Most babies aren't even talking by their first birthday. Yet, starting about 6 months, their brains are able to pull apart the sounds in different languages.

In fact, babies learn one language over another – by listening to the humans around them and "taking statistics" on the sounds they need to know, says Pat Kuhl, a professor of Speech and Hearing Sciences and co-director of the Institute for Brain and Learning Sciences (I-LABS) at the University of Washington. Kuhl is internationally recognized for her research on early language and brain development, and studies that show how young children learn. Kuhl’s work has played a major role in demonstrating how early exposure to language alters the brain.

Kuhl’s presentation on language development is now online at TED.com, a website dedicated to spreading ideas by sharing the best talks and performances from all over the world.

Thrive by Five Washington works in partnership with I-LABS, helping them share their research findings about the baby brain with Washington state  policymakers, community leaders, educators and the media, so that public policy and practice reflect what we know about this critical period of learning and development in a  child’s life.