Lecture 9 Flashcards
How is information exhanched between hemispheres ?
- The corpus callosum
- The anterior commisure
- The hippocampal commissure
- A few other small commissures
What does the corpus callosum allow ?
Allows each hemisphere of the brain access information from both sides
How do the hemispheres communicate with the body ?
The hemispheres communicates with the rest of the bosy controlaterally
* left - right
* right - left
What does the left hemisphere connect ?
Left hemisphere connect to skin receptors and muscles on the right side of the body and vice versa
What is the left side specialized for ?
In most humans, the left side is specialized for language
What section in the temporal cortex is larger for some people ?
The planum temporale (Wernicke’s Area) is larger in the left side for 65% of people
Who activates the right hemisphere more ?
Young children activate the right hemisphere during speech more than adults do
* As they grow older, most of them gradually surpress the right hemisphere during speeach and emphasize the left hemisphere
What are the visual connections to the hemispheres
- Each hemisphere of the brain gets input from the opposite half of the visual field
- The left half of each retina connect to the left hemisphere ( sees the right visual field)
- The right half of each retina connects to the right hemisphere (sees the left visual field)
What are the auditory connections to the hemispheres ?
- Each ear sends the information to both sides of the brain
- Brain areas must compare input from both ears for localization
- Each hemisphere does pay more attention to the ear on the opposite side
What does damaage to the courpus callosum cause ?
Damage tothe corpus callosum prevents the hemispheres from exchanging information
What is epilepsy ?
Condition characterized by repeated episodes of excessive synchronized neural activity
What is the focus ?
The point in the brain where the seizures begin
What does cutting the corpus callsoum cause ?
- Restircts the seizure to one hemisphere
- A surprising bonus was that the seizures became less frequent
What are the outcomes of a split brain operation ?
- Maintain normal intellect and motivation
- Still able to walk and talk
- But they tend to use hands independently
What occurs in most split brain people ?
Have difficulty naming objects briefly viewed in the left visual field since the left side of the brain is dominant for language
How can a small amount of information be transferred ?
A small amount of information can still be transferred via smaller comissures
What are these two commissures ?
- The Anterior commissure
- The Hippocampal commissures
Who proposed the left brain as a interpreter ?
Gazzaniga
What did Gazzaniga mean by interpreter ?
Tendency to invent and depend explanations for actions, even when true causes are unconscious
What is the right hemisphere more adept to ?
Right hemisphere is more adept at comprehending spatial relationships
* Helps see the “big picture”
* Helps relate what one hears to the overall context
What is the left hemisphere important for ?
Left hemisphere is important for understaning speech
* rules based, details
What can damage to the right hemisphere cause ?
Damage to the right hemisphere casues difficulty perceiving other’s emotions, failure to understand humour and sarcasm, and a monotone voice
What occurs when both hemispheres are inactive ?
- Left hemisphere: cannot speak
- Right hemisphere: can describe traumatic or emotional expereinces but don’t remember feeling the emotion
How did language evolve ?
- Language may have evolved from communication by gestures
- Brain-based language development theories
- Not really known
What does research suggest in regards to learning a language ?
Research suggests a sensitive period exists for the learning of language
* Lac of early language exposure can lead to permanent impairment
How does learning a second language differ ?
Ease of learning a second language differes with age
* Adults are better at memorizing vocabulary
* Children excel at learning pronunciation and unfamiliar aspects of grammar
What occurs during the sensitive period and bilingualism ?
- No sharp cutoff exists for second language learning
- Those who begin after age 12 rearely gain fleuncy equal to a native speaker
- Most people who are bilingual from a young age show bilateral activity during speech for both lanugages
- Second language learners after age 6 tend to show only left hemisphere activity
- Hemispheric control of second language comprehension is variable
What are the two important areas for Language ?
- Broca’s area
- Wernicke’s area
What occurs in Wernicke’s aphasia?
- Fluent aphasia: Characterized by impaired language comprehension and inability to remember object names
- Recognition of items is often not impaired, ability to find words is impaired
- Cognition is fully intact; just language is impaired
What are the typical characteristics of Wernicke’s aphasia ?
- Articulate/fluent speech - say words randomly
- Anomia: difficulty finding the right word
- Poor language comprehension - Difficulty understadning speech, writing, and sign language
What occurs in Broca’s aphasia?
- Serious impairment in laguage production
- Slow and awkward with all forms of language communication
- May omit grammatical words and endings because speech is a struggle
- Anomia: know what they want to say but struggle to get it out
- Trouble understadning the same kinds of words that they omit when speaking and misunderstand complex sentences
- Rely on logical guessing
Who was the person who’s brain was looked at having Broca’s aphasia ?
“Tan” (1861)
* Victor Leborngne
* Chronic language impairment; only able to say “tan”
* Damage to left, posterior frontal lobe
* Was able to sing popular French anthems and swear