What happens in the brain during reading?

Specialists from the Max Planck Institute for Cognitive and Brain Sciences conducted a comprehensive analysis of more than 150 scientific papers to determine how the brain processes text when reading aloud and "silently." The study was published in the journal Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews.

It was discovered that different forms of reading activate various brain regions. For instance, when reading aloud, areas associated with movement and hearing are actively engaged, whereas silent reading requires more complex coordination between cognitive systems.

The scientists also established that reading letters activates a narrow area in the left occipital cortex, while reading words and sentences engages more extensive regions - including the left temporo-occipital and inferior frontal gyrus. These areas respond differently to real words and meaningless sets of letters (pseudowords), indicating the specificity of their functions.

The researchers paid special attention to the differences between explicit (aloud) and implicit (silent) reading. During silent text perception, the orbitofrontal cortex, cerebellum, and temporal cortex are activated, while lexical decisions engage both inferior frontal and insular regions.

The authors note that their findings help to better understand how the brain processes written information and may be useful for diagnosing and treating speech and cognitive disorders.