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说汉语者使用大脑更多部分 {$ z6 r$ z Y0 U* W
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@7 Y: r. h7 n4 e# [说汉语普通话者讲话时同时使用大脑两边
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7 d2 B% ]" C. c英国的研究人员发现,说汉语普通话的人可能比说英语的人用更多大脑。研究表明,说汉语普通话者讲话时同时使用大脑两边。 ) a t; n0 k& A. o
说英语者只使用大脑一边。研究人员说,这项研究能够促进了解大脑处理语言的过程。 " |8 t8 l6 K+ }; d9 C) ~+ U- d% U
另外,这项研究还可以帮助研究人员找到更好的办法,帮助人们在中风或者脑部受到类似损害后重新学习,掌握语言技能。
5 a% q9 n4 H2 l6 X, l" Q/ {在这项研究中,操汉语普通话和操英语的两组人接受脑部扫描。研究人员发现,人们讲英语时,靠近左太阳穴的左颞叶开始活跃。 4 P- @0 _/ z# o( `
他们发现,大脑这个区域的功能是把发音联系起来,形成单个词汇。 $ m( C# _9 e V/ v" D8 z+ A
研究发现,人们说汉语时,左颞叶和右颞叶一起活跃。研究人员说,说不同语言时,人的大脑在以不同方式破译语言。这就推翻了长期以来的看法。
1 Q; A. o9 v4 ^5 N1 @汉语普通话十分难学。不同于操英语者,说汉语者使用音调区分不同词的不同意思。比如"马"音,用不同音调发音,可以是马,妈等不同的意思。
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; Y0 Z$ h) M- Q- [8 h/ Y# \Chinese 'takes more brainpower' - I& P' f% [% \; s: e# h; h8 W" v
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Speaking Chinese may take more brainpower than speaking English, a study suggests.
; G* x! _* t& r, m+ v3 C2 W- f9 fResearchers in Britain have found that people who speak Mandarin Chinese use both sides of their brain to understand the language. + m# {4 N' h+ U
+ n; O/ R" T% K* lThis compares to English-language speakers who only need to use one side of their brain.
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The researchers said the findings could boost understanding of how the brain processes languages.
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This, in turn, could one day help scientists to develop better ways of helping people to re-learn languages after a stroke or similar damage to the brain. 4 T6 i+ ?7 B1 e& c8 A
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Brain scans / K3 P6 _8 l" I8 u- P/ G
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Dr Sophie Scott and colleagues at the Wellcome Trust carried out brain scans on a group of Mandarin and English speakers. 5 ^: B/ F/ E! o- M# _$ C
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They found that the left temporal lobe, which is located by the left temple, becomes active when English speakers hear English. . ]. k5 T/ ?, |: i" D5 U! d
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The researchers believe that this area of the brain links speech sounds together to form individual words.
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! v# p0 r. r$ j) R3 ZThey expected similar findings when they carried out scans on Mandarin speakers.
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However, they found that both their left and right temporal lobes become active when they hear Mandarin. & L& ^4 ~3 l& u+ g! v+ I
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"People who speak different sorts of languages use their brains to decode speech in different ways," said Dr Scott.
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9 z: L- c, Z( j5 Q+ J9 w1 x5 k) e"It overturned some long-held theories." , e: O+ J- o4 Q' P! h
, l. J5 x# K; ?) A, e$ r4 SMandarin is a notoriously difficult language to learn. Unlike English, speakers use intonation to distinguish between completely different meanings of particular words. & E6 v4 a( X8 M, ?9 h. A. }6 @, ^
: j4 P( C9 R6 ]% T9 k! |: w8 DFor instance, the word "ma" can mean mother, scold, horse or hemp depending on how it is said.
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1 i% O( [8 N5 C' z3 S4 v! R0 _The researchers believe that this need to interpret intonation is why Mandarin speakers need to use both sides of their brain. 8 {7 |( Y# m8 e/ E, g7 d3 J( E6 p
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The right temporal lobe is normally associated with being able to process music or tones.
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"We think that Mandarin speakers interpret intonation and melody in the right temporal lobe to give the correct meaning to the spoken words," said Dr Scott. 9 f# f9 A1 ]/ E+ {( K
4 z8 h" F# g2 D. [" Y"It seems that the structure of the language you learn as a child affects how the structure of your brain develops to decode speech.
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"Native English speakers, for example, find it extraordinarily difficult to learn Mandarin."
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% z" ~/ c5 L3 W' F# V% nLearning languages
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, q w5 S, l- {) UDr Scott said the findings could help scientists to understand how the brain learns language.
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' x1 V5 W0 g( ?6 H) \" K. e& gIt could be particularly useful in trying to understand how it re-learns language after a stroke. ' g2 z# T# p3 r, c8 H1 L3 P- E
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She suggested it could also lead to new drugs to help people who have lost their language skills. ! s k4 X' p9 c/ N, a( N
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"There is evidence from other studies that certain drugs affect learning in the brain regions that support hearing and speech," she said.
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"This is something we can improve on."
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( g2 d" h( \& T- U, A7 J+ xDr William Marslen-Wilson, of the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit at Cambridge University, welcomed the study.
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"It is an interesting finding," he told BBC News Online.
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"Looking at languages that are very different from each other helps us to understand how the brain processes language.
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. A. r4 `2 r& v9 x! O' ~6 q! d"It can also help us to understand language rehabilitation," he said.
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"This field is really opening up but it is very early days."
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The findings will be included in the summer science exhibition at the Royal Society in London, which runs from 1 to 3 July.
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Story from BBC NEWS:
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7 M6 s% i) ]' v3 R/ }[ Last edited by victorw on 2005-2-24 at 06:22 PM ] |
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