In psychology, nativism is a theory that says that most basic skills are hard-wired in the brain at birth. This theory is the opposite of the theory called the blank slate, or "tabula rasa". Blank slate theories said that humans have almost no skills or abilities at birth: they learn these skills over the course of their life. People who believe in nativism (within certain limits) include Jerry Fodor, Noam Chomsky and Steven Pinker. These psychologists believe that humans are born with a set of abilities that help them learn other skills, such as speech.