full transcript

From the Ted Talk by Alex Gendler: Why elephants never forget

Unscramble the Blue Letters

The rare combination of mmoery and problem snlovig can explain some of elephants' most clever behaviors, but it doesn't explain some of the things we're just beginning to learn about their mental lives. Elephants communicate using everything from body signals and vocalizations, to infrasound rumbles that can be hraed kilometers away. And their understanding of syntax suggests that they have their own language and grammar. This sense of language may even go beyond slimpe cotmmaincouin. Elephants create art by carefully choosing and combining different colors and etlmnees. They can also recognize twelve distinct tones of music and rtaecere melodies. And yes, there is an elephant band.

Open Cloze

The rare combination of ______ and problem _______ can explain some of elephants' most clever behaviors, but it doesn't explain some of the things we're just beginning to learn about their mental lives. Elephants communicate using everything from body signals and vocalizations, to infrasound rumbles that can be _____ kilometers away. And their understanding of syntax suggests that they have their own language and grammar. This sense of language may even go beyond ______ _____________. Elephants create art by carefully choosing and combining different colors and ________. They can also recognize twelve distinct tones of music and ________ melodies. And yes, there is an elephant band.

Solution

  1. heard
  2. elements
  3. recreate
  4. communication
  5. simple
  6. solving
  7. memory

Original Text

The rare combination of memory and problem solving can explain some of elephants' most clever behaviors, but it doesn't explain some of the things we're just beginning to learn about their mental lives. Elephants communicate using everything from body signals and vocalizations, to infrasound rumbles that can be heard kilometers away. And their understanding of syntax suggests that they have their own language and grammar. This sense of language may even go beyond simple communication. Elephants create art by carefully choosing and combining different colors and elements. They can also recognize twelve distinct tones of music and recreate melodies. And yes, there is an elephant band.

Frequently Occurring Word Combinations

ngrams of length 2

collocation frequency
elephant memory 3

Important Words

  1. art
  2. band
  3. beginning
  4. behaviors
  5. body
  6. carefully
  7. choosing
  8. clever
  9. colors
  10. combination
  11. combining
  12. communicate
  13. communication
  14. create
  15. distinct
  16. elements
  17. elephant
  18. elephants
  19. explain
  20. grammar
  21. heard
  22. infrasound
  23. kilometers
  24. language
  25. learn
  26. lives
  27. melodies
  28. memory
  29. mental
  30. music
  31. problem
  32. rare
  33. recognize
  34. recreate
  35. rumbles
  36. sense
  37. signals
  38. simple
  39. solving
  40. suggests
  41. syntax
  42. tones
  43. twelve
  44. understanding
  45. vocalizations