A Semantic Model to Study Neural Organization of Language in Bilingualism
Figure 4
Some snapshots of the model response at some instant of the simulations, performed when the L1 word is given as input to the network. The upper panels describe activity in the feature areas, while the bottom panels represent the activity in the lexical area. The L1 word is represented by neuron activity in position 5, 5 of the lexical area, while the corresponding L2 word is represented by activity in position 20, 30. Results of three simulations are given, characterized by a different proficiency of the second language: beginning of L2 training (a), after a weak L2 training (b), and after a prolonged L2 training (c). It is worth noting that, at any training level, the L1 word can evoke the correct object representation in the feature areas (represented by simultaneous activation of four features), without any significant participation of the L2 word.
