Eyes lock on different letters when reading

[영어도우미]

Eyes lock on different letters when reading

By Michael Kahn
Sun Sep 9, 7:14 PM ET
 

YORK (Reuters) - When we read our eyes lock on to different letters in the same word instead of scanning a page smoothly from left to right as previously thought, researchers said on Monday.
 
Using sophisticated eye tracking equipment, the team looked at letters within a word and found that people combined parts of a word that were on average two letters apart, said Simon Liversedge, a cognitive psychologist at the University of Southampton.

The findings could lead to better methods of teaching children to read and offer remedial treatments for those with reading disorders such as dyslexia, said Liversedge, who presented his work at a meeting organized by the British Association for the Advancement of Science.

"What I'm trying to understand is the relationship between the physiological processes that underpin human written language comprehension and their relationship with eye movements people make to read sentences," he said in a telephone interview.

Over the past 40 years scientists have studied eye movements and reading, with a general consensus that people look at the same letter within a word with both eyes, Liversedge said.

To test this, Liversedge and colleagues measured the reflections of a low-intensity infrared beam shone into a volunteer's eye when reading. This allowed the researchers to pinpoint exactly where the eye had fixated on a word.

Then they ran further tests to see why people did not have double vision from picking out individual letters and found that the brain fuses the two signals that come in from the different eyes into one clear image, Liversedge said.

"It had always been assumed that both eyes moved in perfect harmony and you looked at a word with just one fixation," he said. "Because of this assumption scientists looking at reading behavior have just measured one of the eyes because they assumed the eyes were doing the same thing."

The findings also add to a wealth of information about eye movements that scientists have built up over the years as they seek a better grasp of how we understand written language, Liversedge said.

They also help paint an overall picture of language comprehension that can one day benefit those with reading problems and disorders, he added.

"In order to fully understand what is going wrong in people with reading difficulties, we first need to understand what is involved in normal language comprehension," he said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/eyemovements_reading_dc;_ylt=AhGL0kEd2Ki2OULWpmrp9w5hr7sF

VOCABULARY LIST :

sophisticated - ahead in development; complex or intricate; "advanced technology"; "a sophisticated electronic control system"
dyslexia - A learning disorder marked by impairment of the ability to recognize and comprehend written words. A common example of dyslexia is reading words with the letters in reverse order, as in fyl for fly.
underpin - To give support or substance to: "the public awareness that must underpin a sustained and concerted development effort for Africa and its youth" (Barber B. Conable).

DISCUSSION POINTS :

1. Do you agree with the researchers that when we read, our eyes lock on to different letters in the

    same word? Why?

2. If our eyes therefore lock on to different letters, can you say a person has a special reading skill if he

    is able to precisely read and comprehend the word he has just read? Please explain.

3. Can you easily answer comprehension questions after reading an article once, or not? What can

    you say about yourself as a reader?

4. What do you normally do when you encounter unfamiliar words or terms in an article you are

    reading?

5. What are the usual reading difficulties you experience? What do you think you should do about it?