Siegler Center for Innovative Learning, National Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University.
Neuropsychology. 2013 Sep;27(5):583-94. doi: 10.1037/a0033630. Epub 2013 Aug 12.
Classifiers play an important role in describing the quantity information of objects. Few studies have been conducted to investigate the brain organization for quantity processing of classifiers. In the current study, we investigated whether activation of numeral classifiers was specific to the bilateral inferior parietal areas, which are believed to process numerical magnitude.
Using functional MRI, we explored the neural correlates of numeral classifiers, as compared with those of numbers, dot arrays, and nonquantity words (i.e., tool nouns).
Our results showed that numeral classifiers and tool nouns elicited greater activation in the left inferior frontal lobule and left middle temporal gyrus than did numbers and dot arrays, but numbers and dot arrays had greater activation in the middle frontal gyrus, precuneus, and the superior and inferior parietal lobule in the right hemisphere. No differences were found between numeral classifiers and tool nouns.
The results suggest that quantity processing of numeral classifiers is independent of that of numbers and dot arrays, supporting the notation-dependent hypothesis of quantity processing.
量词在描述物体的数量信息方面起着重要作用。目前，很少有研究探讨用于处理量词数量的大脑组织。在本研究中，我们考察了数字量词的激活是否与被认为处理数值大小的双侧顶下小叶有关。
使用功能磁共振成像（fMRI），我们探讨了数字量词与数字、点数组和非数量词（即工具名词）的神经关联。
我们的结果表明，数字量词和工具名词在左侧额下回和左侧颞中回的激活程度高于数字和点数组，但数字和点数组在右侧额中回、楔前叶以及顶下小叶和顶小叶的激活程度更高。数字量词和工具名词之间没有差异。
结果表明，数字量词的数量处理与数字和点数组的数量处理无关，这支持了数量处理的符号依赖假说。
