Page 9 - ELG2301 Jan Issue 483

NEWS
English really is a

universal language

By Gillian Ragsdale 12 language families, such as Indo-
Despite the apparent diversity European, Dravidian, Uralic,
of languages worldwide, from Austronesian and Balto-Slavic.
English to Farsi, from Arabic to During the tasks, the participants’
Mandarin, there is a universal brain activity was recorded by
language network in the brain, brain imaging (fMRI). PHOTOGRAPH НАТАЛИЯ КОГУТ FROM PIXABAY
as revealed by a recent study One caveat might be that
from Saima Malik-Moraleda and all the speakers were also
colleagues (MIT, Harvard and bilingual in English and the
Carnegie Mellon Universities in preliminary baseline of locating
the US, and Carlton University language processing generally
in Canada). was carried out in English.
A long-running criticism Listeners then heard passages
of linguistic research (indeed from Alice in Wonderland in their the same language, implying that to be detected. The authors hope
research generally) is the lack of native language, contrasting the brain processes all languages to extend their work to include
global diversity – especially given with passages in an unfamiliar via the same neural circuitry. sign languages and more non-
there are around 7,000 languages language. Non-linguistic tests of The results of brain imaging Indo-European spoken languages,
being spoken today. Although working memory and arithmetic showed the same area in the left even Esperanto and Klingon.
there seem to be properties were also included to see if there hemisphere of the brain being
common to all languages, this lack were contrasts between language activated specifically for language REFERENCE
of diversity has hindered attempts and non-language processing processing across all languages – n Malik-Moraleda, S, Ayyash, D,
to establish whether different regions of the brain. and distinct from more general Gallée, J et al (2022). ‘An investigation
languages have differences in Overall, the variation in intelligence. across 45 languages and 12 language
neural processing. responses between different Although this suggests that families reveals a universal language
Malik-Moraleda’s study broke speakers of different languages research using English speakers network’, Nature Neuroscience
the mould by recruiting native was not greater than the variation can be extended universally, 25, 1014–1019. doi: 10.1038/
speakers of 45 languages across between individuals speaking there may still be rare processes s41593-022-01114-5

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