The Neural Basis of Reading

"Only fifty years ago the idea of unravelling the neural code of written language would have aroused ridicule. These skeptics would be amazed at the groundbreaking contributions represented in this superb collection of papers on the neuroscience of reading No reading researcher can remain unaware of the exciting developments that are taking place in this field."---Uta Frith, FmedSci, FBA, FRS, Emeritus Professor of Cognitive Development UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience

"Most people equate the concept of written word with that of meaning and would not imagine that there may be a stage of neural computation that holds not just the physical word or its meaning but intermediary representations inaccessible to conscious evaluation. Reading this book makes it incredibly real that not just one of these mysterious intermediary representations exists but several, and that we are starting to understand what they are and how they interact. This contribution is a state-of-the-art introduction to the neural underpinnings of the most powerful activity of the human mind: reading."---Guillaume Thierry, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience, Bangor University

Reading is a unique human ability that has become very pivotal for functioning in our world today. As modern societies rely extensively on literacy skills, and as reading disabilities have profound personal, economic and social consequences, it is surprising that we have a very underdeveloped scientific understanding of the neural basis of reading and visual word recognition in the normal brain. A better understanding of normal reading processes could help individuals with developmental dyslexia and other reading disabilities, and also inform our strategies for improving early learning and carrying out effective interventions. Neuroimaging offers a unique window on reading through which we have achieved profound insights into its neural correlates in both health and disease, and has also raised important questions that have generated much scientific debate.

This book addresses some of the fundamental questions in reading research. Piers Comelissen, Peter Hansen, Morten Kringelbach, and Ken Pugh have brought together some of the leading scientists to provide comprehensive articles that shed light on the neural basis of reading. Its broad-yet-integrative treatment is divided into three parts: 1) behavioral data and modelling (with direct implications for neuroimaging), 2) neuroimaging, and 3) impaired reading. The book will be a useful resource for everyone interested in the reading brain, particularly those in neuroimaging, cognition and attention, sensation and perception, language, development and aging, education, and computational modelling.

Piers L. Cornelissen, BM, BCh, D.Phil., is a Reader in Psychology at the Department of Psychology at the University of York.
Peter C. Hansen, D.Phil., is the Director of Neuroinformatics at the Birmingham University Imaging Centre (BUIC) and Senior Research Fellow in the School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, UK.
Morten L. Kringelbach, D.Phil., is the Director of Hedonia: Trygfonden Research Group and holds a dual appointment at the University of Oxford, UK, and Aarhus University, Denmark, where he is a Senior Research Fellow and a Professor of Neuroscience, respectively.
Ken Pugh is President and Director of Research and Senior Scientist at Haskins Laboratories, as well as Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at Yale University School of Medicine.