Q: Every time I go to a coffee shop, I see young mothers talking to their babies like they think the babies will answer. Please tell them in your column that 6-month-old babies will never talk back.

	Daniel Marsula, Post-Gazette Click illustration for larger version.

It tells us that they're instinctively effective parents, and/or they're current on all of the recent research on infant development, socialization and communication. Talking to a baby has been shown to produce many effects, including stimulation of brain development and emotional bonding between parent and child.

From birth, babies can recognize their parents' voices. Hearing Mom or Dad can soothe a crying child who is experiencing new sounds, smells and visual stimuli -- for example, at a coffee shop.

As early as 4 to 6 months, children begin to babble, repeat sounds, and learn that they can get attention through vocal expression. This is the beginning of expressive language.

At 6 to 8 months, a child begins to develop receptive language, recognizing his or her name and common words such as mama, dada, bye-bye, bottle, or binky.

The framework for both receptive and expressive language begins early and is constantly reinforced through the child's imitating the parent's vocal patterns, and through playing simple games like peekaboo, itsy-bitsy spider and pattycake.

So you see, what may seem silly and without merit can and does have a long-term, positive impact on a child's development.