About FirstIdeaQuest

What it is

FirstIdeaQuest asks one of the big open questions in science: how did humans come to think in symbols? You weigh two rival explanations — an interactionist view (symbols grow out of emotional back-and-forth between people) and a nativist view (a built-in faculty that matures) — across four kinds of evidence, predicting before each reveal.

Both sides, fairly

Every case gives each view its strongest argument and says plainly what the evidence can’t settle. No answer is marked correct.

Sources, for grown-ups and teachers

The interactionist view here is associated with developmental researchers such as Stanley Greenspan and Stuart Shanker; the nativist tradition with linguists such as Noam Chomsky and cognitive scientists such as Steven Pinker. All explanations here are written in our own words, and FirstIdeaQuest is not affiliated with any of these authors.

Privacy

Everything happens on this device. There are no accounts, no ads, and no tracking. Nothing you choose or type is saved or sent anywhere — when you leave the page, it is gone, unless you printed your card.

A note for grown-ups

FirstIdeaQuest is Developmental (FEDC-informed) — informed by the functional-emotional developmental-capacities tradition of thinking about individual differences and relationships. All the words here are our own; FirstIdeaQuest is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, any organization or program in that tradition. It is a conversation starter, not an assessment, a diagnosis, or therapy.