I really appreciated the way that Crystal simply explained the basic structure of the brain before launching into the role of a dominant hemisphere and the functions of each. I also wonder if there have been any successful detailed models of neurolinguistic operation since 2005, when Crystal wrote this article. There has been a lot of progress in neurology in the past 15 years and that would be fascinating to look into! I found especially interesting the generalizations about hand dominance and which part of your brain is best at learning languages. Although I am not certain I followed the logic accurately, it seemed like my left hemisphere is dominant in both analytical /logical skills (which I find easier than creativity) and language. Perhaps this means I should incorporate logic and analysis into my language learning, although I will have to brainstorm how to effectively manage that. I think that biology plays a great rule in the general capability of language (unless I believe that it arose when God didn’t want the Babylonians to keep working together to build a tower to reach him). However, I agree with Crystal that these matters should be considered cautiously. This is because I also believe in the power of life experience and the ways that shape a person. I think it is important to not err towards promoting a belief that individuals are defined by their genes. This could discourage people from growing or trying if they believe themselves to be inherently ‘bad’ at something like languages. However, a clear self-understanding is also critical for learning. I really appreciated the way that Crystal simply explained the basic structure of the brain before launching into the role of a dominant hemisphere and the functions of each. I also wonder if there have been any successful detailed models of neurolinguistic operation since 2005, when Crystal wrote this article. There has been a lot of progress in neurology in the past 15 years and that would be fascinating to look into! I found especially interesting the generalizations about hand dominance and which part of your brain is best at learning languages. Although I am not certain I followed the logic accurately, it seemed like my left hemisphere is dominant in both analytical /logical skills (which I find easier than creativity) and language. Perhaps this means I should incorporate logic and analysis into my language learning, although I will have to brainstorm how to effectively manage that. I think that biology plays a great rule in the general capability of language (unless I believe that it arose when God didn’t want the Babylonians to keep working together to build a tower to reach him). However, I agree with Crystal that these matters should be considered cautiously. This is because I also believe in the power of life experience and the ways that shape a person. I think it is important to not err towards promoting a belief that individuals are defined by their genes. This could discourage people from growing or trying if they believe themselves to be inherently ‘bad’ at something like languages. However, a clear self-understanding is also critical for learning. I wonder if the size and efficiencies of the separate parts of the brain indicate auditory/ visual/ kinetic learning? Perhaps I have a very underdeveloped Wernicke’s area, and this is why I find it so difficult to translate the sounds that I hear into actual words with meaning. Perhaps understanding these neurological pathways on an individual level would be very helpful for self-understanding and learning. Then again, I suppose that’s what all of those different quizzes are looking for. I did notice that some of the quizzes asked me questions for which my responses were entirely unrelated to my learning style but based on auxiliary factors. Would it now be possible to look at these areas of the brain using technology, and determine if we can learn the way an individual processes information / language differently, and suggest ways to improve it? The pattern of tongue slips was also fascinating, and I wonder if there have been any other studies looking into this pattern in other languages. If the typical syntax / cadence of a language is different, will the speakers be more prone to tongue slips? How does this vary with native speakers vs. 2nd language speakers? I also hope to find collocations in Bahasa Indonesia and discover more about the contexts of words. I believe that having Farida, a native speaker, as my language partner will be very helpful when I reach this level of the language. Right now, though, I am simply trying to make myself understood in the most simple terms. As a side note, I am intrigued by the mention of neurologists in the 1800’s. These two neurologists researched what occurs when certain parts of the brain are damaged. I can’t imagine their methods were exactly moral and I am honestly too afraid to google.
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