The left brain vs. right brain myth - Elizabeth Waters

Mit o levoj i desnoj strani mozga - Elizabet Voters (Elizabeth Waters)

Prevodilac: Mile Živković Lektor: Milenka Okuka

Behold the human brain,

Pogledajte ljudski mozak,

it's lumpy landscape visibly split into a left and right side.

brdoviti pejzaž vidno razdeljen na levu i desnu stranu.

This structure has inspired one of the most pervasive ideas about the brain,

Ova struktura nadahnula je jednu od preovlađujućih ideja o mozgu:

that the left side controls logic

da leva strana kontroliše logiku,

and the right, creativity.

a desna kreativnost.

And yet, this is a myth unsupported by scientific evidence.

Ipak, ovo je mit koji nije zasnovan na naučnim dokazima.

So how did this misleading idea come about,

Kako je onda došlo do ove neistinite ideje,

and what does it get wrong?

i gde je greška?

It's true that the brain has a right and a left side.

Istina je da mozak ima levu i desnu stranu.

This is most apparent with the outer layer, or the cortex.

Ovo se najbolje vidi kod spoljašnjeg sloja, korteksa.

Internal regions, like the striatum,

Unutrašnji delovi, poput strijatuma,

hypothalamus,

hipotalamusa,

thalamus,

talamusa

and brain stem

i moždanog stabla

appear to be made from continuous tissue,

kao da su sačinjeni iz neprekidnog vlakna,

but in fact, they're also organized with left and right sides.

ali su zapravo organizovani na levu i desnu stranu.

The left and the right sides of the brain do control different body functions,

Leva i desna strana mozga zapravo kontrolišu različite funkcije tela,

such as movement and sight.

poput kretanja i vida.

The brain's right side controls the motion of the left arm and leg and vice versa.

Desna strana mozga kontroliše kretanje leve ruke i noge i obrnuto.

The visual system is even more complex.

Sistem vida još je složeniji.

Each eye has a left and right visual field.

Oba oka imaju levo i desno vidno polje.

Both left visual fields are sent to the right side of the brain,

Oba leva vidna polja šalju se u desnu stranu mozga

and both right fields are sent to the left side.

i oba desna vidna polja šalju se u levu stranu mozga.

So the brain uses both sides to make a complete image of the world.

Mozak onda koristi obe strane da stvori potpunu sliku sveta.

Scientists don't know for sure why we have that crossing over.

Naučnici ne znaju zasigurno zašto postoji to ukrštanje.

One theory is it began soon after animals developed more complex nervous systems

Jedna teorija kaže da je počelo ubrzo nakon što su životinje razvile

because it gave the survival advantage of quicker reflexes.

složenije nervne sisteme, jer smo tako dobili prednost bržih refleksa.

If an animal sees a predator coming from its left side,

Ako životinja vidi grabljivicu koja joj prilazi sleva,

it's best off escaping to the right.

najbolje je da beži na desno.

So we can say that vision and movement control are two systems

Možemo reći da su vid i kontrola kretanja dva sistema koja se oslanjaju

that rely on this left-right structure,

na strukturu levo-desno,

but problems arise when we over-extend that idea to logic and creativity.

ali problemi nastaju kada tu zamisao proširimo na logiku i kreativnost.

This misconception began in the mid-1800s

Ova zabluda počela je sredinom 19. veka

when two neurologists, Broca and Wernicke,

kada su dva neurologa, Broka i Vernike,

examined patients who had problems communicating due to injuries.

ispitivali pacijente koji su imali probleme u komunikaciji zbog ozleda.

The researchers found damage to the patients' left temporal lobes,

Istraživači su otkrili oštećenja na levim temporalnim režnjevima,

so they suggested that language is controlled by the left side of the brain.

tako da su navodili da leva strana mozga kontroliše jezik.

That captured the popular imagination.

To je ušlo u popularnu maštu.

Author Robert Louis Stevenson

Pisac Robert Luis Stivenson

then introduced the idea of a logical left hemisphere

zatim je uveo ideju logičke leve hemisfere

competing with an emotional right hemisphere

koja se takmiči sa emotivnom desnom hemisferom

represented by his characters Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

i to predstavio kroz svoje likove, doktora Džekila i gospodina Hajda.

But this idea didn't hold up when doctors and scientists

Ali ova ideja nije istrajala kada su doktori i naučnici

examined patients who were missing a hemisphere

ispitivali pacijente kojima je nedostajala jedna hemisfera

or had their two hemispheres separated.

ili kojima su dve hemisfere bile odvojene.

These patients showed a complete range of behaviors,

Ovi pacijenti pokazivali su potpun niz ponašanja,

both logical and creative.

i logičkih i kreativnih.

Later research showed that one side of the brain is more active than the other

Kasnija istraživanja pokazala su da je jedna strana mozga aktivnija od druge

for some functions.

za neke funkcije.

Language is more localized to the left

Jezik je više lokalizovan u levoj strani,

and attention to the right.

dok je pažnja u desnoj.

So one side of the brain may do more work,

Tako jedna strana mozga možda radi više,

but this varies by system rather than by person.

ali ovo više zavisi od sistema nego osobe.

There isn't any evidence to suggest

Nema dokaza koji bi sugerisali

that individuals have dominant sides of the brain,

da pojedinci imaju dominantnu stranu mozga

or to support the idea of a left-right split

ili da podrže ideju podele na levu i desnu stranu

between logic and creativity.

između logike i kreativnosti.

Some people may be particularly logical or creative,

Neki ljudi mogu biti izrazito logični ili kreativni,

but that has nothing to do with the sides of their brains.

ali to nema veze sa stranama njihovog mozga.

And even the idea of logic and creativity being at odds with each other

Čak i sama ideja logike i kreativnosti, koje su jedna nasuprot drugoj,

doesn't hold up well.

nije baš smislena.

Solving complex math problems requires inspired creativity

Rešavanje složenih matematičkih problema zahteva nadahnutu kreativnost

and many vibrant works of art have intricate logical frameworks.

i mnoga sjajna umetnička dela imaju složene logičke okvire.

Almost every feat of creativity and logic

Skoro svaki logički i kreativni podvig

carries the mark of the whole brain functioning as one.

nosi u sebi znak jedinstvenog mozga koji funkcioniše kao celina.