1.) Explain one study related to localization of function.
So, this is obviously going to be one of your short answer questions on the test, if you get it at all.
First thing to do in Q's like these is to define/explain. So, let's define localization!
* Localization - when one particular section of the brain plays a significant part in a function.
Or, simply (yet non-accurately) put, different parts do different things.
HOWEVER, the simple part is very reductionist and is problematic for two reasons:
- One, many reactions are the result of multiple brain parts working TOGETHER and CONNECTING with each other, and
- Two, you forget neuroplasticity (the brain adapts itself over time by building new pathways based on experience), so it is always changing
Okay, so now, on to the STUDIES :) A suggestion from our Mrs. Neely: do NOT only focus on Broker and Wernicke. Of course it helps to have as much info as possible, but if that info is the EXACT SAME THING AS EVERYONE ELSE.....well, let's just say you'll get on the grader's good side if you do something different also.
Touch SLIGHTLY on Broca and Wernicke (Please don't write all of this on your essay, just the gist and their conclusions):
- Paul Broca (1861) found that people suffering from damage in the left frontal lobe of the brain (later called Broca's Area) were unable to understand and make grammatically complex sentences.
+ They could still understand speech, but had problems producing it
+ He supported his theory that Broca's area was somewhat responsible for speech production by using a case study
+ This study involved a young named Tan, called that because it was the only word he could say.
- Carl Wernicke (1874) was the first to describe the left posterior superior temporal gyrus to be a center for language processing and comprehension
+ His patients could speak, but could not comprehend speech
Okay, now HERE are a few unique studies that you could bring out for this question:
1.) Carreiras (2005) worked on the Canary Islands with a group of people who spoke a language composed of whistling, called Silbo Gomero.
- The study involved Silbo Gomero and non-Silbo Gomero speakers
- Recordings of the whistling language were played for both groups
- Carreiras used an fMRI machine (keep this study in mind for question #4) to monitor the brain activity of both groups while this was happening
- Speakers of the language recognized the sounds as communication and the fMRI showed activity in the left temporal lobe (language center of the brain)
- Non-speakers most likely assumed that it was nothing more than whistling, so their language centers were not active.
- This shows the connection between the left temporal lobe and the important part it plays in recognizing language (a good example of localization)
2.) Hull & Vaid (2006) worked on a bilingual study involving children under the age of 6
- Conclusion: Learning two languages before the age of 6 stimulates different pathways in the brain than those of monolinguals or those who learned this second language over the age of 6
First thing to do in Q's like these is to define/explain. So, let's define localization!
* Localization - when one particular section of the brain plays a significant part in a function.
Or, simply (yet non-accurately) put, different parts do different things.
HOWEVER, the simple part is very reductionist and is problematic for two reasons:
- One, many reactions are the result of multiple brain parts working TOGETHER and CONNECTING with each other, and
- Two, you forget neuroplasticity (the brain adapts itself over time by building new pathways based on experience), so it is always changing
Okay, so now, on to the STUDIES :) A suggestion from our Mrs. Neely: do NOT only focus on Broker and Wernicke. Of course it helps to have as much info as possible, but if that info is the EXACT SAME THING AS EVERYONE ELSE.....well, let's just say you'll get on the grader's good side if you do something different also.
Touch SLIGHTLY on Broca and Wernicke (Please don't write all of this on your essay, just the gist and their conclusions):
- Paul Broca (1861) found that people suffering from damage in the left frontal lobe of the brain (later called Broca's Area) were unable to understand and make grammatically complex sentences.
+ They could still understand speech, but had problems producing it
+ He supported his theory that Broca's area was somewhat responsible for speech production by using a case study
+ This study involved a young named Tan, called that because it was the only word he could say.
- Carl Wernicke (1874) was the first to describe the left posterior superior temporal gyrus to be a center for language processing and comprehension
+ His patients could speak, but could not comprehend speech
Okay, now HERE are a few unique studies that you could bring out for this question:
1.) Carreiras (2005) worked on the Canary Islands with a group of people who spoke a language composed of whistling, called Silbo Gomero.
- The study involved Silbo Gomero and non-Silbo Gomero speakers
- Recordings of the whistling language were played for both groups
- Carreiras used an fMRI machine (keep this study in mind for question #4) to monitor the brain activity of both groups while this was happening
- Speakers of the language recognized the sounds as communication and the fMRI showed activity in the left temporal lobe (language center of the brain)
- Non-speakers most likely assumed that it was nothing more than whistling, so their language centers were not active.
- This shows the connection between the left temporal lobe and the important part it plays in recognizing language (a good example of localization)
2.) Hull & Vaid (2006) worked on a bilingual study involving children under the age of 6
- Conclusion: Learning two languages before the age of 6 stimulates different pathways in the brain than those of monolinguals or those who learned this second language over the age of 6