Scientists from Northwestern University in the United States have for the first time identified specific brain regions outside the frontal lobe - the temporal and parietal cortex - that are associated with speech intention. This discovery paves the way for the future use of brain computer interfaces (BCI) to treat Broca's aphasia. The relevant paper was published in the Journal of Neuroengineering on the 13th. When a person sees a cat, they clearly know what it is, but the word 'cat' is stuck on their lips and cannot speak - this phenomenon is called Broca's aphasia or expressive aphasia. This is a language barrier that affects the patient's ability to speak or write. The current main treatment method is language therapy, but scientists at Northwestern University are researching a potentially more effective treatment: using BCI to convert brain signals into speech. To achieve this goal, the first step is to accurately locate which region of the brain BCI should capture signals from in order to accurately decode the patient's speech intention. It is worth noting that current BCI devices are mainly used for patients with paralysis caused by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or brainstem stroke, who are unable to move or communicate. In these patients, BCI typically records signals from the frontal lobe of the brain. But Broca's aphasia most commonly occurs in stroke or brain tumor patients, which is caused by damage to the frontal lobe of the brain. The frontal lobe is the place where language and parts of language are processed. Therefore, in order to assist patients with Broca's aphasia, scientists need to explore the possibility of capturing signals from other regions of the brain. In this study, scientists selected 9 patients without language barriers but with epilepsy or brain tumors, and used BCI electrode arrays to record the electrical signals on the surface of their cerebral cortex. The patient is asked to read words from the monitor or remain silent (i.e. in a resting state). At the same time, scientists recorded their brain signals, namely cortical electroencephalography. Finally, scientists identified non frontal brain regions associated with speech intention, namely the temporal and parietal cortex. Research has shown that these non frontal regions do contain information related to speech intention, allowing them to distinguish when patients are ready to speak, when they are not planning to speak, or simply thinking about something they do not want to express. (New Society)