facial expressions (along with body posture) carry meaning and may be a more ancient form of communication than language. also, the infant is capable of communicating via facial expression very soon after birth, and such affective communication constitutes an important means of communication in infancy. http://www.economist.com/node/9111472 @article{bloom-capatides-87_affect-expression-delays-language-acquisition, title={Expression of affect and the emergence of language}, author={Bloom, L. and Capatides, J.B.}, journal={Child Development}, pages={1513--1522}, year={1987}, annote = { based on comparing % of time the infant expresses facial emotion, vs the age of first word (FW) and vocabulary spurt (VS). the more frequently the children expressed emotion, the older the age of language achievements. also, opposite: the more time spent in neutral affect, the younger the age of language achievements. seems a negative result - the less emotion your child learns, the earlier her language. but then, emotion expression is also a function of parental affective display - so shd parents not smile at their babies? }} facial expression analysis gather commentary