Neurobiology of Language

The relation between mind and brain has been the focus of considerable discussion and debate for centuries, with much of this attention directed to scientific and philosophical inquiry about the nature of human language. In the nineteenth century, investigations into the cause of language problems in people with focal brain diseases led to the notion of a human brain containing specialized, distinctive, and separable components.
Research on language by neurologists such as Pierre Paul Broca, Carl Wernicke, and others launched the first empirical scientific effort to uncover the neurobiology of language. In the twentieth century, a revolution in the study of language, spearheaded by Noam Chomsky, and in connectionist neurology, led by Norman Geschwind —combined with the advances of symbolic and neural network computing— gave us new theoretical insights into the relation between the brain and language.
Finally, the revolution in brain imaging, including methods with high spatial resolution, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging, and those with high temporal resolution, such as electroencephalography, has led to the reality of a robust human neuroscience, a result that has led to a new neurobiology of language. The present volume not only provides a comprehensive guide to the state-of-the-art in research on neurobiology of language but also frames the major debates of our time in psychology and neuroscience more broadly.
To what extent is the mind/brain embodied ? What is the nature of neural computation ? How do apparently diverse brain systems—perception, action, memory, attention—interact ? Are they really as diverse as we once thought ? How do neural systems break down and can they be repaired ? Foundational reference for the current state of the field of the neurobiology of language. Enables brain and language researchers and students to stay up to date in fast moving field that crosses many disciplinary and subdisciplinary boundaries.
Provides an accessible entry point for other scientists interested in the area but not actively working in it—that is, speech therapists, neurologists, cognitive psychologists. Edited work with chapters authored by leaders in the field around the globe —the broadest, most expert coverage available.