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说汉语者使用大脑更多部分# t" L; ~# p6 U' R* K
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说汉语普通话者讲话时同时使用大脑两边 6 C' K+ r2 u+ j+ H9 ?
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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。 ) ]/ t. i0 Y( _0 H$ o8 E2 t
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。 # I7 I. b- O2 m5 F0 P& P
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。
j* n3 O4 m% p% A4 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。
! {/ ]8 |4 Y4 M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。 ) ]. |" a7 p7 U; `6 ] M* r4 B* B9 ~
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。 - L4 Q& Z& O$ u
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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) c" G# U5 v8 jChinese 'takes more brainpower'
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Speaking Chinese may take more brainpower than speaking English, a study suggests.
" M& |/ {' @8 G0 W9 X( M* l$ dResearchers in Britain have found that people who speak Mandarin Chinese use both sides of their brain to understand the language. , \- i2 N+ l& F: b/ Z3 S7 l, t
/ @. K* g! U- H/ _$ p) d5 d$ _* @1 dThis compares to English-language speakers who only need to use one side of their brain. 7 B9 y. v$ O# n6 D) |$ Y) e! d
5 {/ Z! \, T6 ]( e) T# iThe researchers said the findings could boost understanding of how the brain processes languages.
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* P* |" n. Q, }6 V4 XThis, 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. * \$ W3 i" n% l: J
+ ? h% [/ b* P+ a1 h/ s3 G _7 ^Brain scans
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% r+ |. q6 Q5 ~, H7 {Dr Sophie Scott and colleagues at the Wellcome Trust carried out brain scans on a group of Mandarin and English speakers. 0 @: w9 t3 w# T/ A+ X
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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. : J; b& `4 O# s( I# t( a
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: @; S, n) ~; W# j# r# ZThe researchers believe that this area of the brain links speech sounds together to form individual words.
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They 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. / ~7 S5 u' |1 _( l' E0 e7 D; J
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"People who speak different sorts of languages use their brains to decode speech in different ways," said Dr Scott. 5 l7 ?- K g& x1 U9 z
, C5 U# j" }8 ^4 N"It overturned some long-held theories." 6 d* H# T |7 r7 X& S% m3 h
9 Z- d# `0 r8 |7 U2 k% LMandarin 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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6 L0 F3 j$ e f2 r( @4 JFor instance, the word "ma" can mean mother, scold, horse or hemp depending on how it is said.
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; {. y) \' Z6 D) [The researchers believe that this need to interpret intonation is why Mandarin speakers need to use both sides of their brain. : w5 N$ x5 V7 b" U
: b) K: _3 A$ ]& X, j6 GThe right temporal lobe is normally associated with being able to process music or tones. % U& ^, B. z* y2 D
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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. # L% O4 ?. a4 L3 d' v4 _, f
; F/ [9 q' D2 m8 q"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." 4 b) l# V9 p/ H, ~. P& A
' a! p- O1 z8 Q5 vLearning languages 6 k6 w5 t) b+ S) q& ^% q
I7 k- j( W& O4 R) F, pDr Scott said the findings could help scientists to understand how the brain learns language.
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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. 9 g1 [. E0 n4 T* {$ l
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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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6 y9 V! {3 K& g- GDr 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. # q" F [- U0 ?/ |4 `
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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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"It can also help us to understand language rehabilitation," he said. " M4 L4 j6 R9 W4 F
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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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[ Last edited by victorw on 2005-2-24 at 06:22 PM ] |
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