Can the comprehension of abstract language be rooted in sensory experiences?

The question of learning the meaning of abstract language (roughly, expressions with no perceptible referents) has been bugging philosophers for thousands of years. More recently, a number of experimental paradigms have emerged trying to shed light on this issue. The basic idea explored in the talk is that people understand abstract (metaphorical) expressions by linking them to sensory or bodily experiences. If this is the case, we should be able to show that these experiences affect people’s interpretation of abstract utterances. The talk looks at the evidence we have so far (pro and contra).