Big Brained Bilinguals
By Hayley Birch
Ever have problems getting your head round languages at school? Did you find Français frustrating, detest Deutsch and struggle with Spanish? Well, that’s no surprise; speaking a second language must be a real strain on the brain. And now scientists claim to have proved it.
Dartmouth researchers peered into the bilingual brains of English-Spanish speakers using an infrared “microscope”. Subjects were asked to don some rather fetching headgear, while Mark Shalinsky and team analysed differences between brain activity in mono- and bilinguals. Significantly increased levels of activity were seen in two specific areas of the bilinguals’ brains already known to be involved in memory and language.
The group used a relatively new technology known as Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS), which measures changes in oxygen levels. Shalinsky explained his preference for the new system over magnetic resonance imaging. “NIRS technology is quiet, small and portable. It’s only about the size of a desktop computer”. He also remarked on its “child-friendliness”. I beg to differ. As a sensitive four-year-old, I might have had a problem with a strange man trying to clamp something that looked like a robotic squid to my head.
If a few brave kids can be persuaded to sit still for long enough, scientists plan to use the new technique to analyse the impacts of bilingualism on children. There has been some concern that learning two languages from an early age can cause lasting damage. Early implications using NIRS, however, suggest there is little to worry about.
To read more about Hayley or to view more of her articles click here.
Dartmouth researchers peered into the bilingual brains of English-Spanish speakers using an infrared “microscope”. Subjects were asked to don some rather fetching headgear, while Mark Shalinsky and team analysed differences between brain activity in mono- and bilinguals. Significantly increased levels of activity were seen in two specific areas of the bilinguals’ brains already known to be involved in memory and language.
The group used a relatively new technology known as Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS), which measures changes in oxygen levels. Shalinsky explained his preference for the new system over magnetic resonance imaging. “NIRS technology is quiet, small and portable. It’s only about the size of a desktop computer”. He also remarked on its “child-friendliness”. I beg to differ. As a sensitive four-year-old, I might have had a problem with a strange man trying to clamp something that looked like a robotic squid to my head.
If a few brave kids can be persuaded to sit still for long enough, scientists plan to use the new technique to analyse the impacts of bilingualism on children. There has been some concern that learning two languages from an early age can cause lasting damage. Early implications using NIRS, however, suggest there is little to worry about.
To read more about Hayley or to view more of her articles click here.
Image: Joseph Mehling
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