Cognitive Neuroscience of Language Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards for Cognitive Neuroscience of Language course.

Language

A cognitive system for communication which connects external stimuli with internal representations.

Speech

Mechanical process in the service of language, involving articulation and phonation.

Phonology

Speech sounds and their mental representation.

Morphology

Words and word structure, stored in the mental lexicon.

Syntax

Sentence structure.

Semantics

Word and sentence meaning.

Orthography

Visual representation of words.

Aphasia

Language problems as a result of brain damage.

Anomia

Inability to name objects.

Dysarthria

Loss of control over articulatory muscles

Speech Apraxia

Problems programming articulations

Localization of function

The idea that different mental abilities are controlled by specific areas of the brain.

Broca’s Aphasia

Slow, non-fluent speech and short utterances, traditionally associated with language production.

Broca's Area

A region in the posterior part of the left inferior frontal gyrus of the brain; plays a key role in language production

Wernicke’s Aphasia

Language comprehension difficulties; fluent, but often nonsensical speech

A

Storage of word sounds (Wernicke’s area)

M

Speech planning and programming (Broca’s Area)

B

Conceptual/semantic stores of word meanings (Angular gyrus)

Conduction Aphasia

Damage to arcuate fasciculus (bundle of nerves connecting Wernicke’s and Broca’s area)

GPT

Neural network model that is trained in prediction

Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT)

A neural network model for text prediction and generation.

Continuous Next-Word Prediction

Context-dependent prediction of upcoming words.

Prediction Error Calculation

Assessing the discrepancy between the predicted and actual input.

Contextual Embedding Representation

Words are represented through dynamic, context-dependent embeddings.

M100

Early (100ms) bilateral response in auditory cortex

VWFA - Visual Word Form Area

Left occipitotemporal cortex, is particularly active when individuals view words compared to nonwords

Semantics

The process of analyzing and understanding the meaning of words and sentences.

Syntax

The set of rules, principles, and processes that govern the structure of sentences in a given language.

Dorsal Stream

Mapping speech sounds onto motor actions, linking auditory processing with speech production.

Ventral Stream

Mapping speech sounds to their meaning and is linked to areas such as the inferior temporal gyrus and Wernicke’s area.

Posterior region of the dorsal stream

An area in the Sylvian fissure at the parieto-temporal boundary (area Spt), which is proposed to be a sensorimotor interface

Receptive

Relating to language comprehension

Repetition deficit

Difficulty repeating words that have been spoken

Conceptual

Language that involves the content of what is said

Prediction

A problem where the brain is trying to figure out what the next word will be.

Perception

How the brain responds to spoken words

Articulatory

Relating to the articulation of speech

Auditory Complex

The part of the brain that relates stimuli to brain function

Agrammatism

A condition where the subject ommits elements of speech

Fluent

Speech that flows naturally