Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism

Multiple Nested Distributed Language Networks in the Human Brain

The paper identifies two nested language networks in the human brain using functional mapping across multiple cohorts, showing distinct roles in phonology and syntax.

Cortico-hippocampal dynamics of hierarchical syntactic planning in natural speech production

The paper investigates hierarchical syntactic planning in speech production using SEEG recordings, finding that core syntactic categories are planned before modifiers and that the hippocampus contributes to sentence structure building.

Hybrid spatial organization and magnitude-independent neural coding of linguistic information during sentence production

The paper uses electrocorticography to study neural coding of linguistic information during sentence production, finding non-overlapping networks and magnitude-independent encoding of higher-order linguistic information.

Aptitude, not polyglotism, is associated with efficient activation in core language areas.

The paper dissociates language aptitude from multilingual experience, showing distinct neural correlates and interactions in the multilingual brain.

Concept-Level Semantic Representations Remain Decodable in Chronic Post-Stroke Aphasia

This study decodes concept-level semantic representations from BOLD signals in chronic post-stroke aphasia and finds that an experiential model best matches neural geometry, suggesting preserved conceptual representations despite language impairments.

Cerebral Encoding of Word Classes is Distributed and Context-Dependent

The paper investigates how word classes like nouns and verbs are encoded in the brain, finding that their neural representation depends on sentence context and varies across modalities.

Segregation and integration between visuo-spatial attention and semantic memory across large-scale brain networks

This study investigates how visuo-spatial attention and semantic memory interact in the brain using fMRI, finding that the anterior insula integrates these networks during combined tasks.

Linguistic structure and probability are jointly encoded in high gamma power

This study shows high gamma power in intracranial recordings reflects both lexical probability and syntactic structure during speech comprehension, with evidence of interregional communication and modulation by lexical uncertainty.

Neural categorization of visual words of alphabetic and non-alphabetic languages

The paper investigates how the brain categorizes visual words of different languages by analyzing neural responses to alphabetic and non-alphabetic writing systems using EEG, MEG, and repetition suppression.

Selectivity for high-level language processing is highly localized in individual brains

The paper identifies highly localized, language-selective cortical areas in individual brains using precision neuroimaging.

Surprisal contributes little beyond contextual embeddings in high-gamma ECoG encoding

The paper tests if word surprisal improves prediction of high-gamma ECoG responses beyond GPT-2 XL embeddings and finds little additional benefit.

Processing at Phrase Boundaries During Self-Paced Reading

This study uses self-paced reading to examine how syntactic and semantic factors affect sentence processing, finding that processing difficulty is tied to phrase completion and interacts with semantic interpretation.

Prior Context Scaffolds Sentential Semantic Integration during Noisy Speech Comprehension

This study investigates how prior context aids speech comprehension in noise using EEG and fNIRS, finding that context supports sentence-level semantic integration rather than just word-level prediction.

The brain prioritizes information that strengthens the structure of knowledge

The paper shows humans prefer semantic information that strengthens the small-world topology of knowledge, enhancing cognitive processing and valuation in the brain.

Interplay of Proactive and Reactive Control in Language Production

This study investigates how proactive and reactive cognitive control mechanisms resolve semantic interference during word retrieval, showing distinct roles in different contexts.

Temporal constraints on the neural signatures of narrative processing

This study uses MEG to show that neural responses to narratives are temporally constrained, with presentation speed affecting the spatiotemporal progression of activity and the distinction between word lists, sentences, and stories.

BCCWJ-Brain: A Multi-Modal fMRI, MEG, and EEG Dataset of Naturalistic Japanese Reading

The paper introduces a multi-modal neuroimaging dataset of naturalistic Japanese reading, combining fMRI, MEG, and EEG data from 112 participants.

Shared but temporally distinct neural representations support semantic matching across word and picture formats: evidence from EEG decoding and temporal generalization analyses

The paper investigates semantic matching across word and picture formats using EEG decoding and temporal generalization analyses, finding distinct neural dynamics for each format.

Evidence from Formal Logical Reasoning Reveals that the Language of Thought is not Natural Language

The paper investigates the relationship between logical reasoning and language by examining neural activity and patient performance, finding that logical reasoning does not rely on the language brain network.

The Premotor Language Area Encodes a Full Acoustic-to-semantic Speech Hierarchy

This study identifies a premotor language area (PML) in the ventral premotor cortex that contains a full speech-processing hierarchy from acoustic to semantic features.

Neural representations of speech production in neocortical and cerebellar regions

This study investigates neural representations of speech production in both cortical and cerebellar regions using fMRI and finds that cerebellar representations align more closely with parietal operculum than primary motor cortex.

Estimating the Explainable Variance of EEG Responses to Natural Speech

The paper estimates how much variance in EEG responses to natural speech can be explained by speech features using inter-subject models.

The human language processing system straightens natural speech

The paper investigates how temporal prediction shapes neural speech representations, finding that brain responses to natural speech become progressively straighter along the cortical hierarchy.

The extended language network: Language responsive brain areas whose contributions to language remain to be discovered

The paper identifies 17 language-selective brain areas outside the core fronto-temporal network using fMRI data from 772 participants, showing they respond to both auditory and written language and are distinct from general task demands.

Estimation of neuronal tuning for word meaning from passively recorded naturalistic speech

The paper develops a pipeline to estimate neuronal tuning for word meaning from naturalistic speech and validates it using patient data and ground-truth controls.

Shared neural geometries for bilingual semantic representations in human hippocampal neurons

The paper investigates how bilinguals represent semantic concepts in two languages, finding shared neural geometries that support translation despite language-specific neuron responses.

Individual Differences in Speech Monitoring: Functional and Structural Correlates of Delayed Auditory Feedback

This study investigates how individual differences in speech monitoring relate to functional and structural brain correlates under delayed auditory feedback.

Distinct cortical patches for syntactic and semantic composition in the human brain

This study uses fMRI to identify two distinct cortical networks in the human brain for syntactic and semantic processing during language tasks.

Language Immersion Enhances Attentional Speech Processing via Low-Frequency Neural Tracking

This study shows that second-language immersion enhances cortical tracking of attended speech through delta-band activity, but this effect diminishes with prolonged immersion.

Hemispheric Dissociation in the Cognitive Control of Word Production

This study uses tDCS to investigate hemispheric contributions of the IFG to word production, finding dissociated effects on speech output and distractor interference.