Language and Brain

How do we study language in the brain?

0Neurolingiustics:

Neurolinguistics studies the neurological bases of language . Explores how the processing involved in language takes place across nerves . Pays close attention to chemical and electrical processing in the brain .

0Psycholinguistics: Psycholinguistics studies the psychological underpinnings of language . Focuses on acquisition, storage, comprehension, and production of language .

Localization:0Attempts to locate language in the brain

having a long history.0This suggested that language must be an

independent faculty and not part of our general powers of thought and reasons.

0It states that two parts of the brain are flexible enough.

0Noam Chomsky derived attention to the fact that every normal child successfully acquires a first language , no matter what its intelligence or learning style is .

Lateralization:0Human body is asymmetrical: heart, liver, use of

limbs, etc.0Functions of the brain become lateralized.0Each hemisphere specialized for particular ways

of working.0Split-brain patients are good examples of

lateralization of language functions.0In infancy , the relationship between the two

parts of the brain is flexible enough for language to relocate itself on the right when necessary.

LAD:0LAD stands for language acquisition device .0LAD is inborn in a child.0According to some scientists it ends after the

age of 7 years but many says that it ends after the age of 12 years.

0Human brain id divided into two parts i.e. left hemisphere and right hemisphere.

0Left hemisphere controls the right one and right hemisphere controls the left one.

Brain areas involved in language:

Geography of Brain:

Upper vs Lower Left vs Right Front vs Back

Upper vs Lower Brain :0Upper Brain: The upper parts of the brain consists of `grey matter` known as cortex . It deals with stored information , analyzing input and controlling sophisticated muscular movements . Below it is the sub-cortex of `white matter` which is mainly nerve cell fibers .

0Lower Brain: Lower parts of the brain are responsible for reflexes action , controlling functions such as breathing and heart beat . The cerebellum at the base of the brain has a delicate role in coordinating a range of muscular movements which have become highly automatic .

Left vs Right Brain :Left and right brain are joined by a complex web of nerve connections known as the corpus callosum .

0Left Brain: The left hemisphere controls movement and sensation on the right side of the body . The left hemisphere in most individual is associated with analytic processing and symbolization .

0Right Brain: The right hemisphere is linked to the left side of the body . The right hemisphere is associated with perceptual and spatial representation .

Front vs Back Brain:0The outer surface of the brain is marked by mounds

and valleys . These serve to mark out four regions in each hemisphere , known as lobes . These are :

• Frontal lobe ( at the front )• Temporal lobe ( running from front to back )• Occipital lobe ( at the back )• Parietal lobe ( at the back )

Language disorders:0Aphasias are inability to perceive, process, or

produce language due to physical damage to the brain.

0Broca’s aphasia results in an inability to produce sequences of sounds in fluent speech; tendency to eliminate any functional vocabulary.

0Wernicke’s aphasia results in inability to understand speech and inability to speak meaningfully.

0Acquired dyslexia and Acquired dysgraphia due to angular gyrus damage.

Comparison between human

and primitive brains:

The cortex is much more extensive in human beings .Human pre-frontal areas are up to six times bigger than those of chimpanzees .The brain of other species are divided into two hemisphere .Like human beings a number of species have a left hemisphere which is more developed .In monkeys , the left hemisphere dominates in the processing of rapid auditory stimuli .In human beings , a great proportion of the motor areas is given over to the control of mouth , tongue and jaw .The human cerebellum is very much larger , relative to brain size , than in other species .The motor areas in human cortex control larynx , which regulates the passage of air in breathing and speech .In other species the operation of larynx is controlled by other parts of the brain .

Thank you

Umm

-e-R

ooman

Yaqoob