Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
J Neurosci. 2021 Sep 22;41(38):8023-8039. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0269-21.2021. Epub 2021 Aug 16.
Cortical processing of arithmetic and of language rely on both shared and task-specific neural mechanisms, which should also be dissociable from the particular sensory modality used to probe them. Here, spoken arithmetical and non-mathematical statements were employed to investigate neural processing of arithmetic, compared with general language processing, in an attention-modulated cocktail party paradigm. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) data were recorded from 22 human subjects listening to audio mixtures of spoken sentences and arithmetic equations while selectively attending to one of the two speech streams. Short sentences and simple equations were presented diotically at fixed and distinct word/symbol and sentence/equation rates. Critically, this allowed neural responses to acoustics, words, and symbols to be dissociated from responses to sentences and equations. Indeed, the simultaneous neural processing of the acoustics of words and symbols was observed in auditory cortex for both streams. Neural responses to sentences and equations, however, were predominantly to the attended stream, originating primarily from left temporal, and parietal areas, respectively. Additionally, these neural responses were correlated with behavioral performance in a deviant detection task. Source-localized temporal response functions (TRFs) revealed distinct cortical dynamics of responses to sentences in left temporal areas and equations in bilateral temporal, parietal, and motor areas. Finally, the target of attention could be decoded from MEG responses, especially in left superior parietal areas. In short, the neural responses to arithmetic and language are especially well segregated during the cocktail party paradigm, and the correlation with behavior suggests that they may be linked to successful comprehension or calculation. Neural processing of arithmetic relies on dedicated, modality independent cortical networks that are distinct from those underlying language processing. Using a simultaneous cocktail party listening paradigm, we found that these separate networks segregate naturally when listeners selectively attend to one type over the other. Neural responses in the left temporal lobe were observed for both spoken sentences and equations, but the latter additionally showed bilateral parietal activity consistent with arithmetic processing. Critically, these responses were modulated by selective attention and correlated with task behavior, consistent with reflecting high-level processing for speech comprehension or correct calculations. The response dynamics show task-related differences that were used to reliably decode the attentional target of sentences or equations.
算术和语言的皮质处理依赖于共享和特定任务的神经机制，这些机制也应该与用于探测它们的特定感觉模态分离。在这里，采用口语算术和非数学语句来研究在注意力调制鸡尾酒会范式中，与一般语言处理相比，算术的神经处理。对 22 名人类受试者进行了脑磁图 (MEG) 记录，他们在选择性地关注两个语音流之一的情况下，聆听了语音混合的口语句子和算术方程。短句子和简单方程以固定且不同的单词/符号和句子/方程速率呈现。关键的是，这允许将对声音、单词和符号的神经反应与对句子和方程的反应分离。事实上，在听觉皮层中观察到两个流的单词和符号的同时神经处理。然而，对句子和方程的神经反应主要来自于被关注的流，分别主要来自于左侧颞叶和顶叶区域。此外，这些神经反应与在偏差检测任务中的行为表现相关。源定位的时间响应函数 (TRF) 揭示了左侧颞叶对句子的反应和双侧颞叶、顶叶和运动区域对方程的反应的不同皮质动力学。最后，注意力的目标可以从 MEG 反应中解码出来，尤其是在左侧顶叶上区。简而言之，在鸡尾酒会范式中，对算术和语言的神经反应特别好地分离，并且与行为的相关性表明它们可能与成功的理解或计算有关。算术的神经处理依赖于专门的、与模态无关的皮质网络，这些网络与语言处理的皮质网络不同。使用同时的鸡尾酒会聆听范式，我们发现当听众选择性地关注一种类型而不是另一种类型时，这些独立的网络自然地分离。在左侧颞叶中观察到口语句子和方程的反应，但后者还显示出双侧顶叶活动，与算术处理一致。关键的是，这些反应受到选择性注意的调节，并与任务行为相关，这与反映语音理解或正确计算的高级处理一致。反应动态显示出与任务相关的差异，这些差异可用于可靠地解码句子或方程的注意力目标。
