I read this and thought it was interesting.
New theory on cause of dyslexia
BBC News
Scientists have cast doubt on the theory that there is probably a single cause for the word disorder dyslexia.
They have found that Chinese children do have similar reading difficulties - but they can be traced to different parts of the brain than in Westerners.
The researchers, from the US National Institute of Mental Health, say their work suggests the cause of dyslexia varies in different cultures.
(...)
Many researchers think the biological root of dyslexia lies in an area of the brain called the left temporoparietal region.
But most studies of the condition have focused on letter-based, alphabetic languages such as English.
The new study concentrated on Chinese children because their language is based not on letters, but on symbols.
The researchers used sophisticated imaging technology to study the brain activity of 16 Chinese dyslexic children as they performed various language-based tasks.
Their study suggests that for these children, the problem lies in another area of the brain - the left middle frontal gyrus (LMFG).
(...)
The researchers believe their findings suggest that dyslexia may vary depending on the culture in which it is found.
It may also suggest that tasks to stimulate different areas of the brain are needed to treat people with dyslexia in different cultures.
Professor Dr Charles Perfetti, of the University of Pittsburgh who also worked on the study, said: "Our findings argue against a simple biological unity hypothesis of dyslexia."
Dr Ian Smythe, an international dyslexia consultant, agreed that the condition was linked to different deficits in different languages.
It's difficult to explain what it's like having dyslexia. It can be a real pain in the..., but I see it as a strength as well. I've had to compensate for my weaknesses caused by dyslexia and it has made me more intuitive to the people around me, better at solving problems, not to mention an asset to my creativity. It takes quite an imagination to think of ways of getting out of reading out loud in class or why you can't figure out how much change to give the cashier.
I was never a bad student, I made good grades, all A's even. That was mostly due to my memory, I remembered almost everything that was said during lectures or in discussions. It was a bit tougher when it came to reading and math. As far as math is concerned, it's still tough to this day, numbers are foreign to me. I have problems with adding and subtracting, and percentages? Forget it.. thank goodness for calculators. I can read words and letters just fine, it just takes a bit longer than normal for my brain to comprehend what my eyes are seeing. It's kinda like when you tell a joke and everyone laughs at the joke right away, but there is this one person who laughs like 5 minutes later because they just got the joke. Well, that person is me.
I'm dealing with it, I don't feel sorry for myself, if anything it builds character and it's made me who I am today. Nothing wrong with that.
CJ at 9/02/2004
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