April 4, 2019
Dr. Petitto and the PhD in Educational Neuroscience (PEN) Program were utterly thrilled to welcome Dr. Supalla to Gallaudet University for the final PEN Distinguished Lecture Series presentation for the 2018-2019 academic year. Dr. Supalla gave a brilliant lecture on “Revisiting the process of grammaticalization in signed languages.”
Dr. Laura-Ann Petitto is pictured with the year’s final 2018-2019 PhD in Educational Neuroscience Distinguished Lecturer, Dr. Ted Supalla from Georgetown University.
Earlier in the day, Dr. Supalla visited with all of the PEN program’s faculty and students including, the students in Dr. Ilaria Berteletti’s class (as they read Dr. Supalla’s articles), as well as Dr. Petitto’s Brain and Language Laboratory for Neuroimaging, where Supalla met with Chiara Filippini (MA, Biomedical Engineer, Visiting NSF-Gallaudet Scholar in BL2; expert in Thermal IR imaging).
Though it seemed remarkable to both of them, Dr. Petitto and Dr. Supalla have known one other professionally since their days in Dr. Ursula Bellugi’s lab together at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, in La Jolla, California: 1976 (or 43 years ago!).
About Dr. Ted Supalla
Dr. Ted Supalla is a Professor of Neurology, Linguistics and Psychology at Georgetown University and the Director of the Sign Language Research Lab. His lab hosts a Historical Sign Language Database (www.hsldb.georgetown.edu) as a resource tool for public use.
Dr. Supalla is a co-author of Sign Language Archaeology: Understanding Historical Roots of American Sign Language. In addition, he teaches a massive open online course, “Sign Language Structure, Learning, and Change, as part of the GeorgetownX curriculum.”