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Polyglots "have different brains" | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Polyglots |  | |
| JasonChoi Diglot Senior Member Korea, South Joined 6358 days ago 274 posts - 298 votes  Speaks: English*, Korean Studies: Mandarin, Cantonese, Latin | Message 1 of 15 22 August 2007 at 10:10am | IP Logged | ||
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I don't know if this was posted on this forum, but I thought I'd share this 2006 BBC article:
Polyglots 'have different brains' People with a gift for other languages could have different brains from those of other people, a study suggests. Neuroscientists at University College London say they have more "white brain matter" in a part of the brain which processes sound. Their brains could also be less symmetrical than others. It is hoped the research, published in the journal Cerebral Cortex, could be used help to identify reasons for language difficulties. Those involved in the trial - all native French speakers - were asked to distinguish between two similar sounds from different languages. The first was the "d" sound found in their own language which is made by placing the tip of the tongue against the top teeth. The second was a "d" found in Hindi, which is pronounced by curling the tongue upwards towards the roof of the mouth. Both types of d were followed by the letter a, so the participants heard "da". The differences between the sounds are heard in the first 40 milliseconds. Researchers tested the speed at which participants could process the information. Those who identified more than 80% of sounds correctly were then asked to listen to even more acoustically similar sounds. Some of the fastest learners were able to tell these apart within a few minutes, while the slowest learners were only able to make random guesses at the less difficult stage after 20 minutes of training. Predicting abilities Dr Narly Golestani from UCL's Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience said the brain's white matter was involved in the efficient processing of sound information into the lower levels of the brain - known as the primary cortex. Its fibres are involved in connecting brain regions together. Fast language learners had a greater volume, and that may mean they have more or perhaps thicker fibres, she said. "The bigger picture is that we are starting to understand that brain shape and structure can be informative about people's abilities or pathologies - why people are good at some things and not others is evident from these scans," she said. White brain matter is involved in connecting different parts of the brain together, and greater amounts of this could indicate an increased ability to process sound. In faster learners, brain scans showed a greater volume of white matter in the left auditory region known as Heschl's gyrus, where sound is processed. And there was a difference in its position in the right brain hemisphere between faster and slower learners. The researchers also found there was greater asymmetry in the volume of the parietal lobes, which are also involved in the processing of speech sound in the left hemisphere of the brain. Previous research suggested that having a talent for music was linked to the structure of grey matter in the brain. This latest research could be extended to other applications, Dr Narly said. "We can start to make predictions regarding whether people will be good at something or not based on their brain structure," she said," or diagnose clinical problems." Brain structure predicts the learning of foreign speech sounds, by Narly Golestani, Nicolas Molko, Stanislas Dehaene, Denis LeBihan and Christophe Pallier, is published in the journal Cerebral Cortex. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| Quinn Senior Member United States Joined 6322 days ago 134 posts - 186 votes Speaks: English* Studies: French, Italian, Spanish | Message 2 of 15 22 August 2007 at 11:28am | IP Logged | ||
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The researcher quoted seems to be working from the assumption that brain chemistry is strictly a matter of hereditary, "We can start to make predictions regarding whether people will be good at something or not based on their brain structure," she said," or diagnose clinical problems."
However, another possibility is that intensive language study actually changes the composition of polyglots' brains. This could be analogous to the changes athletes make in their physiology through training. In any case, it's fascinating stuff! Edited by Quinn on 22 August 2007 at 11:29am 2 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| FSI Senior Member United States Joined 6358 days ago 550 posts - 590 votes Speaks: English* | Message 3 of 15 22 August 2007 at 11:38am | IP Logged | ||
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Precisely, Quinn. From everything I've read, nurture plays a far bigger role than nature in one's ability to learn languages - or do anything, really.
Nonetheless, I imagine many people (who've already given up) will continue to point to articles like these to justify why languages are "impossible" to learn, and we should all just stick to English. It seems as if every day people find more and more reasons to achieve less and less. However, I do enjoy these articles on language's effects on the brain. Studied this stuff in school, and it's fun watching more and more come out as brain imaging improves. 2 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| Quinn Senior Member United States Joined 6322 days ago 134 posts - 186 votes Speaks: English* Studies: French, Italian, Spanish | Message 4 of 15 22 August 2007 at 12:21pm | IP Logged | ||
I agree. Some of the information I've seen on Alzheimer's suggests that grappling with complex mental tasks (like learning a new language) actually provides some protection against dementia as well as the "normal" intellectual decay people often experience in the late stages of life. This is actually one of my motivations for learning a foreign language – it's great exercise for the brain! 3 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| GLF Groupie United States Joined 6435 days ago 73 posts - 71 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Russian | Message 5 of 15 22 August 2007 at 1:09pm | IP Logged | ||
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Interesting, but all it addresses is the difference in sound between languages. What about grammar, reading, etc.?
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| JasonChoi Diglot Senior Member Korea, South Joined 6358 days ago 274 posts - 298 votes Speaks: English*, Korean Studies: Mandarin, Cantonese, Latin | Message 6 of 15 22 August 2007 at 1:34pm | IP Logged | ||
I totally agree with you. Learning languages gives insights on learning more languages, so I wouldn't be surprised if a person's brain can develop towards superior language learning skills. I suppose it's like building brain muscles ;) 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| leonidus Triglot Senior Member Russian Federation Joined 6325 days ago 113 posts - 123 votes Speaks: Russian*, English, French Studies: German, Mandarin | Message 7 of 15 22 August 2007 at 3:27pm | IP Logged | ||
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Ok... can distinguish sounds faster, that's great, but they still have to remember words just like anyone else.
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| awake Senior Member United States Joined 6635 days ago 406 posts - 438 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Esperanto, Spanish | Message 8 of 15 22 August 2007 at 3:34pm | IP Logged | ||
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Only the headline implies that there was some sort of control between
polyglots and monoglots. The article doesn't state this anywhere. It's not clear what the assumptions of this experiment are, or what actual controls were in place. From the article, it simply suggests that some people have different auditory processing abilities than others. It may be an assumption that these people would be better at becoming polyglots. Or the study may have actually involved polyglots to specifically look for enhanced abilities among them. I wish there was a better description of the actual experiment here, as it does seem like fascinating research. 1 person has voted this message useful |
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