中国人数字加工的脑区参与汉语日期名词的加工

Brain regions for number involved in the processing of vocabulary of months in Chinese

为了探讨中文日期名词的认知加工特征,本实验采用功能磁共振成像(functional magnetic resonance imaging,fMRI)技术研究了19名中国人对月份名词加工的脑激活情况,并以纯数字加工任务和一般名词语义加工任务为实验对比条件。结果显示,月份名词加工任务与一般名词语义加工任务的激活脑区相减,得到左半球顶下小叶(BA40)、前楔叶(BA7/19)、中央后回(BA2)、前扣带回(BA32)和右半球顶下小叶(BA40)、上顶叶(BA7)、颞上回(BA39)的激活,这些都是与数加工有关的脑区;而月份名词加工任务与纯数字加工任务相减,得到双侧梭形回(BA18)和左侧枕叶下回(BA18)的额外激活,这是与语义加工有关的脑区。上述结果证明,月份名词加工同时具有语言加工与数字加工的双重特点,即中国人在进行日期名词加工的同时进行了语义加工与数的加工。该认知特点表明中文母语者在习得母语词汇的过程中可能已获得了对数的认知加工经验,从而影响中国人数学能力的发展进程。

The present study aimed to investigate the neuro-cognitive features in the processing of vocabularies of date in Chinese, using block-design functional magnetic resonance imaging （fMRI）. Nineteen normal right-handed volunteers whose native language was Chinese performed judgments of vocabulary of month （JVM）, the orientation of digit （JOD） and the meaning of words （JMW） respectively, while the fMRI data were recorded by Signa HDe 1.5T MR machine. All design of three tasks was adapted from previous studies with slight modification. The JOD and JWM were investigated as contrast conditions. JVM asked the subjects to determine whether the month belonged to the first half of the year. JOD was to tell whether the third digit had the same orientation （upright orientation or italic orientation） as the first two, and JM＇W was to determine whether the two-Chinese-character word was animate. The subjects responded according to the task instruction with a button pressing. Statistical parametric mapping （SPM2） was employed to process data and localize functional areas. We compared the average activation intensity of each activated brain regions in the same task against the rest and the activation intensity of the same regions in different tasks respectively. The activations in inferior parietal （BA40） and inferior occipital （BA18/19） were found in the JVM and JOD. The same areas in middle frontal （BA6）, fusiform （BA18）, posterior in right cerebellum areas were activated during the JVM and JMW. When the activation of the JMW was subtracted from the JVM, many areas concerning numerical processing, such as left anterior cingulate （BA32）, post central （BA2）, and the right superior temporal （BA39）, superior parietal （BAT）, as well as the inferior parietal （BA40）, precuneus （BA7/19） of the bilateral hemispheres, were significantly activated. When the activation of the JOD was subtracted from the JVM, the left inferior occipital and the fusiform （BA18） of the bilateral hemispheres, which were also involved in the linguistic processing according to previous studies, were significantly activated. The above results proved that the processing of vocabulary of months in Chinese involves not only linguistic processing but also numerical processing; and these results further indicate that Chinese people might gain access to the cognitive experience of number during the process of acquisition of native language.