Lexical Interface Research Articles

The central role of the left inferior longitudinal fasciculus in the face-name retrieval network.

Unsuccessful retrieval of proper names (PNs) is commonly observed in patients suffering from neurological conditions such as stroke or epilepsy. While a large body of works has suggested that PN retrieval relies on a cortical network centered on the left anterior temporal lobe (ATL), much less is known about the white matter connections underpinning this process. Sparse studies provided evidence for a possible role of the uncinate fasciculus, but the inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF) might also contribute, since it mainly projects into the ATL, interconnects it with the posterior lexical interface and is engaged in common name (CN) retrieval. To ascertain this hypothesis, we assessed 58 patients having undergone a neurosurgery for a left low-grade glioma by means of a famous face naming (FFN) task. The behavioural data were processed following a multilevel lesion approach, including location-based analyses, voxel-based lesion-symptom mapping (VLSM) and disconnection-symptom mapping. Different statistical models were generated to control for sociodemographic data, familiarity, biographical knowledge and control cognitive performances (i.e., semantic and episodic memory and CN retrieval). Overall, VLSM analyses indicated that damage to the mid-to-anterior part of the ventro-basal temporal cortex was especially associated with PN retrieval deficits. As expected, tract-oriented analyses showed that the left ILF was the most strongly associated pathway. Our results provide evidence for the pivotal role of the ILF in the PN retrieval network. This novel finding paves the way for a better understanding of the pathophysiological bases underlying PN retrieval difficulties in the various neurological conditions marked by white matter abnormalities.

Strength of Temporal White Matter Pathways Predicts Semantic Learning.

Learning the associations between words and meanings is a fundamental human ability. Although the language network is cortically well defined, the role of the white matter pathways supporting novel word-to-meaning mappings remains unclear. Here, by using contextual and cross-situational word learning, we tested whether learning the meaning of a new word is related to the integrity of the language-related white matter pathways in 40 adults (18 women). The arcuate, uncinate, inferior-fronto-occipital and inferior-longitudinal fasciculi were virtually dissected using manual and automatic deterministic fiber tracking. Critically, the automatic method allowed assessing the white matter microstructure along the tract. Results demonstrate that the microstructural properties of the left inferior-longitudinal fasciculus predict contextual learning, whereas the left uncinate was associated with cross-situational learning. In addition, we identified regions of special importance within these pathways: the posterior middle temporal gyrus, thought to serve as a lexical interface and specifically related to contextual learning; the anterior temporal lobe, known to be an amodal hub for semantic processing and related to cross-situational learning; and the white matter near the hippocampus, a structure fundamental for the initial stages of new-word learning and, remarkably, related to both types of word learning. No significant associations were found for the inferior-fronto-occipital fasciculus or the arcuate. While previous results suggest that learning new phonological word forms is mediated by the arcuate fasciculus, these findings show that the temporal pathways are the crucial neural substrate supporting one of the most striking human abilities: our capacity to identify correct associations between words and meanings under referential indeterminacy.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The language-processing network is cortically (i.e., gray matter) well defined. However, the role of the white matter pathways that support novel word learning within this network remains unclear. In this work, we dissected language-related (arcuate, uncinate, inferior-fronto-occipital, and inferior-longitudinal) fasciculi using manual and automatic tracking. We found the left inferior-longitudinal fasciculus to be predictive of word-learning success in two word-to-meaning tasks: contextual and cross-situational learning paradigms. The left uncinate was predictive of cross-situational word learning. No significant correlations were found for the arcuate or the inferior-fronto-occipital fasciculus. While previous results showed that learning new phonological word forms is supported by the arcuate fasciculus, these findings demonstrate that learning new word-to-meaning associations is mainly dependent on temporal white matter pathways.

What are Languages? A Biolinguistic Perspective

AbstractThe goal of the present contribution is to explore what kinds of objects languages are from a biolinguistic point of view. I define the biolinguistic point of view as a naturalistic study of languages and I show that from this point of view, languages are human language organs, that is, they are natural objects. However, languages change over time; therefore, they are also historically modified objects. Considering that natural organisms are historically modified natural objects, I look for inspiration in evolutionary theory to better specify what kinds of objects languages are and how they change and diversify. I conclude that every language is a ‘unique evolutionary history’ within a restricted space of design. This conclusion means that although the structure of languages reveals aspects of formal elegance and aspects of functional efficiency, there are no arguments to state that these aspects are manifested more or less intensely in some languages than in others. Then their formal and functional aspects are part of what is common to all languages, while variable parts of language are a reflection of the essentially historical nature of the lexical interface between the components of our language organs.

The lexical interface in L1 acquisition: What children have to say about radical concept nativism

In the ongoing philosophical debate over the origins and nature of lexical concepts stemming from the work of Fodor (1970, 1998, 2000, 2008), the potential of first language acquisition studies as a source of evidence has been somewhat overlooked. At the lexical interface with syntax, a restricted set of lexical conceptual elements can be shown to play a pivotal role in the generation of syntactic representations, and patterns of syntactic development can elucidate the nature of such elements. An experiment is described which reveals mature knowledge of interface principles in this domain in early syntactic production. It is argued that first language research of this type can provide much-needed observable evidence for lexical semantic decomposition and against radical concept nativism.

INTRODUCTION

Due to the recognition of the centrality of the lexicon for SLA theory (see the 1987 thematic issue of SSLA, edited by Susan Gass), the last few years have witnessed an increased interest in understanding lexical knowledge. As Gass (1999) reminded us, learning vocabulary in a second language is a complex task that involves much more than learning sound-meaning pairings; it also involves learning how lexical information is morphologically expressed and syntactically constrained. The present issue provides a natural sequel to the 1999 SSLA thematic issue, “Incidental L2 Vocabulary Acquisition,” by addressing some of the questions raised in that volume, in particular the questions related to the intimate relationship between syntax and semantics at the lexical interface. This issue is devoted to the L2 acquisition of verb meaning and argument structure crosslinguistically, and it explores in detail the nature of linguistic systems that L2 learners acquire in this particular domain. The six central articles offer a coherent approach to the topic, using linguistic theory to help us understand the characteristics of learner grammars. Until recently, linguistic approaches to SLA have placed a strong emphasis on understanding the acquisition of functional categories, for example, and the acquisition of the lexicon has received less attention. Understanding how the lexico-syntactic interface is mentally represented, and how it evolves during the second language acquisition process, is crucial for developing an adequate theory of L2 knowledge in general, as well as for informing theories of the lexicon.