Page 183 - SpringBoard_ELA_Grade8_Flipbook

aCTIvITy 2.15
continued
Conducting effective research
article
concurrently: occurring at the same time
deterioration: the act or process of becoming worse
Word CoNNeCTIoNS
Content Connections
Brain
http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/18/should-cellphone-use-by-drivers-be-illegal/
1 Behavioral studies have shown that talking on a cellphone diverts the driver’s attention and disrupts driving performance. We investigated that question by looking
at brain activity that occurs during driving. In our study, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we examined the effect of listening to someone speak on the brain activity associated with simulated driving.
Brain activity associated with spatial processing when driving without distraction (left) and when driving while listening to sentences (right).
Center for Cognitive Brain Imaging, Carnegie Mellon University
2 Participants steered a vehicle along a curving virtual road, either undisturbed or while listening to spoken sentences that they judged as true or false. The parietal lobe activation associated with spatial processing in driving decreased by 37 percent when participants concurrently listened to the sentences. We found that listening comprehension tasks drew mental resources away from driving and produced a deterioration in driving performance, even though the drivers weren’t holding or dialing a phone.
3 These brain activation findings show the biological basis for the deterioration in driving performance (in terms of errors and staying in a lane) that occurs when one is also processing language. They suggest that under mentally demanding circumstances, it may be dangerous to combine processing of spoken language with a task like driving a car in demanding circumstances.
4 Our listening experiment did not require the participants to speak, so it was probably less disruptive to driving than an actual two-way conversation might be. It’s likely that our study actually underestimates the reduction in driving performance.
5 If listening to sentences degrades driving performance, then probably a number
of other common driver activities—including tuning or listening to a radio, eating and drinking, monitoring children or pets, or even conversing with a passenger—would also cause reduced driving performance.
In general terms, spatial means “relating to, occupying, or having the character of space.” Scientifically speaking, spatial refers to the location of objects and the metric relationships between them. Specific to how the brain reacts, spatial processing indicates the brain activity required to engage spatial memory and orientation so that driving can occur.
my Notes
How the
Reacts
156 SpringBoard® English Language Arts Grade 8
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