Interesting but actually misleading (more on that later) article explaining the fMRI studies show that the brain first categorizes nouns along 3 dimensions of food, shelter, and manipulation. When I read it, I immediately wondered if we could use that study to see metaphors plain in vivo.
So I tried to find the original work behind the article. Since the article references Carnegie Mellon's Center for Cognitive Brain Imaging, I went there. I didn't find the reference I was looking for but the work of the center is very interesting as they merge neuroscience with computer science. This is very much in the line of Computer Theology.
Well, looking further, here is the press release the article is referring to. And here is the original publication (PLoS ONE 5(1): e8622. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0008622 13 January 2010) by Marcel Adam Just, Vladimir L. Chrkassky, Sandesh Aryal, and Tom M. Mitchell, entitled A Neurosemantic Theory of Concrete Noun Representation Based on the Underlying Brain Codes.
It turns out that the authors studied 60 words such as pliers, carrot, igloo, and found out that the brain uses manipulation, eating, and shelter-entry for classification. So what it's all about is actually confirming that the brain can manage its natural classification: pliers are tools, carrot is food, and igloo is shelter. It's amazing how distorted things become when we move away from the original publication. To make sure, here it is again.
Bertrand du Castel
So I tried to find the original work behind the article. Since the article references Carnegie Mellon's Center for Cognitive Brain Imaging, I went there. I didn't find the reference I was looking for but the work of the center is very interesting as they merge neuroscience with computer science. This is very much in the line of Computer Theology.
Well, looking further, here is the press release the article is referring to. And here is the original publication (PLoS ONE 5(1): e8622. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0008622 13 January 2010) by Marcel Adam Just, Vladimir L. Chrkassky, Sandesh Aryal, and Tom M. Mitchell, entitled A Neurosemantic Theory of Concrete Noun Representation Based on the Underlying Brain Codes.
It turns out that the authors studied 60 words such as pliers, carrot, igloo, and found out that the brain uses manipulation, eating, and shelter-entry for classification. So what it's all about is actually confirming that the brain can manage its natural classification: pliers are tools, carrot is food, and igloo is shelter. It's amazing how distorted things become when we move away from the original publication. To make sure, here it is again.
Bertrand du Castel
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