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说汉语者使用大脑更多部分- t* s: ^& I Y R5 y; O$ X' B3 {
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& E; c7 h7 q' C4 R8 b' o说汉语普通话者讲话时同时使用大脑两边 2 I; J) [% c1 F
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6 Q3 F8 K5 G ~$ p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。 5 m8 d& G3 Z% j3 b4 t" k
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。 2 d1 L; D/ i5 f7 ^ ?
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。 6 ~4 G+ s$ B; r1 t8 L
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。
' N D% T6 ~; \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。
# m# M5 R7 ^' x9 n2 M1 `' k9 O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。
' B2 T, V9 ~ s: h P& @0 z, _6 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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1 H4 f2 o- F, s! {2 ?Chinese 'takes more brainpower'
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9 f4 s7 n+ ^* HSpeaking Chinese may take more brainpower than speaking English, a study suggests.
7 Q1 W$ n" {; W2 ?Researchers in Britain have found that people who speak Mandarin Chinese use both sides of their brain to understand the language.
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$ N" C- K5 s# O4 ]5 z( V6 T: m& SThis compares to English-language speakers who only need to use one side of their brain. 1 u& s5 s! ]% n) b; D. P
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The researchers said the findings could boost understanding of how the brain processes languages. + _5 g. i9 w* ^9 d9 H/ V
7 y# c8 S- e# E# ^) pThis, 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 J7 W @+ M( `/ ^7 H
5 A( l( d) u# Z: T* H6 DDr Sophie Scott and colleagues at the Wellcome Trust carried out brain scans on a group of Mandarin and English speakers. . o/ c+ o: u8 a- ~7 p# K
6 r( B% a3 K( t7 ?' y: ^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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7 W2 V. P! h+ @3 R8 G6 SThe researchers believe that this area of the brain links speech sounds together to form individual words.
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) i" V0 f& s2 g+ QThey 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. & s( H% h- k. J3 l
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"People who speak different sorts of languages use their brains to decode speech in different ways," said Dr Scott. 7 e4 S u. h; M2 Z8 g4 @% V/ Q
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"It overturned some long-held theories."
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' _: m' \/ I- ?+ \- [% mMandarin 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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For instance, the word "ma" can mean mother, scold, horse or hemp depending on how it is said. $ T+ S3 q2 Z6 f8 l- V; V: k7 x
( }+ q9 s p( ^9 x$ l+ W, O( pThe researchers believe that this need to interpret intonation is why Mandarin speakers need to use both sides of their brain. 0 U% K9 Z" i s( _
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The 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. 1 r/ ]7 [0 P* l3 l6 u0 l2 i
; J! ~& c; c' a"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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, P9 a; P; {4 u* U"Native English speakers, for example, find it extraordinarily difficult to learn Mandarin." % o+ q. r9 m2 E8 |3 h
% f7 {3 f: O6 n" oLearning languages 3 n2 [# h8 D1 T- {( Y0 X
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Dr Scott said the findings could help scientists to understand how the brain learns language. ! H; P3 l8 W7 P+ T# |% k! F/ Q
3 P8 G% @. P& H. O: r3 iIt could be particularly useful in trying to understand how it re-learns language after a stroke. & X7 ]0 T# m5 V. F& v/ W
! w N; S& w* `/ {0 Z8 h* t" XShe suggested it could also lead to new drugs to help people who have lost their language skills. 8 v/ r. `: K7 R( T6 Z
2 O @' z+ k M8 b3 W% x: ~) }8 S"There is evidence from other studies that certain drugs affect learning in the brain regions that support hearing and speech," she said. 2 X @$ l# T) F i- M' c# n
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"This is something we can improve on."
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/ z I- u5 m7 k. C: \9 d4 L; IDr William Marslen-Wilson, of the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit at Cambridge University, welcomed the study.
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7 w- G% i& K3 \# j/ v"It is an interesting finding," he told BBC News Online. $ S' F% k& g; Q% X6 X) S# w3 [
7 r6 h' [& a3 E, j! A& y* V/ }"Looking at languages that are very different from each other helps us to understand how the brain processes language.
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a3 o6 {, B2 E9 _7 ^"It can also help us to understand language rehabilitation," he said. 0 _+ O1 i7 M+ N) g, ~6 G" q$ L
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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:0 b' z8 \4 |$ t4 p+ z% _" o
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[ Last edited by victorw on 2005-2-24 at 06:22 PM ] |
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