Chapter 14_Lateralization and Language Flashcards
Lateralization
The specialization of certain functions in one hemisphere of the brain over the other.
Corpus Callosum
A large bundle of nerve fibers connecting the left and right hemispheres, allowing interhemispheric communication.
Anterior Commissure
A smaller white matter tract connecting the temporal lobes across the two hemispheres, involved in memory and emotion.
Hippocampal Commissure
A white matter tract that connects the left and right hippocampi, allowing the transfer of information between them.
Interhemispheric Transfer
The exchange of information between the two hemispheres of the brain.
Corpus Callosotomy
A surgical procedure severing the corpus callosum, often used to treat severe epilepsy.
Split-Brain Patients
Individuals who have undergone corpus callosotomy, resulting in the two hemispheres operating largely independently.
Phoneme
The smallest unit of sound in a language that can distinguish words.
Morpheme
The smallest meaningful unit in a language, which can be a word or a part of a word, such as prefixes or suffixes.
Syntax
The set of rules that dictates the arrangement of words to form sentences.
Semantics
The meaning of words and phrases within the context of language.
Wada Test
A procedure to determine language dominance in the brain by temporarily anesthetizing one hemisphere.
Aphasia
A language disorder resulting from brain damage, affecting speech production or comprehension.
Broca’s Area
A region in the frontal lobe associated with language production.
Broca’s Aphasia
A type of aphasia where individuals have difficulty producing speech but can understand language, often resulting in halting, effortful speech.
“Patient Tan”
The nickname for Louis Victor Leborgne, a patient studied by Broca who could only say “tan” due to a lesion in Broca’s area.
Wernicke’s Area
A region in the superior temporal gyrus involved in language comprehension.
Wernicke’s Aphasia
A type of aphasia where individuals produce fluent but nonsensical speech and have difficulty understanding language.
Arcuate Fasciculus
A white matter tract connecting Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas, involved in language processing.
Conduction Aphasia
A language disorder where individuals can comprehend and produce language but struggle to repeat words and sentences accurately.
Global Aphasia
Severe language impairment affecting both language production and comprehension, often due to extensive brain damage.
The Wernicke-Geschwind Model
A model proposing a network of brain areas involved in language processing, connecting auditory, motor, and comprehension regions.
Angular Gyrus
A region of the brain involved in reading and writing, as well as interpreting written language.
Dyslexia
A learning disability characterized by difficulty with phonological processing and reading, often due to differences in brain structure or function.
