NeuroImage

1053-81193712007Aug01NeuroImageNeuroimageResolving sentence ambiguity with planning and working memory resources: Evidence from fMRI.361378361-78We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to test competing claims about the role of executive resources during the disambiguation of a sentence featuring a temporary structural ambiguity. Written sentences with a direct object (DO) structure or a sentential complement (SC) structure were shown to 19 healthy, right-handed, young adults in a phrase-by-phrase manner. These sentences contained a main verb that is statistically more likely to be associated with a DO structure or an SC structure. Half of each type of sentence also contained an extra phrase strategically located to stress working memory prior to disambiguating the sentence. We found that sentences featuring a less consistent verb-structure mapping recruit greater dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) activation than sentences with a more consistent verb-structure mapping, implicating strategic on-line planning during resolution of a temporary structural ambiguity. By comparison, we observed left inferior parietal cortex (IPC) activation in sentences with an increased working memory demand compared to sentences with a low working memory load. These findings are consistent with a large-scale neural network for sentence processing that recruits distinct planning and working memory processing resources as needed to support the comprehension of sentences.Novais-SantosSusanaSDepartment of Bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania, USA.GeeJamesJShahMalihaMTroianiVanessaVWorkMelissaMGrossmanMurrayMengR01 NS044266NSNINDS NIH HHSUnited StatesR01 AG015116AGNIA NIH HHSUnited StatesNS44266NSNINDS NIH HHSUnited StatesP01 AG017586AGNIA NIH HHSUnited StatesAG15116AGNIA NIH HHSUnited StatesR01 NS035867NSNINDS NIH HHSUnited StatesNS35867NSNINDS NIH HHSUnited StatesAG17586AGNIA NIH HHSUnited StatesJournal ArticleResearch Support, N.I.H., ExtramuralResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov't20070513