At a Loss for Words
“I did not feel like A.H. Raskin. I now had a new self, a person who no longer could use words with mastery.” ~A.H. Raskin, editor for the NY Times
Language is the principal means whereby we formulate our thoughts and convey them to others. It allows us to disclose our fondest memories of the past and communicate our emotions. Language has been instilled in us ever since we were babies inside our mother’s womb. We often take language for granted since most of us have never had to live a life of silence. It is perhaps because of this that people who have suffered brain damage caused by strokes, gunshot wounds, brain tumors, or other traumatic brain injuries feel a loss of self when they lose their ability to speak (1) . If we can’t talk then we can’t communicate right? Wrong.
We often speak of our brains being lateralized. What is brain lateralization exactly? Brain lateralization pertains to the fact that the two halves of our so-called “symmetrical” brain are not exactly alike. There are functional specializations that are specific to each hemisphere (2). For the most part language areas are concentrated in the left hemisphere. Surprisingly, only about three percent of right-handers and nineteen percent of left-handers have language controlled by the right hemisphere (3). Two major areas of the brain, Broca’s area and Wernicke’s area are responsible for language production and language comprehension, respectively. It is fairly difficult to assess exactly what parts of the brain control language, anything really, by any means other than clinical reports of people with brain injuries or diseases. Approximately one million people in the United States currently have aphasia, the language disorder that results from damage to portions of the brain responsible for language (1). Some people with aphasia have problems primarily with expressive language often termed Broca’s aphasia, whereas others have problems with receptive language often dubbed Wernicke’s aphasia (3). The two get their names from Paul Broca, a French neurosurgeon, and Carl Wernicke, a German neurologist who identified their respective parts in the mid-1800s (2). Broca’s area describes the lower rear portion of the frontal lobe on the left side that is in front of the motor strip (4). Patients with Broca’s aphasia often omit small words such as “is”, “and”, and “the (5).” A person with this type of aphasia may say, “Walk dog” meaning, “I will take the dog for a walk.
...ports Illustrated cover photo of a pit bull (Pit Bull Rescue Central, "Breed Information”). Dog fighting made a comeback during the 1980s and the pit bull became the favorite macho dog for dog fighters. The dogs were trained to kill or be killed. Pit bulls were also the preferred guard dog for gangs, thugs and criminals. Since the supporters and detractors of pit bulls hold such disparate opinions regarding the ferocity of the breeds, it is only hoped that further discussion and education will help resolve the sad fate that awaits these unfortunate animals. Simply placing all the blame on the breeds will not solve the problems of dog fighting, overbreeding, aggressive training, and excessive euthanizations. Lastly, the biased, sensationalistic publicity of horrific dog attacks which has destroyed the reputation of the once beloved All American Dog must cease.
The media’s attack on pit bulls started when drug dealers were chaining them up using them as a weapon against police. In the media Pit Bulls and portrayed as vicious dogs that attack owners, strangers, and children without warning. There are several other breeds that bite and attack, however you only hear about the pit bulls. For example if on day one a Lab mix bites a child you will see it in the newspaper the following day; day two when a Great Dane bites two adults you will see it on the news the next day; day three a Rottweiler attacks an elderly woman in her backyard and it is aired on all network stations; day four a Pit Bull Terrier bites a mailman and you will hear and see it on every station in the country. This is a good example
Aphasia can be defined as a disorder that is caused by damage to parts of the brain that are responsible for language (“Aphasia” n.p.). Wernicke’s aphasia is a type of fluent aphasia (with the other type being nonfluent). It is named after Carl Wernicke who described the disorder as “an amnesiac disorder characterized by fluent but disordered speech, with a similar disorder in writing, and impaired understanding of oral speech and reading” (“Wernicke’s” n.p.). Wernicke’s aphasia can also be known as sensory aphasia, fluent aphasia, or receptive aphasia. It is a type of aphasia that is caused by damage to Wernicke’s area in the brain, in the posterior part of the temporal lobe of the left hemisphere. This area of the brain contains motor neurons responsible for the understanding of spoken language and is believed to be the receptive language center (“Rogers” n.p.). Wernicke’s aphasia can be most efficiently defined as a fluent language disorder commonly caused by strokes and characterized by difficulty comprehending spoken language and producing meaningful speech and writing which is both assessable by an SLP and treatable by a variety of methods.
of "bad dogs". From the first police dogs to criminals dog of choice Pit bulls have been
Blumberg, Jess. “A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials.” Smithsonian. 24 Oct. 2007. Web.
In England these dogs are known for being many dogs on how gentle and loving these dogs are towards children. Pit bulls are extremely loyal to their owners and their family. "Since the 1980s, the media have falsely portrayed the pit bull as a bloodthirsty monster, inherently more dangerous than other strong breeds of dog. There is absolutely no factual basis for that narrative." (Holland Joshua, 2013) The media has tainted the reputation of this animal, all anyone hears on the News is all of the terrible incident that happened but never the good stories. For example "Last Saturday, five-year-old Remayah was riding her bike when a neighbor 's Labrador retriever mix attacked; before the girl 's mother could run outside to chase the dog away, the family 's own pit bull named "Trigger," jumped into action. Almost as soon as the attack started, Trigger jumped a fence and attacked the dog who was attacking the little girl." (examiner.com) Another great unheard story were the tables have
Language is both a blessing and a curse. Without it, we couldn't share and receive information vital to our existence. Language not only develops in conjunction with society’s historical, economic and political evolution, but also reflects that society’s attitudes and thinking. It surrounds us, shapes our thoughts and is being shaped in turn. But are we its masters or its slaves? Whether we like it or not, we live our lives under the spell of language. Language is how we communicate and understand the world around us. The possession of language is powerful and unconscious in the human brain. We wield the power of speech with nothing more than mere nonchalance. Even thousands of years after we discovered language, we still unconsciously feel that if a thought is spoken or put in print, it somehow assumes greater significance (Sletto).
This doesn't occur when the pit bull are trained to dog fight by their owners. The owner should be the one to blame for Pit Bulls bad behavior not the breed. Pit Bulls be for their big thing on discriminating had many great nicknames. “In decades past the American Pit Bull was a canine icon. Nicknamed “America's dog” and favored for it’s remarkable loyalty and affability, images of the breed were everywhere. A Pit Bull named sergeant stubby won 13 decorations for his service in trenches of the first world war”(globalanimal.com). Pit Bulls are very helpful dogs. They would do anything to save their owners and their family form any disaster because they love them and don't want them to be hurt.Pit Bulls have one other great names that goes right with them. “Their affinity and gentleness toward children was so wildly known to appreciate it inspired a second nickname “the nanny dog”(globalanimal.com). They have such a sweet personality that the discriminators so far over look. They can only see them for the mean dog they think they are. If people would look at the good quality's in the dog breed they wouldn't look down on them so much; they may even appreciate
A common stereotype of “pit bulls are vicious animals” used as an excuse for why parents will not allow their children to go over to a pit bull owning person’s house to play with other children. In recent times the pit bull has received a bad reputation from the media due to dog fighting cases and false stories. During both world wars the American Pit Bull Terrier was used for many military propaganda posters because of its powerful and loyal characteristics as well as held officer positions in the military. Many households, such as my own, find the breed to be the best pets for their families because Pit Bulls are very protective and loving dogs. Even though Pit bulls can have an aggressive behavior if not trained properly, I believe the American
The following report details some of the more common malicious code specifically viruses, explaining some of the damage, which these very powerful viruses can inflict on to any computer that it is not well prepared for this kinds of attacks.
Language is a part of our everyday lives, and we can describe the meaning of language in many ways. As suggested in Gee and Hayes (2011, p.6 ) people can view language as something in our minds or something existing in our world in the form of speech, audio recordings, and writings or we can view language as a way of communicating with a group of people. Language can be used to express our emotions, make sense of our mental and abstract thoughts and assists us in communicating with others around us. Language is of vital importance for children to enable them to succeed in school and everyday life. Everyone uses both oral and written language. Language developed as a common ability amongst human beings with the change
Have you ever wondered who taught you to talk the way you do? People learn to talk and express themselves everyday of their lives. Starting from the day you were born you used language or some form of it to communicate with those around you. As a baby you usually show your displeasure with your new surroundings by crying, and if you don’t the doctor will make sure you do. Everyday we express our point of view to others in some form of language. Whether it is through verbal communication, written discourse or through body language, you can tell if a person is upset, angry, or happy. We as human beings don’t realize how much language has to do with our lives. How can you determine if one of your friends is angry with you? Is there a different tone to their voice? Do they have a stern look on their face? Of course they do, your friend feels the need to express their anger to you by these different forms of language. Where do we learn to use these different forms of language? How are our uses of these languages shaped? The three main contributing factors to how we express ourselves through language come from our schooling, our friends, and most of all from our families.
...rformance. For example, Craik & Lockhart (1972) found that individuals who processed information at a semantic level produced better recalls followed by acoustic processing and then visual processing being the least effective in terms of remembering. The results fundamentally imply that engaging in semantic processing tends to yield higher levels of memory performance compared to acoustic and visual processing thus reflecting the findings of Craik & Lockhart’s (1972) and that memory was enhanced more by depth of processing rather than how long information was rehearsed for as previously pointed out by the multi-store model. It also showed a greater amount of recall for deeply processed words than for shallowly processed words. In addition, the study also revealed that the effect appeared to be stronger for the ‘True’ responses that for the ‘False’ responses.
I learned a lot about Human Communication in this class when I read the chapter about Nonverbal Communication. Nonverbal Communication is the process of using messages that are not words to generate meaning. I learned that it happens every day. I also learned that is very hard to read or understand depending on the person you are speaking to or with. Verbal and Nonverbal codes work in conjunction with each other. The words we speak or say are used in conjunction six different ways: to repeat, to emphasize, to complement, to contradict, to substitute, and to regulate. I never knew until reading this chapter that we do these things all most every time we communicate. These are things I took for granted until now. I now know that I will pay
Speaking is a natural ability given to most reluctant individuals. Since the beginning of time, it has been assumed that we have a right to speak and use words, thus we naturally begin our development of language during the early stages of live. After years of grasping and perfecting our vocabulary and language, it seems unnecessary to study the purpose of our development. Why, then, should we study “oral communication?” There are many purposes, benefits, and institutions that branch from oral communication. Of course, communication is the basis of interaction with other individuals through the use of expressions and words; however, through studying oral communication, one can take the words and expressions being used and apply them to his or her own life. After all, the most effective and useful knowledge is applied knowledge.