Gow David W, Avcu Enes, Schoenhaut Adriana, Sorensen David O, Ahlfors Seppo P
Department of Neurology Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School; Boston, MA, 02114.
Department of Psychology, Salem State University; Salem, MA, 01970.
Lang Cogn Neurosci. 2023;38(6):765-778. doi: 10.1080/23273798.2022.2157029. Epub 2022 Dec 19.
Generativity, the ability to create and evaluate novel constructions, is a fundamental property of human language and cognition. The productivity of generative processes is determined by the scope of the representations they engage. Here we examine the neural representation of reduplication, a productive phonological process that can create novel forms through patterned syllable copying (e.g. → , ). Using MRI-constrained source estimates of combined MEG/EEG data collected during an auditory artificial grammar task, we identified localized cortical activity associated with syllable reduplication pattern contrasts in novel trisyllabic nonwords. Neural decoding analyses identified a set of predominantly right hemisphere temporal lobe regions whose activity reliably discriminated reduplication patterns evoked by untrained, novel stimuli. Effective connectivity analyses suggested that sensitivity to abstracted reduplication patterns was propagated between these temporal regions. These results suggest that localized temporal lobe activity patterns function as abstract representations that support linguistic generativity.
生成性，即创造和评估新颖结构的能力，是人类语言和认知的基本属性。生成过程的生产力取决于它们所涉及的表征范围。在这里，我们研究了重叠的神经表征，重叠是一种富有成效的音系过程，它可以通过有规律的音节复制来创造新的形式（例如，→ ， ）。使用在听觉人工语法任务期间收集的MEG/EEG数据的MRI约束源估计，我们识别出与新颖三音节非词中的音节重叠模式对比相关的局部皮层活动。神经解码分析确定了一组主要位于右半球颞叶的区域，其活动可靠地区分了由未经训练的新颖刺激诱发的重叠模式。有效连接性分析表明，对抽象重叠模式的敏感性在这些颞叶区域之间传播。这些结果表明，局部颞叶活动模式作为支持语言生成性的抽象表征发挥作用。
