Neuromotor Mechanisms in Human Communication
Neuromotor Mechanisms in Human Communication

Author: Doreen Kimura

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 1993-05-06

Total Pages: 210

ISBN-13: 0195345290

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This monograph is based on 20 years of research with patients who have experienced pathology in one hemisphere of the brain. It deals with brain mechanisms in human communicative behavior, and with related motor functions, from a broadly biological point of view. In so doing, the work discusses the possible evolutionary origins of human communication, the relation of brain mechanisms in communicative behavior to analogous nonhuman behaviors, and the neural systems involved in various levels and kinds of communication. In addition, noncommunicative mechanisms which parallel those used in communication--such as manual and oral praxis, and constructional behavior-- are outlined in detail. Individual differences in brain organization for such functions, related to hand preference and sex, are also explored. Although there is extensive reference to central nervous system pathology, the emphasis throughout is on how the findings contribute to understanding normal brain mechanisms. Much new data is presented along with the theoretical treatment of human communication which emphasizes a behavioral rather than a linguistic approach. This in turn provides continuity with nonhuman primates and early hominids. The work will interest psycholinguists, cognitive psychologists, neurologists, clinical neuropsychologists, speech pathologists, and advanced students in these fields.

Oxford Handbook of Deaf Studies, Language, and Education
Oxford Handbook of Deaf Studies, Language, and Education

Author: Marc Marschark

Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA

Published: 2003

Total Pages: 540

ISBN-13: 9780195149975

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This title is a major professional reference work in the field of deafness research. It covers all important aspects of deaf studies: language, social/psychological issues, neuropsychology, culture, technology, and education.

Fundamentals of Human Neuropsychology
Fundamentals of Human Neuropsychology

Author: Bryan Kolb

Publisher: Macmillan

Published: 2009-07

Total Pages: 920

ISBN-13: 9780716795865

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Written by respected academics in neuropsychology, this sixth edition guides students on a comprehensive journey of discovery through the realm of contemporary human neuropsychology. The book has a clinical focus throughout.

The Naked Neuron
The Naked Neuron

Author: Rhawn Joseph

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2013-12-01

Total Pages: 440

ISBN-13: 1489960082

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In the beginning there was not only life but the ability to communicate and eventually to cooperate among the most basic, primeval creatures. In The Naked Neuron Dr. Joseph - an internationally respected neuroscientist and author of the highly praised The Right Brain and the Unconscious: Discovering the Stranger Within - takes us on an intriguing journey through time as he traces the evolution of communication and language from the most primitive single-celled animals to our earliest ancestors to humans today. As he so clearly demonstrates, we are linked to all levels of animals in a common bond of sensing, feeling, and communication. Be it singing wolves, dancing bees, or writhing rock and roll dancers, all communicate a treasure chest of meaning in the absence of the spoken word. Approximately 700 million years ago, a unique type of cell came into being - the neuron. This "naked" neuron, or nerve cell, lacked a protective fatty sheath. Still, it marked a monumental and world altering development, since it would become the building block of the brain. The naked neuron generated a revolutionary change resulting in a greater complexity and subtlety of thought. Dr. Joseph vividly depicts how neurons conferred on early humans advanced powers of mental and sensory acuity, including the gift of remembering one's past and contemplating the future. Although humans possess much of the same ancient brain tissue as our fellow primates, Dr. Joseph reveals to us the singular features of the human brain that have enabled humans uniquely to develop complex, spoken language. He holds us spellbound, revealing that although the new and old brain tissue are couched within the same brain, each often has difficulty understanding the impulses and language of the other. This ground-breaking book draws on Dr. Joseph's brilliant and original research and theories, fusing the latest discoveries made in neuroscience, sociobiology, and anthropology. He illuminates how the languages of the body and brain enhance intuitive understanding and spur a thirst for knowledge for its own sake. The human body and brain together are a veritable living museum which contains billions of cells with a long evolutionary history. As this unforgettable book shows, it is the communication of this panoply of cells - the residues of the past merged with the musings of the present - that gives rise to life, love, art, science, literature, and the ceaseless desire to search for and acquire knowledge

Foundations of Understanding
Foundations of Understanding

Author: Natika Newton

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing

Published: 1996-10-03

Total Pages: 223

ISBN-13: 9027283567

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How can symbols have meaning for a subject? Foundations of Understanding argues that this is the key question to ask about intentionality, or meaningful thought. It thus offers an alternative to currently popular linguistic models of intentionality, whose inadequacies are examined: the goal should be to explain, not how symbols, mental or otherwise, can refer to or ‘mean’ states of affairs in the external world, but how they can mean something to us, the users. The essence of intentionality is shown to be conscious understanding, the roots of which lie in experiences of embodiment and goal-directed action. A developmental path is traced from a foundation of conscious understanding in the ability to perform basic actions, through the understanding of the concept of an objective, external world, to the understanding of language and abstract symbols. The work is interdisciplinary: data from the neurosciences and cognitive psychology, and the perspectives of phenomenologists such as Merleau-Ponty, are combined with traditional philosophical analysis. The book includes a chapter on the nature of conscious qualitative experience and its neural correlates. (Series A)

Neuropsychological Research
Neuropsychological Research

Author: Peter Mariën

Publisher: Psychology Press

Published: 2008-02-19

Total Pages: 683

ISBN-13: 1135420017

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In a broad sense, neuropsychology stands for the branch of brain sciences that aims to understand how the structure and function of the brain relate to specific cognitive and psychological processes. The idea of developing a research field somewhere between neurology and cognitive psychology emerged in the 1960s as a result of studies conducted by both disciplines which, although using different methodologies and tools, were analysing the same issues. Neuropsychology particularly puts emphasis on the clinical and experimental study of the cognitive effects of brain injury or neurological diseases, taking models of normal cognitive functioning into account. Neuropsychological Research: A Review provides a meticulous overview of what has been achieved in the field of cognitive neuropsychology from its early beginnings in the 1960s and 1970s to the present day. Authors include some of the pioneers involved in the genesis of neuropsychology as an independent and distinct field of neuroscience. The comprehensive coverage includes language disorders, skilled movement disorders, recognition disorders, attentional and executive disorders, visuo-perceptual disorders, memory disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases. This fascinating text forms an enjoyable tribute to the rich heritage of neuropsychology, and will be essential reading for researchers and students of neuropsychology, clinical psychology, cognitive psychology, and behavioural neuroscience.

Neurobiology of Social Communication In Primates
Neurobiology of Social Communication In Primates

Author: Horest Steklis

Publisher: Elsevier

Published: 2012-12-02

Total Pages: 340

ISBN-13: 0323155200

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Neurobiology of Social Communication in Primates: An Evolutionary Perspective presents evidence on the neural basis of communicative behavior in primates, reevaluating the relationship between human language and animal communication in view of the linguistic abilities of chimpanzees. This book consists of 10 chapters. Chapter 1 discusses some of the persistent problems in evolutionary neurobiology of primate communication. The effects of brain lesions and stimulation on vocalization in New and Old World monkeys, relation between species differences in peripheral vocal structures and species contrasts in vocal performance, and anatomy and physiology of the nonhuman primate auditory system are reviewed in Chapters 2 to 4. Chapters 5 to 7 examine the effects of electrical brain stimulation on human verbal communication and facial expression, clinical data pertaining to language pathologies, and neural mechanisms of manual and oral control. The last three chapters summarize the materials presented in earlier chapters. This publication is recommended for neuroscientists, behavioral biologists, neurologists, psychiatrists, and students interested in the evolutionary heritage of human speech and language.

Visual Perception and Action in Sport
Visual Perception and Action in Sport

Author: A. Mark Williams

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 469

ISBN-13: 0419248005

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This book provides a detailed review of much of the existing research on visual perception and sports performance. It summarises and integrates the findings of up to five hundred articles from areas as diverse as cognitive and ecological psychology.

Advances in the Sign Language Development of Deaf Children
Advances in the Sign Language Development of Deaf Children

Author: Brenda Schick

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2005-09-02

Total Pages: 412

ISBN-13: 0190292695

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The use of sign language has a long history. Indeed, humans' first languages may have been expressed through sign. Sign languages have been found around the world, even in communities without access to formal education. In addition to serving as a primary means of communication for Deaf communities, sign languages have become one of hearing students' most popular choices for second-language study. Sign languages are now accepted as complex and complete languages that are the linguistic equals of spoken languages. Sign-language research is a relatively young field, having begun fewer than 50 years ago. Since then, interest in the field has blossomed and research has become much more rigorous as demand for empirically verifiable results have increased. In the same way that cross-linguistic research has led to a better understanding of how language affects development, cross-modal research has led to a better understanding of how language is acquired. It has also provided valuable evidence on the cognitive and social development of both deaf and hearing children, excellent theoretical insights into how the human brain acquires and structures sign and spoken languages, and important information on how to promote the development of deaf children. This volume brings together the leading scholars on the acquisition and development of sign languages to present the latest theory and research on these topics. They address theoretical as well as applied questions and provide cogent summaries of what is known about early gestural development, interactive processes adapted to visual communication, linguisic structures, modality effects, and semantic, syntactic, and pragmatic development in sign. Along with its companion volume, Advances in the Spoken Language Development of Deaf and Hard-of Hearing Children, this book will provide a deep and broad picture about what is known about deaf children's language development in a variety of situations and contexts. From this base of information, progress in research and its application will accelerate, and barriers to deaf children's full participation in the world around them will continue to be overcome.