Babies Begin Studying Speech Way Before Speaking

Babies: They seem so fragile and helpless, and because they can't talk, you have no idea what they want or need. However, according to a study, just because they can't speak yet, doesn't mean they aren't learning how to do so. It gives some insight into how babies, who literally know nothing when they're born, figure out language so quickly.

A team of researchers, led by Patricia Kuhl of the University of Washington's Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences, used a process known as Magnetoencephalography to monitor babies' brains as they heard spoken syllables. Magnetoencephalography is a like a hyper-sensitive EKG. It measures the slightest movement in the brain, which is why it's a good method to use on the tiniest brains among us.

According to Kuhl and her team, by using this technique, they could see the transition from the parts of our brains that control audio systems, to the parts of our brains that control motor movements. This is important, because when adults speak, the motor area is active, while the audio is almost dormant. That means that we've already learned the words, and our brains don't need to be so active. Kuhl and her colleagues found that for infants, it's the opposite.

"We show that 7-mo-old infants activate auditory and motor brain areas similarly for native and nonnative sounds; by 11–12 mo, greater activation in auditory brain areas occurs for native sounds, whereas greater activation in motor brain areas occurs for nonnative sounds, matching the adult pattern," expained Kuhl, in her report titled Infants’ Brain Responses to Speech Suggest Analysis by Synthesis. "We posit that hearing speech invokes an Analysis by Synthesis process: auditory analysis of speech is coupled with synthesis that predicts the motor plans necessary to produce it. Both brain systems contribute to the developmental transition in infant speech perception."

The results back up what other studies have shown: That when babies learn, they go from the general to the specific. "These little citizens of the world pick up any and all sounds and languages that happen to float by," explained Science News. "But during the second half of their first year, babies get choosier and focus more brainpower on the language spoken most frequently around them. So a new sound might prompt babies to start back at square one and try to figure out how the speaker makes that noise."

In other words (pun!), babies are studying you a lot earlier, and more intently, than you thought. Which means it might be time to stop swearing every other word.

[Image via Flickr - M Glasgow]