Theresa tells how she got into formal linguistics.
We then talk about what it means to do syntax as a cognitive science.
We discuss properties of formal systems & what formal approaches to language entail.
We also highlight the difference between formal and functional approaches.
We talk in more detail about the properties of formal systems, and why it makes sense to think of language as a formal system.
We then talk about Generative Grammar: what it is, how it started, and how, as a formal, cognitive approach, it has evolved and changed over 70 years.
In Generative Grammar, three factors give rise to an individual's I-language: exposure to language, universal grammar, and humans' general cognitive abilities. We talk in detail about each of these components, about how Generative Grammar has evolved since the '60s.