Wernicke's Aphasia and Broca's Aphasia
I came across these disorders today while surfing the web, and I think they are so interesting and SO MESSED UP.
Imagine you're having a conversation with someone. This person at first sounds normal. They certainly act normal. They are able to form sentences with what sound to be viable structures and grammar, seem to be confident in their knowledge of what they are talking about, and seem to comprehend what they are saying. The only problem is that you can't comprehend them one bit. To you, they are spouting completely random words that, while at first sound like real sentences, are utter gibberish.
This is a neurological disorder called Wernicke's Aphasia which is most often caused by stroke, and damage to the Wernicke's area of the brain. People who have this disorder can't comprehend language, though their speech is still intact. They can speak with what seems to be correct grammar, can intone properly, stress properly. But the words themselves are completely messed up. The real kicker is: they don't know that they're not making any sense!
The Wikipedia page I linked to gives a good example of what someone with this type of Aphasia might say:
"I called my mother on the television and did not understand the door. It was too breakfast, but they came from far to near. My mother is not too old for me to be young."
Here is a video of a man with Wernicke's:
Then there is Broca's Aphasia, which is pretty close to Wernicke's but deals with the Broca's area of the brain (as is diagramed in the Wikipedia article). This one is just as bizarre. And unlike Wernicke's, people with Broca's aphasia can't form complete sentences. Their speech is laboured, they tend to omit plenty of words, and in extreme cases may be only able to pronounce one word.
Here is a video example of such an extreme case, where the patient replaces every single word with "tono":
He is able to count some numbers towards the end, which might have to do with the fact that counting and reciting are "non-propositional" while dictating your thoughts is "propositional". The non-propositinal speech uses information that has been "stored" where propositional speech requires someone to produce articulate speech.
In any case, all of this is extremely hard for me to comprehend, mind the pun. I can't imagine ever conversing with someone by only saying "tono tono tono" and thinking that I was expressing something that they would be able to understand.
Imagine you're having a conversation with someone. This person at first sounds normal. They certainly act normal. They are able to form sentences with what sound to be viable structures and grammar, seem to be confident in their knowledge of what they are talking about, and seem to comprehend what they are saying. The only problem is that you can't comprehend them one bit. To you, they are spouting completely random words that, while at first sound like real sentences, are utter gibberish.
This is a neurological disorder called Wernicke's Aphasia which is most often caused by stroke, and damage to the Wernicke's area of the brain. People who have this disorder can't comprehend language, though their speech is still intact. They can speak with what seems to be correct grammar, can intone properly, stress properly. But the words themselves are completely messed up. The real kicker is: they don't know that they're not making any sense!
The Wikipedia page I linked to gives a good example of what someone with this type of Aphasia might say:
"I called my mother on the television and did not understand the door. It was too breakfast, but they came from far to near. My mother is not too old for me to be young."
Here is a video of a man with Wernicke's:
Click to viewThen there is Broca's Aphasia, which is pretty close to Wernicke's but deals with the Broca's area of the brain (as is diagramed in the Wikipedia article). This one is just as bizarre. And unlike Wernicke's, people with Broca's aphasia can't form complete sentences. Their speech is laboured, they tend to omit plenty of words, and in extreme cases may be only able to pronounce one word.
Here is a video example of such an extreme case, where the patient replaces every single word with "tono":
He is able to count some numbers towards the end, which might have to do with the fact that counting and reciting are "non-propositional" while dictating your thoughts is "propositional". The non-propositinal speech uses information that has been "stored" where propositional speech requires someone to produce articulate speech.
In any case, all of this is extremely hard for me to comprehend, mind the pun. I can't imagine ever conversing with someone by only saying "tono tono tono" and thinking that I was expressing something that they would be able to understand.