Lecture 18 - Language Flashcards

1
Q

What is lateralization in verbal behavior?

A

Verbal behavior is lateralized in the brain, with most language disturbances occurring after damage to the left side of the brain.

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2
Q

Which hemisphere is dominant for speech in most people?

A

The left hemisphere is dominant for speech in 90% of the population (94% of right-handed people and 70% of left-handed people).

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3
Q

What is prosody?

A

Prosody refers to the rhythm, emphasis, and tone of speech, which conveys emotional state and phrasing.

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4
Q

Which hemisphere typically processes prosody?

A

The right hemisphere typically processes prosody.

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5
Q

Can people with left hemisphere damage still understand prosody?

A

Yes, they can often extract emotional and contextual information from prosody, even if they struggle with language comprehension.

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6
Q

Can people recognize voices independently of word comprehension?

A

Yes, voice recognition is independent of word comprehension, and even people with left hemisphere damage can recognize familiar voices.

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7
Q

What is phonagnosia, and what causes it?

A

Phonagnosia is a disorder where people struggle to recognize voices, caused by damage to the right temporal lobe.

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8
Q

Which hemisphere is strongly activated when understanding unfamiliar metaphors?

A

The right hemisphere is strongly activated when understanding unfamiliar metaphors.

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9
Q

Which hemisphere is needed for literal word meanings?

A

The left hemisphere is needed for understanding the literal meanings of words.

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10
Q

What is aphasia?

A

Aphasia is a disturbance in understanding, repeating, or producing meaningful speech, not caused by sensory/motor deficits or lack of motivation.

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11
Q

What conditions must be met for a diagnosis of aphasia?

A

The patient must be aware of communication attempts and their surroundings, and the difficulty must be relatively isolated.

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12
Q

How is the middle cerebral artery related to aphasia?

A

Damage to the middle cerebral artery often results in aphasia, with symptoms varying depending on the location of cell death.

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13
Q

What are the types of aphasia caused by damage to the frontal lobe? List other names for this condition.

A

Damage to the frontal lobe causes deficits in speaking and writing, also known as:
- Anterior aphasia
- Motor aphasia
- Expressive aphasia
- Broca’s aphasia
- Non-fluent aphasia

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14
Q

What are the types of aphasia caused by damage to the sensory association cortex? List other names for this condition.

A

Damage to the sensory association cortex causes deficits in understanding language, also known as:
-Posterior aphasia
- Sensory aphasia
- Receptive aphasia
- Wernicke’s aphasia
- Fluent aphasia

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15
Q

What types of sensory and motor associations help understand the word “dog”?

A
  • Vision: What do dogs look like?
  • Auditory: What do dogs sound like?
  • Touch: What do dogs feel like?
  • Olfaction: What do dogs smell like?
  • Gustatory: What do dogs taste like?
  • Motor: What does petting a dog entail?
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16
Q

Which association cortex processes what a dog looks like?

A

The visual association cortex.

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17
Q

Which association cortex processes what a dog feels like?

A

The somatosensory association cortex.

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18
Q

Which association cortex processes what a dog sounds like?

A

The auditory association cortex.

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19
Q

Which cortex plans motor actions like petting a dog?

A

The premotor cortex.

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20
Q

What does S1 process in language areas?

A

S1 processes texture perception (e.g., the feel of a dog) and Braille word perception.

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21
Q

What does A1 process in language areas?

A

A1 processes spoken word perception (Wernicke’s Area) and sounds (e.g., a dog barking).

22
Q

What does V1 process in language areas?

A

V1 processes written word perception (VWFA) and the sight of objects (e.g., a dog).

23
Q

What does M1 (Mouth) process in language areas?

A

M1 (Mouth) processes speaking, including word choice, sequencing, grammar, and articulation (Broca’s Area).

24
Q

What does M1 (Hand) process in language areas?

A

M1 (Hand) processes writing.

25
Q

What areas connect to the posterior language area and Broca’s area?

A

All language perception areas connect to both the posterior language area and Broca’s area.

26
Q

What is the posterior language area responsible for in word comprehension?

A

The posterior language area activates neurons in sensory association cortices, which store representations (meanings) of specific words, enabling comprehension.

27
Q

Where is the posterior language area located, and why is it important?

A

It is at the junction of the temporal, occipital, and parietal lobes, and it is critical for language comprehension, regardless of how words are received (heard, spoken, or read).

28
Q

What condition results from damage to the posterior language area, and what are its symptoms?

A

Transcortical sensory aphasia, characterized by:

  • Failure to comprehend word meanings.
  • Inability to express meaningful speech.
  • Intact word perception and speaking, but without understanding.
29
Q

What is Wernicke’s area, and what function does it serve?

A

Wernicke’s area is part of the auditory association cortex in the left temporal lobe, where sounds are recognized as spoken words.

30
Q

What is pure word deafness, and what causes it?

A

Pure word deafness is an inability to comprehend or repeat spoken words, caused by damage to a small part of Wernicke’s area.

31
Q

What abilities remain intact in people with pure word deafness?

A

They can:

  • Hear non-speech sounds (e.g., doorbells, barking).
  • Read and write.
  • Read lips.
  • Speak intelligently, though speech may become awkward over time.
32
Q

What is conduction aphasia, and what causes it?

A

Conduction aphasia is the inability to repeat words, caused by damage to the arcuate fasciculus, which connects Wernicke’s and Broca’s areas.

33
Q

How is conduction aphasia different from other language disorders?

A

Comprehension and expression are intact, but repeating exact words or nonsense words is impaired.

34
Q

What are the characteristics of Wernicke’s aphasia?

A
  • Fluent but meaningless speech.
  • Poor comprehension of language.
  • Lack of awareness of the problem.
  • Caused by damage around Wernicke’s area and the posterior language area.
35
Q

How can you differentiate between transcortical sensory aphasia (TSA) and Wernicke’s aphasia?

A
  • TSA patients can repeat what is said, indicating they recognize spoken words.
  • Wernicke’s aphasia patients often cannot repeat words and have poorer spoken word recognition.
36
Q

What are receptive aphasias, and why are they called fluent aphasias?

A

Receptive aphasias are characterized by difficulty understanding words that are heard, read, or signed. They are also called fluent aphasias because speech remains fluid, though it lacks meaning.

37
Q

What does Byron’s recovery story teach about aphasia?

A

Recovery is ongoing and can continue beyond initial expectations, even if a full recovery is unlikely. Support and persistence are key to improvement.

38
Q

What is pure alexia, and what causes it?

A

Pure alexia (or pure word blindness) is an inability to read due to damage to the visual word-form area (VWFA) in the fusiform gyrus of the left hemisphere.

39
Q

Can people with pure alexia still write?

A

Yes, people with pure alexia can write but cannot read what they have written.

40
Q

Where is the visual word-form area (VWFA) located?

A

The VWFA is in the fusiform gyrus of the left hemisphere, specialized for written word recognition.

41
Q

How does the fusiform gyrus function differ between hemispheres?

A

The left fusiform gyrus (VWFA) processes written words, while the right fusiform gyrus is more dominant in face perception.

42
Q

What are the two processes involved in reading?

A

Reading involves whole-word recognition (“sight reading”) and phonetic reading (sounding out words letter by letter).

43
Q

What is surface dyslexia?

A

Surface dyslexia is a reading disorder where individuals cannot recognize whole words but can read phonetically, struggling with irregularly spelled words.

44
Q

What is phonological dyslexia?

A

Phonological dyslexia is a reading disorder where individuals can read familiar words but struggle with unfamiliar words or non-words.

45
Q

What is developmental dyslexia, and what causes it?

A

Developmental dyslexia is a hereditary condition, primarily a type of phonological dyslexia, where individuals have difficulty learning to read, often accompanied by challenges with grammar, spelling, and sound order.

46
Q

What is direct dyslexia?

A

Direct dyslexia occurs when stroke patients can read aloud but cannot extract meaning from written words.

47
Q

What happens when Broca’s area is damaged?

A

Damage to Broca’s area causes Broca’s aphasia, characterized by slow, nonfluent speech, difficulty expressing oneself, and frustration due to awareness of the condition.

48
Q

What are the three primary symptoms of Broca’s aphasia?

A

Articulation problems, agrammatism, and anomia.

49
Q

What is articulation, and how is it affected in Broca’s aphasia?

A

Articulation is the movement of speech organs to produce sounds. Problems may include unclear speech or sequencing errors (e.g., “lipstick” becomes “lickstip”).

50
Q

What is agrammatism?

A

Agrammatism is the difficulty using or understanding grammar, such as verb endings and word order. People with agrammatism mainly use content words and struggle with function words.

51
Q

What is anomia?

A

Anomia is difficulty finding the right words, often leading to circumlocution, where individuals describe things indirectly.

52
Q

What is the difference between content words and function words?

A

Content words (nouns, verbs, adjectives) carry meaning, while function words (articles, prepositions) provide grammatical structure.