The languages of the brain / edited by Albert M. Galaburda, Stephen M. Kosslyn, Yves Christen.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Christen, Yves, editor.

Galaburda, Albert M., 1948- editor.

Kosslyn, Stephen Michael, 1948- editor.

Series:

Mind/Brain/Behavior Initiative

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Nonverbal communication.

Neurolinguistics.

Language acquisition.

Cognition.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (431 pages)

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Massachusetts : Harvard University Press, [2002]

Summary:

The only way we can convey our thoughts in detail to another person is through verbal language. Does this imply that our thoughts ultimately rely on words? Is there only one way in which thoughts can occur? This ambitious book takes the contrary position, arguing that many possible "languages of thought" play different roles in the life of the mind. "Language" is more than communication. It is also a means of representing information in both working and long-term memory. It provides a set of rules for combining and manipulating those representations. A stellar lineup of international cognitive scientists, philosophers, and artists make the book's case that the brain is multilingual. Among topics discussed in the section on verbal languages are the learning of second languages, recovering language after brain damage, and sign language, and in the section on nonverbal languages, mental imagery, representations of motor activity, and the perception and representation of space.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Preface

Introduction

PART I Verbal Representation

Section 1 Verbal Processes

1 The Neuroanatomy of Categories

2 The Neurological Organization of Some Language-Processing Constituents

3 Brain Organization for Syntactic Processing

4 Spatial and Temporal Dynamics of Phonological and Semantic Processes

Discussion: Section 1

Section 2 Verbal Content

5 Can Mental Content Explain Behavior?

6 Deference and Indexicality

7 How Is Conceptual Knowledge Organized in the Brain? Clues from Category-Specific Deficits

8 Discourse Structure, Intentions, and Intonation

Discussion: Section 2

Section 3 Verbal Variants

9 Second Language Learners and Understanding the Brain

10 In Praise of Functional Psychology

11 Verbal and Nonverbal Representations of Numbers in the Human Brain

Discussion: Section 3

PART II Nonverbal Representation

Section 4 Perception and Language

12 Visual and Language Area Interactions during Mental Imagery

13 Can the Human Brain Construct Visual Mental Images from Linguistic Inputs?

14 Making Area V1 Glow in Visual Imagery

15 Developing Knowledge of Space: Core Systems and New Combinations

Discussion: Section 4

Section 5 Visual and Motor Representations

16 Einstein’s Mental Images: The Role of Visual, Spatial, and Motoric Representations

17 Spatial Memory during Navigation: What Is Being Stored, Maps or Movements?

18 Naturalization of Mental States and Personal Identity

19 Using Nonverbal Representations of Behavior: Perceiving Sexual Orientation

Discussion: Section 5

Section 6 Representations in the World

20 The Gap between Seeing and Drawing

21 Rethinking Images and Metaphors: New Geometries as Key to Artistic and Scientific Revolutions

22 Eliciting Mental Models through Imagery

23 Creation, Art, and the Brain

Discussion: Section 6

Contributors

Index

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9780674272866

0674272862

OCLC:

1286431952