LING 100 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Specific Language Impairment, Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Positron Emission Tomography
12 Sep 2012
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Document Summary
Gray matter: 10 billion neurons (nerve cells) form surface of the brain (cortex), the seat of higher-level functions and intelligence, including language. White matter: underneath, billions of connecting fibres, tend to be associated with more basic functions such as movement, balance, hormonal balance, and heartbeat. Divided into 2 cerebral hemispheres, connected by corpus callosum. Contralateral brain function: left hemisphere controls the right side of body & vice versa. Lateralization: each hemisphere is responsible for different functions. Case 1: a musician with a stroke in his right hemisphere (trask 1995) Case 2: aphasic patients with left-hemisphere damage and singing. Left-side function: language, logic, math, looks at parts, interpretation, analysis. Right-side function: musical ability, creative ability, intuitive reasoning, looks at wholes, synthesis, visual representation & pattern recognition. Exception: about 1/3 of left-handed people have language in right hemisphere; some people with left-hemisphere damage successfully re-learn language, using the right hemisphere. Neurolinguistics: study of relationship between language behaviour and the brain.
