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Healthy aging leads to complex changes in the functional network of speech processing in a noisy environment. The dual‐route neural architecture has been applied to the study of speech processing. Although evidence suggests that senescent increases activity in the brain regions across the dorsal and ventral stream regions to offset reduced periphery, the regulatory mechanism of dual‐route functional networks underlying such compensation remains largely unknown. Here, by utilizing functional near‐infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), we investigated the compensatory mechanism of the dual‐route functional connectivity, and its relationship with healthy aging by using a speech perception task at varying signal‐to‐noise ratios (SNR) in healthy individuals (young adults, middle‐aged adults, and older adults). Results showed that the speech perception scores showed a significant age‐related decrease with the reduction of the SNR. The analysis results of dual‐route speech processing networks showed that the functional connection of Wernicke's area and homolog Wernicke's area were age‐related increases. Further to clarify the age‐related characteristics of the dual‐route speech processing networks, graph‐theoretical network analysis revealed an age‐related increase in the efficiency of the networks, and the age‐related differences in nodal characteristics were found both in Wernicke's area and homolog Wernicke's area under noise environment. Thus, Wernicke's area might be a key network hub to maintain efficient information transfer across the speech process network with healthy aging. Moreover, older adults would recruit more resources from the homologous Wernicke's area in a noisy environment. The recruitment of the homolog of Wernicke's area might provide a means of compensation for older adults for decoding speech in an adverse listening environment. Together, our results characterized dual‐route speech processing networks at varying noise environments and provided new insight for the compensatory theories of how aging modulates the dual‐route speech processing functional networks. Current results characterized dual‐route speech processing networks at varying noise environments, and Wernicke's area might be a key network hub to maintain efficient information transfer across the speech process network with healthy aging.

The Japanese language has a unique writing system that consists of kanji (morphograms, derived from Chinese characters) and kana (phonograms, a simplified form of kanji representing syllables). A kanji character has two distinct ways of reading: on -reading (Chinese-style pronunciation) and kun -reading (native Japanese pronunciation). Some kanji words have irregular kun -reading called jukujikun . Furthermore, kana characters have two script forms: hiragana (cursive form) and katakana (square form), each of which is used for different purposes. Because of these features, Japanese individuals with alexia and agraphia show characteristic symptoms. Lesion-to-symptom analyses and functional imaging studies developed beginning in the 1970s have reported the following findings: (1) kanji–kana dissociation in alexia/agraphia: pure alexia for kanji or kana, lexical agraphia for kanji, and phonological agraphia for kana; (2) on-kun dissociation in alexia: predominant kun -reading and jukujikun reading impairment in semantic dementia and selective on -reading impairment in the extensive posterior middle temporal gyrus lesion; and (3) allographic agraphia between hiragana and katakana .

The human insula is a functionally complex yet poorly understood region of the cortex, implicated in a wide range of cognitive, motor, emotion and somatosensory activity. To elucidate the functional role of the insula, the current study used in vivo probabilistic tractography to map the structural connectivity of seven anatomically-defined insular subregions. The connectivity patterns identified reveal two complementary insular networks connected via a dual route architecture, and provide key insights about the neural basis of the numerous functions ascribed to this area. Specifically, anterior-most insular regions were associated with a ventrally-based network involving orbital/inferior frontal and anterior/polar temporal regions, forming part of a key emotional salience and cognitive control network associated with the implementation of goal-directed behavior. The posterior and dorsal-middle insular regions were associated with a network focused on posterior and (to a lesser extent) anterior temporal regions via both dorsal and ventral pathways. This is consistent with the involvement of the insula in sound-to-speech transformations, with an implicated role in the temporal resolution, sequencing, and feedback processes crucial for auditory and motor processing, and the monitoring and adjustment of expressive performance. ► The human insula is a functionally complex yet poorly understood cortical region. ► Explored structural connectivity of the human insula via probabilistic tractography. ► Identified two insular networks connected via a dual route architecture. ► Anterior insula forms part of emotional salience and cognitive control network. ► Posterior-middle insula associated with sensorimotor mapping and language production.

Recent studies on the imitation of intransitive gestures suggest that the body part effect relies mainly upon the direct route of the dual-route model through a visuo-transformation mechanism. Here, we test the visuo-constructive hypothesis which posits that the visual complexity may directly potentiate the body part effect for meaningless gestures. We predicted that the difference between imitation of hand and finger gestures would increase with the visuo-spatial complexity of gestures. Second, we aimed to identify some of the visuo-spatial predictors of meaningless finger imitation skills. Thirty-eight participants underwent an imitation task containing three distinct set of gestures, that is, meaningful gestures, meaningless gestures with low visual complexity, and meaningless gestures with higher visual complexity than the first set of meaningless gestures. Our results were in general agreement with the visuo-constructive hypothesis, showing an increase in the difference between hand and finger gestures, but only for meaningless gestures with higher visuo-spatial complexity. Regression analyses confirm that imitation accuracy decreases with resource-demanding visuo-spatial factors. Taken together, our results suggest that the body part effect is highly dependent on the visuo-spatial characteristics of the gestures.

•ECoG high‐gamma analysis reveals distinct spatiotemporal reading dynamics.•Kanji reading activates bilateral ventral occipitotemporal cortex early.•Kana reading shows prolonged activation in the left dorsal pathway.•Distinct neural circuits mediate Kanji versus Kana processing. Reading engages complex neural networks integrating visual, phonological, and semantic information. The dual-stream model posits ventral and dorsal pathways for lexical and sublexical processing in the left hemisphere and is well-supported in alphabetic languages. However, its applicability to non-alphabetic scripts remains unclear. The Japanese writing system, comprising Kana (syllabograms) and Kanji (morphograms) with distinct orthographic, phonological, and semantic properties, provides a unique framework to investigate neural dissociation between phonological and orthographic-semantic processing. Previous studies suggest that Kanji relies on the ventral route for whole-word recognition and semantic processing, whereas Kana depends mainly on the dorsal route for phonological decoding via grapheme-to-phoneme conversion; however, their spatiotemporal dynamics remain unknown. Using high-gamma power analysis from electrocorticography recordings in 14 patients with epilepsy and subdural implants, we examined the spatiotemporal neural dynamics of Kana and Kanji reading. Participants completed a visual lexical decision task with Kana and Kanji words and pseudowords. Across 912 electrodes, differential high-gamma power analysis showed that Kanji activated bilateral occipitotemporal fusiform regions early (120–550 ms) and the left inferior temporal gyrus (150–240 ms). Conversely, Kana showed prolonged late activation (270–750 ms) in the left-lateralised superior temporal, supramarginal, and inferior frontal gyri, especially during pseudoword processing. These findings indicate that Kanji relies on bilateral ventral stream earlier, while Kana depends on the left dorsal stream, with slower processing reflecting the extra grapheme-to-phoneme conversion. This underscores the value of non-alphabetic languages in elucidating both universal and script-specific neural mechanisms, advancing a cross-linguistic understanding of the reading network. [Display omitted]

          The Parallel Architecture (PA) framework (Jackendoff 2002, 2007, Culicover & Jackendoff 2005) is one of the most complete constraint-based linguistic theories that encompasses phonology, syntax and semantics. However, it lacks a fully developed model of word formation. More recently, a theory called Relational Morphology (RM) (Jackendoff & Audring 2020) has been developed, that integrates into the PA. The current study shows how the Slot Structure model (Benavides 2003, 2009, 2010), which is compatible with the PA and is based on the dual-route model and percolation of features (Pinker 1999, 2006; Huang & Pinker 2010), can provide a better account of morphology than RM, and can also be incorporated into the PA, thus contributing to make this a more explanatory framework. Spanish data are used as the basis to demonstrate the implementation of the SSM. The current paper demonstrates two key problems for RM: inconsistent and confusing coindexation, and a proliferation of schemas, and shows that these issues do not arise in the Slot Structure model. Overall, the paper points out significant drawbacks in the RM framework, while at the same time showing how the PA’s morphological component can be enriched with the Slot Structure model.

Idiom priming effects (faster processing compared to novel phrases) are generally robust in native speakers but not non-native speakers. This leads to the question of how idioms and other multiword units are represented and accessed in a first (L1) and second language (L2). We address this by investigating the processing of translated Chinese idioms to determine whether known L1 combinations show idiom priming effects in non-native speakers when encountered in the L2. In two eye-tracking experiments we compared reading times for idioms vs. control phrases (Experiment 1) and for figurative vs. literal uses of idioms (Experiment 2). Native speakers of Chinese showed recognition of the L1 form in the L2, but figurative meanings were read more slowly than literal meanings, suggesting that the non-compositional nature of idioms makes them problematic in a non-native language. We discuss the results as they relate to crosslinguistic priming at the multiword level.

Previous research has demonstrated conflicting findings concerning orthographic access in older age. The current study examines whether older adults rely more heavily on stored knowledge while spelling, through testing of word concreteness. Forty-one younger (age 20–29), 41 middle age (age 45–55), and 40 healthy older adults (age 70–80) spelled 60 concrete and 60 abstract Hebrew words from dictation. Coding distinguished between homophonic errors that involved the use of a phonologically plausible letter and non-homophonic errors that could indicate working memory difficulties. All participants spelled more concrete than abstract words correctly, the two younger age groups spelled more words correctly than did the older adults, and there was an interaction between condition and age, with a greater concreteness effect in the oldest group. Additionally, younger adults made more homophonic errors than did older adults, whereas older adults made significantly more non-homophonic errors than the other two groups. We suggest that older adults’ misspellings do not reflect impairment in activating orthographic representations, but difficulties in the execution of spelling. The study provides evidence for an aging-related decreased use of phoneme-to-grapheme conversion rules in spelling (e.g., sub-lexical route), alongside increased reliance on stored orthographic knowledge (e.g., lexical route).

Maize is crucial for food, feed, and industrial materials. The seed purity directly affects yield and quality. Advancements in automation have led to the lightweight unmanned maize detasseling vehicle (UDV). To boost UDV’s efficiency, this paper proposes a dual-route and dual-mode adaptive ant colony optimization (DRDM-AACO) for the detasseling route planning in maize seed production fields with hybrid spatial constraints. A mathematical model is established based on a proposed projection method for male flower nodes. To improve the performance of the ACO, four innovative mechanisms are proposed: a dual-route preference based on the dynamic selection strategy to ensure the integrity of the route topology; a dynamic candidate set with the variable neighborhood search strategy to balance exploration and exploitation; a non-uniform initial pheromone allocation based on the principle of intra-row priority and inter-row inhibition, and direction-constrained adaptive dual-mode pheromone regulation through local penalty and global evaporation strategies to reduce intra-row turnback routes. Comparative experiments showed DRDM-AACO reduced the route by 6.2% compared to ACO variants, verifying its effectiveness. Finally, experiments with various sizes and actual farmland compared DRDM-AACO to other various algorithms. The route was shortened by 32%, confirming its practicality and superiority.