W6 Biological Basis of Communication Flashcards
What is neurolinguistics primarily concerned with?
The localization of specific language abilities in the brain and understanding language processing post-brain damage.
What historical evidence is there for the understanding of language loss due to brain injury?
As early as 3000 BC, there were observations of loss of speech following head injuries, and by the 1700s, most known language and speech disorders had been described.
Who proposed the idea of phrenology and what did it suggest?
Franz Joseph Gall proposed phrenology in 1819, suggesting that different areas of the brain correspond to specific personality traits and functions, including language.
How do males and females differ in their language biology?
Females generally begin talking earlier, perform better in verbal memory and fluency, and have less lateralized language compared to males.
What is a critical period in language acquisition?
It is a time frame during which language-related biological events must occur for normal development; if not, language acquisition becomes significantly impaired.
Describe the subtraction method in neuroimaging
This method involves having a participant complete two tasks, one of which is a variant of the other. The brain activity from one task is subtracted from the other to identify specific active areas.
What are Event-related Potentials (ERPs)?
ERPs are measures of electrical activity in the brain in response to stimuli, providing good temporal resolution but poor spatial resolution.
What is the main advantage of Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)?
fMRI offers good spatial resolution and measures brain activity based on blood flow, allowing for detailed images of brain function.
What distinguishes Broca’s aphasia from Wernicke’s aphasia?
Broca’s aphasia involves non-fluent speech and difficulty in production, while Wernicke’s aphasia is characterized by fluent but nonsensical speech and poor comprehension.
What are the symptoms of conduction aphasia?
Conduction aphasia results from damage to the arcuate fasciculus and leads to intact speech production and auditory comprehension, but difficulty in repeating phrases.
What does anomia refer to in the context of language processing?
Anomia is an impairment in retrieving names for objects, which can be categorized into lexical-semantic and phonological types.
How does Garrett’s model describe the stages of speech production?
It includes three stages: conceptualization (forming a pre-verbal message), formulation (translating concepts into linguistic form), and execution (articulating the speech).
What are the implications of double dissociations in aphasia research?
They suggest that certain brain functions are modular and specific to language processing, highlighting the complexity of language-related brain functions.
