For some reading may be a very boring activity, more so if we're talking about serial ones like Harry Potter. What these people don't know is that the brain actually engages different regions not only to help you read but also to assist you in understanding what you're reading.
A team of researchers from Carnegie Mellon University tapped on selected volunteers to read a chapter in the first book of Harry Potter called the Sorcerer's Stone. While reading, the brain activity of these participants is captured through an MRI scanner, which also has a screen where they can read the passage.
According to graduate student Leila Wehbe, who spent the most time and effort for the study, different sections of the brain tend to be active depending on what the reader is trying to accomplish.
For example, when the reader is trying to piece together words and phrases to determine the length of sentence, the right temporo-parietal cortex, which is found around the back portion of the brain, becomes more active. Another region around the same area, meanwhile, is stimulated when the reader is trying to identify movements of characters in the story.
The results of the research are already available in PLOS ONE website since Wednesday, November 26. Along with Wehbe, the study is conducted with Tom Mitchell, a computer scientist of Machine Learning Department of the said university.
For Wehbe, this study shows great potential especially in trying to determine the scientific reasons why some are able to read well and some don't, especially those who are suffering from dyslexia. The regions that are the most active when reading during the said experiment are also the same areas that are engaged among excellent readers.
For one psychiatry assistant professor of Massachusetts General Hospital, Evelina Fedorenko, the approach used in the research is good and that understanding how the brain comprehends and understands what it sees, hears, and reads is always a challenge for those in neuroscience.
The researchers, on the other hand, hope to conduct the same study but this time among those with reading disorders.