Voluntary and Involuntary Imagination: Neurological Mechanisms, Developmental Path, Clinical Implications, and Evolutionary Trajectory

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrey Vyshedskiy
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Developmental Psychology ◽  
Mental Image ◽  
Language Delay ◽  
Clinical Implications ◽  
Human Language ◽  
Comprehensive Understanding ◽  
Evolutionary Trajectory ◽  
Mental Objects ◽  
Productive Discussion

Abstract A vivid and bizarre dream conjures up a myriad of novel mental images. The same exact images can be created volitionally when awake. The neurological mechanisms of these two processes are different. The voluntary combination of mental objects is mediated by the lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) and patients with damage to the LPFC often lose this ability. Conversely, the combination of mental objects into novel images during dreaming does not depend on the LPFC; LPFC is inactive during sleep and patients whose LPFC is damaged do not notice a change in their dreams. Neither colloquial English nor scientific jargon has an established way to report on the origin of a conjured up mental image; the term “imagination” is regularly used to describe any experience generated internally whether voluntarily (in waking) or involuntarily (in dreaming). Failing to distinguish between voluntary and involuntary imagination leads to confusion in developmental psychology, neurolinguistics, and paleoanthropology. A comprehensive understanding of the distinction between voluntary and involuntary imagination will help develop better therapy for children with language delay, contribute to a clearer understanding of the uniqueness of human language, and enable a more productive discussion of the evolutionary origin of human language.

Early Language Delay and Risk for Language Impairment

2008 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 93-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erica M. Ellis ◽  
Donna J. Thal
Keyword(s):  
Language Impairment ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Language Delay ◽  
Clinical Implications ◽  
Early Language ◽  
Late Talkers ◽  
Late Talker ◽  
Early Language Delay ◽  
Clinically Significant ◽  
Normal Variability

Abstract Clinicians are often faced with the difficult task of deciding whether a late talker shows normal variability or has a clinically significant language disorder. This article provides an overview of research investigating identification, characteristics, outcomes, and predictors of late talkers. Clinical implications for speech-language pathologists in the identification and treatment of children who are late talkers are discussed.

The use of neurocognitive methods in assessing health communication messages: A systematic review

2016 ◽  
Vol 22 (12) ◽  
pp. 1534-1551 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sherrie-Anne Kaye ◽  
Melanie J White ◽  
Ioni Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Medial Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Superior Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Health Messages ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Comprehensive Understanding ◽  
Message Effectiveness ◽  
Neurocognitive Measures ◽  
Additional Variance

We review 20 studies that examined persuasive processing and outcomes of health messages using neurocognitive measures. The results suggest that cognitive processes and neural activity in regions thought to reflect self-related processing may be more prominent in the persuasive process of self-relevant messages. Furthermore, activity in the medial prefrontal cortex, the superior temporal gyrus and the middle frontal gyrus were identified as predictors of message effectiveness, with the medial prefrontal cortex accounting for additional variance in behaviour change beyond that accounted for by self-report measures. Incorporating neurocognitive measures may provide a more comprehensive understanding of the processing and outcomes of health messages.

scholarly journals Using Tangram as a Manipulative Tool for Transition between 2D and 3D Perception in Geometry

Mathematics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (18) ◽  
pp. 2185
Author(s):  
Mária Kmetová ◽  
Zuzana Nagyová Lehock
Keyword(s):  
Mental Representation ◽  
Mental Image ◽  
Spatial Relations ◽  
Physical Object ◽  
Geometric Thinking ◽  
Spatial Environment ◽  
Mental Objects ◽  
2D And 3D ◽  
5Th Grade

Creating a mental image of our spatial environment is a key process for further abstract geometric thinking. Building a mental representation can be understood as a part of the process of visualisation. From the wide concept of visualisation, in this article, we will focus on the part where the mental representation of spatial relations, mental objects and mental constructions are created, and their manifestations as a 3D physical object and its plane representations arise. Our main goal is to follow the transition between 2D and 3D representations of physical objects and also to observe how and when such a transition happens in students’ thinking. For that purpose, we also use Tangram, because manipulation with the Tangram pieces in space and filling out planar figures by them indicates the transition between 3D and 2D. Our research, using an action research methodology, was conducted on the students of three 5th grade primary school classes as a part of a larger long-term project. We pointed out a relationship between spatial abilities and the perception of 2D–3D relationships in students’ mind.

When Is "Watch and See" Warranted? A Response to Paul's 1996 Article, "Clinical Implications of the Natural History of Slow Expressive Language Development"

1997 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 34-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne van Kleeck ◽  
Ronald B. Gillam ◽  
Barbara Davis
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Language Development ◽  
Additional Data ◽  
First Grade ◽  
Receptive Vocabulary ◽  
Language Intervention ◽  
Language Delay ◽  
Clinical Implications ◽  
Expressive Vocabulary ◽  
Normal Range

We commend Paul for undertaking an investigation that concerns critical clinical and theoretical issues. This type of longitudinal developmental research is exactly what is needed to advance the scientific basis of our profession. We also respect Paul's attempt to construct a firm bridge between her findings and their clinical implications. The necessary and sufficient data that completely solve a clinical problem are rarely available. Because clinicians do not have the luxury of waiting until the best data imaginable are collected and analyzed before acting, it is helpful for researchers to generalize their results to the extent possible. However, because of its potential clinical, economic, and educational implications, we believe that a broad social policy like Paul's "watch and see" recommendation should be based on unambiguous evidence. We have suggested that a number of the children in Paul's cohort may have been within the normal range in language development at the beginning of the study. Without individual data, it is impossible for us to know whether or not this was the case. To the extent that our suspicions hold true, Paul's study tells us that a number of children who function at the low end of the normal range of language development between 20 and 34 months stay within the normal range throughout the preschool and early school-age years. Paul's suggestion of "watch and see" seems reasonable enough for the 74% of the children who tested within the normal range by kindergarten and first grade, but it may not have been sufficient for the 26% who did not. We believe children like those in this latter group would probably benefit from preschool language intervention and that very valuable language learning time could be lost if Paul's general "watch and see" policy were implemented. It is possible that children with good outcomes and children with language delays that were significant and persistent had different profiles with respect to expressive vocabulary, receptive vocabulary, speech, and communicative intentions at the onset of the study. If so, one broad social policy may not be sufficient. We have asked Paul to provide additional data about the nature of the language difficulties exhibited by the children at the outset of her study, the predictors of continued language delay, and the results of language intervention efforts. It is our hope that Paul can provide the kinds of additional data and analyses we have requested in this discussion, and that this data can serve as the basis for refinements in definitions of early language delay, decisions about providing clinical services to very young children, and methods for analyzing intervention efficacy.

scholarly journals Neuroscience of imagination and implications for human evolution

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrey Vyshedskiy
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Mental Rotation ◽  
Human Evolution ◽  
Mental Image ◽  
Amodal Completion ◽  
Educational Strategies ◽  
Mental Images ◽  
Lateral Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Hominin Evolution ◽  
Image Creation

Vivid dreaming often conjures-up imaginary novel images during the sleep. Humans can also imagine novel mental images consciously and purposefully in the process of Prefrontal Synthesis (PFS). Despite both processes commonly referred to as ‘constructive imagination,’ their mechanisms of mental image creation are very different. PFS is completely dependent on the lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) and patients with damage to the LPFC often lose their PFS ability. Conversely, dreaming is not controlled by the LPFC: the LPFC is inactive during the sleep and patients whose LPFC is damaged do not notice any change in their dreams. Other neurobiologically distinct components of imagination discussed in this manuscript include amodal completion, categorically-primed spontaneous imagination, integration of modifiers and mental rotation, and Prefrontal Analysis. Clearer neurobiological definitions of separate imagination mechanisms can lead to better understanding of hominin evolution and better educational strategies in children with neurodevelopmental delays. J. Curr. Neurobiol. 10, 89–109 (2019).

scholarly journals Numerosity, Abstraction, and the Emergence of Symbolic Thinking

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frederick L. Coolidge ◽  
Karenleigh A. Overmann
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Modern Human ◽  
Human Infant ◽  
Intraparietal Sulcus ◽  
Human Language ◽  
Levels Of Abstraction ◽  
Level Of Abstraction ◽  
Parietal Lobes ◽  
Symbolic Thinking

In this paper we tentatively propose that one of the feral cognitive bases for modern symbolic thinking may be numerosity, that is, the ability to appreciate and understand numbers. We proffer that numerosity appears to be an inherently abstractive process, which is supported by numerous human infant and monkey studies. We also review studies that demonstrate that the neurological substrate for numerosity is primarily the intraparietal sulcus of the parietal lobes, the angular and supramarginal gyri in the inferior parietal lobes, and areas of the prefrontal cortex. We also speculate that the lower level of abstraction involved in numerosity may serve as a basis for higher-level symbolic thinking, such as number and letter symbolism and sequencing. We further speculate that these two levels of abstraction may give rise to highly sophisticated characteristics of modern human language, such as analogizing and metaphorizing.

Time-varying gene expression network analysis for evolution of human prefrontal cortex

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuehua Cui ◽  
Huihui Wang ◽  
Yongqing Wu ◽  
Jian Sa ◽  
Zhi Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Gene Networks ◽  
Similarity Analysis ◽  
Time Varying ◽  
Hub Genes ◽  
Evolutionary Trajectory ◽  
Ongoing Research ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Over Time

Abstract Background : The prefrontal cortex (PFC) constitutes a large part of the human central nervous system and is essential for the normal social affection and executive function of humans and other primates. Despite ongoing research in this region, the evolution of interactions between PFC genes is still unknown, and there is a need to better understand changes in expression of age-related genes over the lifespan. To investigate the evolution of PFC gene interaction networks and further identify hub genes, we obtained time-series gene expression data of human PFC tissues from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. A statistical model, loggle, was used to construct time-varying networks and explore the evolution of PFC gene networks over time. Several common network attributes were used to explore the evolution of PFC gene networks over time. The hub genes of different evolutionary stages were identified. At the same time, we explored several known KEGG pathways in PFC and the corresponding development patterns of central genes. Results : Network similarity analysis showed that the development of human PFC is divided into three stages, namely, fast development period, deceleration to stationary period, and destructive recession period. We identified some genes related to PFC evolution at these different stages, including genes involved in neuronal differentiation or synapse formation, genes involved in nerve impulse transmission, and genes involved in the development of myelin around neurons. Some of these genes are consistent with findings in previous reports. Pathway evolution analysis suggests that the axon guidance pathway has been most responsive during the evolution of PFC. Conclusions : This study clarified the evolutionary trajectory of the interaction between PFC genes, and proposed a set of candidate genes related to PFC development, which helps further study of human brain development at the genomic level supplemental to regular anatomical analyses. The analytical process used in this study, involving the loggle model, similarity analysis, and central analysis, provides a comprehensive strategy to gain novel insights into the evolution and development of brain networks in other organisms.

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