Semantic Decision Task Research Articles

An Intracranial Electrophysiology Study of Visual Language Encoding: The Contribution of the Precentral Gyrus to Silent Reading.

Models of reading emphasize that visual (orthographic) processing provides input to phonological as well as lexical-semantic processing. Neurobiological models of reading have mapped these processes to distributed regions across occipital-temporal, temporal-parietal, and frontal cortices. However, the role of the precentral gyrus in these models is ambiguous. Articulatory phonemic representations in the precentral gyrus are obviously involved in reading aloud, but it is unclear if the precentral gyrus is recruited during reading silently in a time window consistent with participation in phonological processing contributions. Here, we recorded intracranial electrophysiology during a speeded semantic decision task from 24 patients to map the spatio-temporal flow of information across the cortex during silent reading. Patients selected animate nouns from a stream of nonanimate words, letter strings, and false-font stimuli. We characterized the distribution and timing of evoked high-gamma power (70-170 Hz) as well as phase-locking between electrodes. The precentral gyrus showed a proportion of electrodes responsive to linguistic stimuli (27%) that was at least as high as those of surrounding peri-sylvian regions. These precentral gyrus electrodes had significantly greater high-gamma power for words compared to both false-font and letter-string stimuli. In a patient with word-selective effects in the fusiform, superior temporal, and precentral gyri, there was significant phase-locking between the fusiform and precentral gyri starting at ∼180 msec and between the precentral and superior temporal gyri starting at ∼220 msec. Finally, our large patient cohort allowed exploratory analyses of the spatio-temporal reading network underlying silent reading. The distribution, timing, and connectivity results place the precentral gyrus as an important hub in the silent reading network.

Distinctive responses in anterior temporal lobe and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex during categorization of semantic information

Semantic categorization is a fundamental ability in language as well as in interaction with the environment. However, it is unclear what cognitive and neural basis generates this flexible and context dependent categorization of semantic information. We performed behavioral and fMRI experiments with a semantic priming paradigm to clarify this. Participants conducted semantic decision tasks in which a prime word preceded target words, using names of animals (mammals, birds, or fish). We focused on the categorization of unique marine mammals, having characteristics of both mammals and fish. Behavioral experiments indicated that marine mammals were semantically closer to fish than terrestrial mammals, inconsistent with the category membership. The fMRI results showed that the left anterior temporal lobe was sensitive to the semantic distance between prime and target words rather than category membership, while the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex was sensitive to the consistency of category membership of word pairs. We interpreted these results as evidence of existence of dual processes for semantic categorization. The combination of bottom-up processing based on semantic characteristics in the left anterior temporal lobe and top-down processing based on task and/or context specific information in the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex is required for the flexible categorization of semantic information.

Electrophysiological insights into the role of proficiency in bilingual novel and conventional metaphor processing

Abstract While novel and conventional metaphor comprehension has received much attention in the monolingual context, thus far little electrophysiological research has been conducted with a view to examining how bilingual speakers process metaphors in their non-native language (L2) as well as how L2 proficiency level might modulate such processes. The present study aims to investigate the electrophysiological correlates of novel and conventional metaphor comprehension in intermediate and advanced Chinese-English bilingual speakers. The participants performed a semantic decision task to English (L2) novel metaphoric, conventional metaphoric, literal, and anomalous word pairs. The results showed a graded N400 effect from literal utterances, to conventional metaphors, novel metaphors, and finally to anomalous utterances in both groups of participants, indicating that both types of metaphors were more cognitively taxing than literal utterances, irrespectively of L2 proficiency level. Additionally, between-group differences that were irrespective of utterance type were found in the N400 time frame, indicating more extended lexico-semantic access in the intermediate relative to the advanced group. Finally, in both groups of participants, an anterior sustained negativity was found in response to anomalous, novel metaphoric, and conventional metaphoric word pairs, thus suggesting a continuing difficulty of meaning integration.

Evaluation of the crossed cerebro-cerebellar activation to determine language lateralization in patients with brain tumors

The crossed cerebro-cerebellar (CCC) activation facilitates the diagnosis of cortical language lateralization, but needs to be explored with language tasks suitable for patients with different age ranges, educational attainment and eventual presence of language deficits. To determine the effect of demographic variables in the performance of three language tasks in healthy volunteers and to determine the CCC activation of these tasks as a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) paradigm in brain tumor patients. The behavioral performance (correct responses and reaction time) of three language tasks (verbal fluency, semantic and phonological decision tasks) was first examined in 76 healthy volunteers balanced by age and educational level. Later, these tasks were implemented as fMRI paradigms to explore CCC language activation of 20 patients with potential diagnosis of brain tumors. The performance of the verbal fluency task was affected by age. The CCC language activation was reproducible with the semantic and phonological tasks. The combination of the tasks determined typical and atypical language lateralization in 60% and 40% of our patients, respectively. The verbal fluency task must be implemented with care as a clinical fMRI paradigm. Our results suggest that semantic and phonological tasks can be a good alternative for brain tumor patients with language deficits.

RTMS affects EEG microstates dynamic during evoked activity

Electrophysiological (EEG) correlates both at time (i.e., event-related potentials, ERP) and frequency (i.e., event-related desynchronization, ERD) domains have been shown to be modulated by external magnetic interference. Parallel studies reported a similar interference also for the EEG microstate at rest and in the period that anticipates a task. Here we investigated whether such interference was prolonged during the evoked activity in the framework of the semantic decision task. To this aim, rTMS was delivered over a core region of both the Default mode network and the language network (i.e., left angular gyrus, AG), previously associated to the current task, and as active control we stimulated the left IPS. When subjects received a non-active stimulation (i.e., Sham), in the period that follows the target onset (i.e., 2 sec after the rTMS) we found an interesting alternation of two dominant microstates (MS1, MS3), previously associated to the phonological network and the Cingulo-Opercular Network (CON), respectively. This dynamic was not altered when TMS was delivered over the left IPS. On the contrary, rTMS over left AG selectively suppressed the phonological-related microstate. These findings provide the first causal evidence of region specificity of the EEG microstates topography during the evoked activity corroborating the idea of a crucial role of AG in the semantic memory. Moreover, the present results might provide insight for understanding the neurophysiological correlates of language disorders e.g., aphasia as well as for planning non-invasive brain stimulation protocols for the rehabilitation.

Metaphors are like lenses: Electrophysiological correlates of novel meaning processing in bilingualism

Aims and objectives: The study provides new insights into how bilingual speakers process semantically complex novel meanings in their native (L1) and non-native language (L2). Methodology: The study employs an EEG method with a semantic decision task to novel nominal metaphors, novel similes, as well as literal and anomalous sentences presented in participants’ L1 and L2. Data and analysis: In total, 29 native speakers of Polish (L1) who were highly proficient in English (L2) took part in the study. The collected EEG signal was analyzed in terms of an event-related potential analysis. The statistical analyses were based on behavioral data (reaction times and accuracy rates) as well as mean amplitudes for the four conditions in the two languages within the N400 and LPC time windows. Findings: The results revealed the N400 effect of utterance type modulated by language nativeness, where the brainwaves for anomalous sentences, novel nominal metaphors, and novel similes converged in L2, while in L1 a graded effect was observed from anomalous sentences to novel nominal metaphors, novel similes and literal sentences. In contrast, within the late time window, a more pronounced sustained negativity to novel nominal metaphors than novel similes was observed in both languages, thus indicating that meaning integration mechanisms might be of similar automaticity in L1 and L2 when bilingual speakers are highly proficient in their L2. Altogether, the present results point to a more taxing mechanisms involved in lexico-semantic access in L2 than L1, yet such an increased effort seems to be resolved within the meaning integration phase. Originality: The findings present novel insights into how bilinguals construct new unfamiliar meanings and show how and when cognitive mechanisms engaged in this process are modulated by language nativeness. Significance: The study might provide crucial implications for further research on bilingual semantic processing as well as human creativity.

Механизмы обработки фигуральных выражений разных типов

Modern models of figurative language processing postulate that figurative expressions (FE), e.g. metaphors, are processed through inclusion of one FE component to the category of another. However, some FE can simply be understood by finding commonalities between FE components. This way of processing is better explained by the early semantic network model, on which modern models of figurative language processing are based. The current study attempts to reveal capabilities of categorization approach and semantic network model to explain mechanisms of different FE processing. Subjects (N=67) performed semantic decision tasks, which required answering the question whether the meaning of the presented adjective corresponds to the meaning of an adjective in the context of an expression presented earlier. The results of reaction time analysis suggest that categorization approach is not exhaustive for the explanation of figurative language processing and some of the effects might be explained in terms of the semantic network model. This indicates that it is necessary to include some semantic network model postulates into modern approaches of figurative language comprehension.

Comparing incidental vocabulary learning from reading-only and reading-while-listening

This study compares incidental vocabulary learning in reading-while-listening and reading-only conditions. Using both offline and online outcome measures, I assessed explicit form and meaning knowledge and the lexicalization of new words. I also explored how L2 listening and reading proficiency moderated learning gains in the two treatment conditions. L2 learners first read or read-while-listened to four short stories in English for meaning, with embedded target vocabulary items. They then completed surprise vocabulary posttests in the order of a form priming lexical decision task, a form recognition test, a form-meaning connection test and a semantic priming lexical decision task. Results showed that while the reading-while-listening group outperformed the reading-only group in recognizing the form and meaning of the target vocabulary, neither group fully lexicalized the new words, which was crucial for fluent lexical retrieval. L2 listening and reading proficiency affected learning from reading-while-listening and reading-only differentially: the reading-while-listening group was negatively affected by L2 reading proficiency when controlling for listening proficiency while performance of the reading-only group was not predicted by L2 proficiency. Implications for the use of bimodal input in incidental vocabulary learning are discussed.

Inferior parietal lobule is sensitive to different semantic similarity relations for concrete and abstract words.

Similarity measures, the extent to which two concepts have similar meanings, are the key to understand how concepts are represented, with different theoretical perspectives relying on very different sources of data from which similarity can be calculated. While there is some commonality in similarity measures, the extent of their correlation is limited. Previous studies also suggested that the relative performance of different similarity measures may also vary depending on concept concreteness and that the inferior parietal lobule (IPL) may be involved in the integration of conceptual features in a multimodal system for the semantic categorization. Here, we tested for the first time whether theory-based similarity measures predict the pattern of brain activity in the IPL differently for abstract and concrete concepts. English speakers performed a semantic decision task, while we recorded their brain activity in IPL through fNIRS. Using representational similarity analysis, results indicated that the neural representational similarity in IPL conformed to the lexical co-occurrence among concrete concepts (regardless of the hemisphere) and to the affective similarity among abstract concepts in the left hemisphere only, implying that semantic representations of abstract and concrete concepts are characterized along different organizational principles in the IPL. We observed null results for the decoding accuracy. Our study suggests that the use of the representational similarity analysis as a complementary analysis to the decoding accuracy is a promising tool to reveal similarity patterns between theoretical models and brain activity recorded through fNIRS.

The effects of word concreteness on cross-language neural pattern similarity during semantic categorization

Previous behavioral studies have suggested that word concreteness affects the similarity of semantic representations between native and second languages. However, it is unclear whether and how word concreteness influences the cross-language similarity in neural representations. In the present study, we quantified the neural pattern similarity between native and second languages by using representational similarity analysis, and examined the modulatory effect of word concreteness on cross-language similarity in neural representations. Twenty-six Chinese-English bilinguals performed a semantic decision task during fMRI scan. Results showed that concrete and abstract words elicited stronger activation in the right sensorimotor cortex for nonverbal processing and the left prefrontal cortex for verbal processing, respectively. Consistently, representational similarity analysis revealed that concrete and abstract words showed higher cross-language neural pattern similarity in those brain regions for nonverbal and verbal processing, respectively. More importantly, we found that the left middle temporal gyrus contained item-specific cross-language semantic representations for abstract words. These results suggest that word concreteness plays an important role in influencing cross-language similarity in neural representations. • RSA is used to quantify cross-language pattern similarity. • Concrete and abstract words elicit distinct neural activity patterns. • LMTG shows item-specific cross-language pattern similarity for abstract words.

Functional reorganization of the reading network in the course of foreign language acquisition

During foreign language acquisition neural representations of native language and foreign language assimilate. In the reading network, this assimilation leads to a shift from effortful processing to automated reading. Longitudinal studies can track this transition and reveal dynamics that might not become apparent in behavior. Here, we report results from a longitudinal functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, which tracked functional changes in the reading network of beginning learners of Greek over one year. We deliberately chose Greek as foreign language that would have similar orthographic transparency but a different alphabet than the native language (Polish). fMRI scans with lexical and semantic decision tasks were performed at five different time points (every ~3 months). Classical language areas (the left inferior frontal gyrus, the left precentral gyrus, and the bilateral supplementary motor cortex), and cognitive control areas (left inferior parietal lobe and bilateral anterior cingulate cortex) showed stronger activation after the first months of instruction as compared to the activation before instruction. This pattern occured in both tasks. Task-related activity in the reading network remained constant throughout the remaining 6 months of learning and was also present in a follow-up scan 3 months after the end of the course. A similar pattern was demonstrated by the analysis of convergence between foreign and native languages occurring within the first months of learning. Additionally, in the lexical task, the extent of spatial overlap, between foreign and native language in Broca's area increased constantly from the beginning till the end of training. Our findings support the notion that reorganization of language networks is achieved after a relatively short time of foreign language instruction. We also demonstrate that cognitive control areas are recruited in foreign language reading at low proficiency levels. No apparent changes in the foreign or native reading network occur after the initial 3 months of learning. This suggests that task demand might be more important than proficiency in regulating the resources needed for efficient foreign language reading.

Does Net-Speak Experience Interfere With the Processing of Standard Words? Evidence From Net-Speak Word Recognition and Semantic Decisions.

The relationship between Chinese net-speak use and traditional literacy has rarely been discussed in the literature. In this study, we conducted two experiments to explore the effects of net-speak experience on word recognition and semantic decisions. A sample of senior middle school students was divided into a high-experience group and a low-experience group according to the students’ net-speak experience, and the Go/No-Go task (Experiment 1) was adopted to investigate the differences between the two groups in the recognition of pure net-speak words and standard words. The results showed that the response time (RT) of participants was longer for pure net-speak word recognition than for standard word recognition. In addition, for both types of words, the recognition RT of participants in the high-experience group was shorter than that of participants in the low-experience group, but the accuracy (ACC) of pure net-speak word recognition was higher. Taking dual semantic net-speak words with both net-speak meaning and traditional meaning as priming stimuli and standard words related to the two meanings as targets, a semantic decision task (Experiment 2) was used to explore the differences between the two groups in judgments of the semantic relationship between the target words and priming words. The results showed that the decision ACC of participants in the high-experience group for both kinds of meaning-related words was significantly higher than that of participants in the low-experience group. The decision RT of participants in the high-experience group was slightly shorter for net-speak meaning-related words than traditional meaning-related words. The decision RT and ACC of participants in the low-experience group for both kinds of meaning-related words were equivalent. This shows that for Chinese teenagers, net-speak use may not disturb the processing of standard words; on the contrary, it may enhance processing.

Impact of Navigated Task-specific fMRI on Direct Cortical Stimulation.

Cortical mapping (CM) with direct cortical stimulation (DCS) in awake craniotomy is used to preserve cognitive functions such as language. Nevertheless, patient collaboration during this procedure is influenced by previous neurological symptoms and growing discomfort with DCS duration. Our study aimed to evaluate the impact of navigated task-specific functional magnetic resonance imaging (nfMRI) on the practical aspects of DCS. We recruited glioma patients scheduled for awake craniotomy for prior fMRI-based CM, acquired during motor and language tasks (i.e., verb generation, semantic and syntactic decision tasks). Language data was combined to generate a probabilistic map indicating brain regions activated with more than one paradigm. Presurgical neurophysiological language tests (i.e., verb generation, picture naming, and semantic tasks) were also performed. We considered for subsequent study only the patients with a minimum rate of correct responses of 50% in all tests. These patients were then randomized to perform intraoperative language CM either using the multimodal approach (mCM), using nfMRI and DCS combined, or electrical CM (eCM), with DCS alone. DCS was done while the patient performed picture naming and nonverbal semantic decision tasks. Methodological features such as DCS duration, number of stimuli, total delivered stimulus duration per task, and frequency of seizures were analyzed and compared between groups. The correspondence between positive responses obtained with DCS and nfMRI was also evaluated. Twenty-one surgeries were included, thirteen of which using mCM (i.e., test group). Patients with lower presurgical neuropsychological performance (correct response rate between 50 and 80% in language tests) showed a decreased DCS duration in comparison with the control group. None of the compared methodological features showed differences between groups. Correspondence between DCS and nfMRI was 100/84% in the identification of the precentral gyrus for motor function/opercular frontal inferior gyrus for language function, respectively. Navigated fMRI data did not influence DCS in practice. Presurgical language disturbances limited the applicability of DCS mapping in awake surgery.

The effects of vocabulary knowledge in L2 semantic lexical engagement: The case of adult learners of English as a second language

There is evidence that L1 and L2 lexical engagement of novel items occurs in adulthood. However, previous studies have not addressed the effects of individual differences on that engagement. Hence, it is unknown how individual differences may influence semantic lexical engagement gains in L1 and L2 adult learners. This study investigates the effects of pre-existing vocabulary knowledge on L2 semantic lexical engagement of recently learned novel words. A semantic priming experiment, across two consecutive days, was conducted. A group of advanced L2 learners (n=26) and L1 learners (n=26) participated in the study. They were trained on pseudowords acting as verbs (n=7) and nouns (n=7). Vocabulary knowledge was measured via an online vocabulary size test. On day one, participants learned the meaning of the pseudowords via reading 12 repetitions of the novel words embedded into English sentences. Immediately, after the reading session, participants undertook surprise recognition and recall vocabulary post-tests. On day two, participants took part in a semantic lexical decision task (LDT) with priming to test L2 semantic lexical engagement of the novel words learned on day one. The data were analysed through a series of general and linear mixed-effects models. The results showed that L1 and L2 participants engaged the meaning of the recently learned novel words. Previous vocabulary knowledge predicted faster recognition of semantic related and unrelated primes in the LDT task. It is concluded that L1 and L2 adult learners lexically engaged the meaning of the recently learned words and that vocabulary size is a predictor of L2 semantic lexical engagement of novel words within the conditions of this study. The empirical findings provide a new understanding of the role vocabulary knowledge on L1 and L2 semantic lexical engagement of novel words.

Linking individual differences in semantic cognition to white matter microstructure

Semantic cognition is thought to involve the interaction of heteromodal conceptual representations with control processes that (i) focus retrieval on currently-relevant information, and (ii) suppress dominant yet irrelevant features and associations. Research suggests that semantic control demands are higher when retrieving a link between weakly-associated word pairs, since there is a mismatch between the pattern of semantic retrieval required by the task and the dominant associations of individual words. In addition, given that heteromodal concepts are thought to reflect the integration of vision, audition, valence and other features, the control demands of semantic tasks should be higher when there is less consistency between these features. In the present study, 62 volunteers completed a semantic decision task, where association strength and semantic-affective congruence were manipulated. We used diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging to obtain fractional anisotropy (FA) measures of white matter tracts hypothesized to be part of the semantic network. The behavioural data revealed an interaction between semantic-affective congruence and strength of association, suggesting these manipulations both contribute to semantic control demands. Next we considered how individual differences in these markers of semantic control relate to the microstructure of canonical white matter tracts, complementing previous studies that have largely focused on measures of intrinsic functional connectivity. Repeated-measures analysis of covariance showed opposing interactions between semantic control markers and FA of two tracts: left inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF) and right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFOF). Participants with higher FA in left ILF showed more efficient retrieval of weak associations, and more accurate performance for weak associations when meaning and valence were incongruent, consistent with the hypothesis that this left hemisphere tract supports semantic control. In contrast, participants with higher FA in right IFOF were more accurate for trials in which meaning and valence were congruent, and consequently when semantic control demands were minimised. These findings are consistent with recent studies showing that semantic control processes are strongly left-lateralised. In contrast, long-range connections from vision to semantic regions in the right hemisphere might support relatively automatic patterns of semantic retrieval.

The interactive effect of empathy and motor cortex stimulation on hand gesture comprehension

Previous research has demonstrated that the Action-Observation Network (AON) is involved in both emotional-embodiment (empathy) and action-embodiment mechanisms. In the current study, we hypothesized that interfering with the AON will impair action recognition and that this impairment will be modulated by empathy levels. Fifty-two participants conducted a semantic decision task of hand gesture recognition, while we interfered with the AON by applying active (n = 26) or sham (n = 26) transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) to the hand area of the primary motor cortex. We found that interfering with the AON impaired the performance of participants with high empathy levels and enhanced the performance of participants with low empathy. This finding suggests that the embodiment module may be flexible, and that it can be enhanced in individuals with low empathy by simple manipulation of motor activation.

Atypicalities in sleep and semantic consolidation in autism.

Sleep is known to support the neocortical consolidation of declarative memory, including the acquisition of new language. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is often characterized by both sleep and language learning difficulties, but few studies have explored a potential connection between the two. Here, 54 children with and without ASD (matched on age, nonverbal ability and vocabulary) were taught nine rare animal names (e.g., pipa). Memory was assessed via definitions, naming and speeded semantic decision tasks immediately after learning (pre‐sleep), the next day (post‐sleep, with a night of polysomnography between pre‐ and post‐sleep tests) and roughly 1 month later (follow‐up). Both groups showed comparable performance at pre‐test and similar levels of overnight change on all tasks; but at follow‐up children with ASD showed significantly greater forgetting of the unique features of the new animals (e.g., pipa is a flat frog). Children with ASD had significantly lower central non‐rapid eye movement (NREM) sigma power. Associations between spindle properties and overnight changes in speeded semantic decisions differed by group. For the TD group, spindle duration predicted overnight changes in responses to novel animals but not familiar animals, reinforcing a role for sleep in the stabilization of new semantic knowledge. For the ASD group, sigma power and spindle duration were associated with improvements in responses to novel and particularly familiar animals, perhaps reflecting more general sleep‐associated improvements in task performance. Plausibly, microstructural sleep atypicalities in children with ASD and differences in how information is prioritized for consolidation may lead to cumulative consolidation difficulties, compromising the quality of newly formed semantic representations in long‐term memory.

Processing of Action and Sound Verbs in Context: An FMRI Study.

Recent theories propose a flexible recruitment of sensory and motor brain regions during conceptual processing depending on context and task. The present functional magnetic resonance imaging study investigated the influence of context and task on conceptual processing of action and sound verbs. Participants first performed an explicit semantic context decision task, in which action and sound verbs were presented together with a context noun. The same verbs were repeatedly presented in a subsequent implicit lexical decision task together with new action and sound verbs. Thereafter, motor and acoustic localizer tasks were administered to identify brain regions involved in perception and action. During the explicit task, we found differential activations to action and sound verbs near corresponding sensorimotor brain regions. During the implicit lexical decision task, differences between action and sound verbs were absent. However, feature-specific repetition effects were observed near corresponding sensorimotor brain regions. The present results suggest flexible conceptual representations depending on context and task. Feature-specific effects were observed only near, but not within corresponding sensorimotor brain regions, as defined by the localizer tasks. Our results therefore only provide limited evidence in favor of grounded cognition theories assuming a close link between the conceptual and the sensorimotor systems.

Mapping semantic space: property norms and semantic richness.

In semantic property listing tasks, participants list many features for some concepts and fewer for others. This variability in number of features (NoF) has been used in previous research as a measure of a concept's semantic richness, and such studies have shown that in lexical-semantic tasks responses tend to be facilitated for words with high NoF compared to those for words with low NoF, even when many other relevant factors are controlled (Pexman et al. in Psychon Bull Rev 9:542-549, 2002; Mem Cogn 31:842-855, 2003; Psychon Bull Rev 15:161-167, 2008; Goh et al. in Front Psychol, 2016. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00976 ). Furthermore, shared features (i.e., features that are shared by multiple words) appear to facilitate responses in lexical-semantic tasks to a greater degree than distinctive features (Devereux et al. in Cogn Sci 40:325-350, 2016; Grondin et al. in J Mem Lang 60:1-19, 2009). This previous work was limited, however, to relatively small sets of words, typically those extracted from the McRae norms (McRae et al. in Behav Res Methods 37(4):547-559, 2005). New property listing norms provide the opportunity to extract NoF values for many more items (Buchanan et al. in Behav Res Methods 51:1849-1863, 2019). The purpose of the present study was to test whether NoF effects generalize to this larger item set, and to explore how NoF is related to other measures of semantic richness, including subjective ratings of concreteness, imageability, body-object interaction, sensory experience, valence, arousal, and age of acquisition, as well as more objective measures like semantic diversity, number of associates, and lexical centrality. Using the new Buchanan norms, we found significant NoF effects in lexical decision (is it a word or a nonword?) and semantic decision (is it concrete or abstract?) tasks. We also found significant effects of words' number of shared (less distinctive) features in each task. Further, factor analyses of all semantic richness measures showed a distinct factor structure, suggesting that there are clusters of semantic richness dimensions that seem to correspond to more embodied semantic dimensions and more distributional semantic dimensions. Results are interpreted as evidence that semantic representation is multimodal and multidimensional, and provide new insights about the structure of semantic space.

Sex Differences in Functional Brain Networks for Language.

Men and women process language differently, but how the brain functions to support this difference is poorly understood. A few studies reported sex influences on brain activation for language, whereas others failed to detect the difference at the functional level. Recent advances of brain network analysis have shown great promise in picking up brain connectivity differences between sexes, leading us to hypothesize that the functional connections among distinct brain regions for language may differ in males and females. To test this hypothesis, we scanned 58 participants' brain activities (28 males and 30 females) in a semantic decision task using functional magnetic resonance imaging. We found marked sex differences in dynamic interactions among language regions, as well as in functional segregation and integration of brain networks during language processing. The brain network differences were further supported by a machine learning analysis that accurately discriminated males from females using the multivariate patterns of functional connectivity. The sex-specific functional brain connectivity may constitute an essential neural basis for the long-held notion that men and women process language in different ways. Our finding also provides important implications for sex differences in the prevalence of language disorders, such as dyslexia and stuttering.