Summary: New study reveals that head construction varies with reading capability, especially in the left continent. Better readers have different characteristics, including a thicker kept Heschl’s lobe for phonological processing and a larger frontal historical lobe for word meaning integration.
The research highlights the body’s agility, showing that reading can affect these constructions over time. The results highlight the significance of reading for mental development and its wider societal impact as fewer citizens read for pleasure.
Essential Information
- Mind Regions Linked to Reading: The kept frontal temporal lobes and Heschl’s lobe are key to reading abilities.
- Mental Resilience: Reading increases cerebral texture in areas associated with speech control.
- Effects on Societals: We might have less time to read and be able to understand.
Source: The Talk
The number of people who enjoy reading seems to be decreasing rapidly. Fifty percent of UK parents say they don’t learn often (up from 42 % in 2015 ) and almost one in four young people aged 16-24 say they’ve not been viewers, according to , study by The Reading Agency.
But what are the relevance? Will person’s preference for video or words have an impact on our types ‘ evolution as a species? What type of mental construction do competent readers really possess?
My , fresh investigation, published in Neuroimage, has found out.
I found that readers of all ages had different mental anatomy characteristics after analyzing open-source information from more than 1, 000 individuals.
The construction of two parts in the left hemispheres, which are essential for speech, were different in persons who were good at reading.
The historical lobe’s front region was one. The left historical pole assists in combining and arranging various kinds of relevant information.
To assemble the significance of a word like as , knee, this brain region coworkers the visual, sensory and motor information , conveying how arms look, feel and move.
The auditory cortex, which is the brain’s outermost layer, was a fold called Heschl’s gyrus, or “helen’s gyrus,” which is located in the upper temporal region.
A larger anterior portion of the left hemisphere’s temporal lobe than the right hemisphere was responsible for better reading ability. It makes sense that having more of the brain’s space for meaning makes words and reading easier to understand.
The auditory cortex would be related to reading, which might seem less intuitive. Isn’t reading mainly a visual skill? Not only. We first need to be aware of the sounds of the language in order to associate letters with speech sounds. This , phonological awareness , is a , well-established precursor , to children’s reading development.
A thinner left Heschl’s gyrus has previously been related to dyslexia, which , involves severe reading difficulties.
According to my research, people with dyslexia don’t have to cross a straightforward line between their cortical thickness and those without it. Instead, it spans the larger population, in which a thicker auditory cortex correlates with more adept reading.
Why size matters
Is thicker always better? When it comes to cortical structure, no, not necessarily. Most people’s left hemispheres are known to have more myelin in them than their left hemispheres, according to research. Myelin is a fatty substance that serves as an insulator for nerve fibers.
It can isolate brain cell columns from one another and speeds up neural communication. Neural columns , are believed to function , as small processing units.
It is thought that their slower, more distant communication and increased isolation help to speed up language’s categorical processing. We need to know if a speaker uses the category , d , or , t , when saying , dear , or , tear , rather than detecting the exact point where the vocal folds start vibrating.
According to the “balloon model” of cortical growth, the larger amount of myelin squeezes out left-hemispheric cortical areas,  , making them flatter but more extended. In good readers, the left auditory cortex may be thicker, but it is still much longer than the right.
This theory was supported by recent research. With a higher level of myelin, the left hemisphere’s cortical areas were typically larger but thinner.
So is thinner better, then? Again, the answer is no, not necessarily. Complex abilities that call for the integration of information benefit from a thicker cortex.
The thickest structure of all cortical regions can be found in the anterior temporal lobe, which has a complex way of integrating information. An underlying mechanism might be the existence of more overlapping, interacting neurons which , process information more holistically.
A highly complex skill is used to incorporate various motor and sound characteristics into speech sounds. It appears to , correlate with a thicker cortex , in an area near the left Heschl’s gyrus.
While it is unclear to what extent phonology is processed in Heschl’s gyrus, the fact that phoneticians often have multiple left Heschl’s gyri , suggests it is linked to speech sounds.
Clearly, brain structure can tell us a lot about reading skills. Importantly, though, the brain is malleable — it changes when we learn a new skill or practice an already acquired one.
For instance, young adults who studied language intensively increased their , cortical thickness in language areas. Similarly, reading is likely to shape the structure of the left Heschl’s gyrus and temporal pole. So, if you want to keep your Heschl’s thick and thriving, pick up a good book and start reading.
Finally, it’s worth considering what might happen to us as a species if skills like reading become less prioritised. Our ability to comprehend and interpret the minds of others would undoubtedly decline. In other words, that cosy moment with a book in your armchair isn’t just personal – it’s a service to humanity.
About this reading and news from neuroscience research
Author: Mikael Roll
Source: The Conversation
Contact: Mikael Roll – The Conversation
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Open access.
” Heschl’s gyrus and the temporal pole: The cortical lateralization of language” by Mikael Roll. NeuroImage
Abstract
Heschl’s gyrus and the temporal pole: The cortical lateralization of language
The left lateralization of language is thought to be due to hemispheric specialization, which processes rapidly changing information. Although interhemispheric organizational differences support this theory, the macrostructure of the entire cerebral cortex has not been thoroughly examined in this regard.
Using the Human Connectome Project Young Adult dataset ( N=1113 ), we examined hemispheric asymmetries in cortical surface area and thickness and their relationship to pronunciation scores from oral reading.
Heschl’s gyrus had the most left-lateralized surface area, while the temporal pole showed the strongest right-lateralization in thickness. These areas correspond to the core components of speech: sound and meaning.
Notably, only their structural characteristics were the ones that produced a significant correlation with pronunciation scores. Additionally, Broca’s area’s posterior region ( pars opercularis ), involved in articulatory phonological processing, showed leftward lateralization, contrasting with the right-lateralized anterior portions.
Left-hemisphere language areas had a higher white-to-gray matter ratio and were largely thinner and longer than their right-sided homologues. Surface area and cortical thickness were inversely related.
A genetically based auditory foundation is supported by the lateralization of auditory-related language areas and its association with oral reading pronunciation.
The left-hemispheric dominance of language is likely due to a thinner, more effective cortex with larger surface areas and increased myelination. More myelination and wider cortical columns and intercolumnar space have been linked to thicker, more extended brain areas.
This provides the potential for a fast network of interconnected, discrete information units able to support language’s demands of rapid categorical processing.
