nature debate.