VISUAL IMAGE
The selection of this image was based on the main subject of my essay research: adult Second Language Acquisition (SLA). Like the activities of the neurons, SLA is an invisible and silent process that takes place in the human brain. I believe that this colorful and revolutionary visual representation of neural connectivity captures the type of brain wiring that second language learning entails. Even though instructors, friends, and family can appreciate the student’s learning results through their output and language production, deep inside the brain, every cell is communicating with each other. Adult learners are able to speak, listen, read, or write in a foreign language while the brain is modifying its own structure (plasticity). The more the network is fired, the stronger the network becomes.
To explore more on this image and its relationship with network of cortical neurons during SLA, you may click on any of the pictures on the left.