How does the human brain process language? How does the structure of a word influence the way we understand it? What parts of the brain are responsible for the visualization of language? The multiple experiments that the Neuroscience of Language Lab at NYU Abu Dhabi aim to find the answers to these questions.

The NeLLab has two main sites, one in NYU New York and one in NYUAD. In the Abu Dhabi lab, the research staff includes one postdoctoral associate, four research assistants and a programmer who is responsible for writing codes that analyze the data. Most of the experiments conducted in Abu Dhabi are a continuation and expansion of a process already begun in New York; however, some experiments are unique to the NYUAD site, including the study of Arabic speakers’ brain patterns in collaboration with UAE University.

Most of the lab’s experiments are run using magnetoencephalography imaging technology, or MEG for short, which records magnetic fields from the brain’s electrical signals. According to Stephen Politzer-Ahles, a postdoctoral associate at the NeLLab, the MEG directly records neuronal electronic signals associated with brain activities and is therefore more precise than other techniques, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging, which only measures the oxygenation of blood flow. The MEG is also passive, recording signals coming out of the brain without sending signals of its own like the fMRI.

Experiments using the MEG take place inside a magnetic shielding booth and require the participants to lay their heads under a helmet that is equipped with about 200 sensors. In one experiment, the participants either hear a series of pre-recorded words or read words on a screen while the sensors of the MEG record all brain activity every few milliseconds. After that, laser scanners create 3D models of the participants’ heads. The data that each sensor records is analyzed and mapped out against the 3D model, allowing the researchers to see which parts of the brain are associated with specific language comprehension.

In the experiment, what the participants hear or read is chosen to reflect how the composition of certain words influences participants’ perceptions of their meaning. For example, “runner” is comprised of the verb “run” and the suffix “-er”, while “corner,” also ending with “-er,” does not have the same components. Exposing the participants to these two words allows researchers to determine whether words like “runner” are processed as a whole or as two components.

The lab is also interested in exploring how people deduce meaning from language. “Another part of [this research] has to do with interpersonal connection since we don’t always say what we really mean,” Politzer-Ahles said. He used a basic example to demonstrate this point: When someone says, “It’s hot in here!” that may be understood as an indirect request to open the window. The lab’s future studies will involve experiments to see how the brain comprehends these kinds of signals.

The lab plans to expand research in the future. With the opening of the Saadiyat campus, the lab hopes to attract more participants to its current studies with a location more accessible to students and faculty. Furthermore, the arrival of the fMRI technology next year will allow researchers to take pictures of each individual’s brain and examine more closely the roles that each part of the brain plays in the comprehension of language.

Politzer-Ahles also anticipates the participation of speakers of other languages in the lab’s research.

“Our location in Abu Dhabi is ideal for studying people who speak other languages, like Arabic and Urdu,” Politzer-Ahles said.

“It would be interesting to study how [speakers of other languages] differ from English speakers in the way their brains process languages,” he continued.

The NeLLab is currently looking for participants for its studies. To learn more about and/or participate in the experiments at the NeLLab, contact them by email <meglab-nyuad-group@nyu.edu>