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; f! Q) r1 w* y& G& h4 u( A1 O说汉语者使用大脑更多部分
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说汉语普通话者讲话时同时使用大脑两边
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6 H4 p! s* j% h- _7 R1 D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。
7 q. C" ], R* Z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。
" ?& `1 K$ f9 @# e& @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。
2 X0 B+ R7 Q* q) m: s. H9 B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。 9 j5 U7 H7 T/ R
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。 & ^2 {$ Z- j! {9 g' B$ m$ B; |
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。
* k1 l( f& ^; A% N$ {8 a4 {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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& q/ ]+ C$ f5 p0 H* EChinese 'takes more brainpower'
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1 s& h; s4 Z8 y; M( M# uSpeaking Chinese may take more brainpower than speaking English, a study suggests.
8 Z0 X/ r+ A3 T7 t/ K& GResearchers in Britain have found that people who speak Mandarin Chinese use both sides of their brain to understand the language.
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This compares to English-language speakers who only need to use one side of their brain. ) _+ K9 k* E3 J% z
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The researchers said the findings could boost understanding of how the brain processes languages. ) Q2 N) \9 Z3 s4 a5 [ X- r+ d
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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.
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Brain scans % ?2 p" a2 r$ Z! A. g. \$ z
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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. 0 _6 M0 g- R- U
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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.
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2 J3 J \7 K) C8 J* o0 w, _ OThe researchers believe that this area of the brain links speech sounds together to form individual words.
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9 V1 [ o* M/ e7 x& B( {They expected similar findings when they carried out scans on Mandarin speakers. : x# o& @8 \: V9 ?
5 n0 ^. t4 M* O& lHowever, they found that both their left and right temporal lobes become active when they hear Mandarin. , Q2 I `0 S5 ]: z
9 E) C z$ {# e% B"People who speak different sorts of languages use their brains to decode speech in different ways," said Dr Scott. . p4 e6 O# d8 F. R6 e7 m( `4 H1 C
u0 `" E$ H2 J5 L m3 G( }"It overturned some long-held theories." 7 O* O ?, q; K' `
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Mandarin is a notoriously difficult language to learn. Unlike English, speakers use intonation to distinguish between completely different meanings of particular words.
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& ~% s. t! {7 @; B8 M0 ~ s2 F7 ]For instance, the word "ma" can mean mother, scold, horse or hemp depending on how it is said.
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The researchers believe that this need to interpret intonation is why Mandarin speakers need to use both sides of their brain.
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' z" B3 T! W) x( _- u& fThe 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. 6 H; x9 E- L1 m+ [3 ~
+ u \2 ^" s3 G1 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. " u+ M9 H* k0 [- e% u: F" T
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"Native English speakers, for example, find it extraordinarily difficult to learn Mandarin." ; \4 p0 e7 z- p& X# v7 l1 i2 a
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Learning languages - Q& d R% i8 C \. E9 \
" m! ?3 j* t# \$ W8 q' z4 U# BDr Scott said the findings could help scientists to understand how the brain learns language. # L; {" G, C+ L2 ?
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It could be particularly useful in trying to understand how it re-learns language after a stroke.
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She suggested it could also lead to new drugs to help people who have lost their language skills. ! `7 ?/ g% |' | n* P& g1 C9 J! d
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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." 6 v; I7 G1 u0 F
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Dr William Marslen-Wilson, of the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit at Cambridge University, welcomed the study. : O$ |5 L6 v8 B& N, Q9 [! C
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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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i$ `3 m; @, ^; C; ^' j& O. I"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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6 u0 b7 g9 r) i% eStory from BBC NEWS:- q" A0 k/ m3 p: C, U) a. Z
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[ Last edited by victorw on 2005-2-24 at 06:22 PM ] |
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