title: The use of intracranial recordings to decode human language: Challenges and opportunities.
abstract: Decoding speech from intracranial recordings serves two main purposes: understanding the neural correlates of speech processing and decoding speech features for targeting speech neuroprosthetic devices. Intracranial recordings have high spatial and temporal resolution, and thus offer a unique opportunity to investigate and decode the electrophysiological dynamics underlying speech processing. In this review article, we describe current approaches to decoding different features of speech perception and production - such as spectrotemporal, phonetic, phonotactic, semantic, and articulatory components - using intracranial recordings. A specific section is devoted to the decoding of imagined speech, and potential applications to speech prosthetic devices. We outline the challenges in decoding human language, as well as the opportunities in scientific and neuroengineering applications.
authors.affiliation: Defitech Chair in Brain Machine Interface, Center for Neuroprosthetics, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland; Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.affiliation: Defitech Chair in Brain Machine Interface, Center for Neuroprosthetics, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: José Del R
authors.initials: JDR
authors.lastname: Millán
authors.affiliation: Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA; Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Robert T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Knight
authors.affiliation: Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Electronic address: bpasley@berkeley.edu.
authors.forename: Brian N
authors.initials: BN
authors.lastname: Pasley
mesh_terms: D000069280:Electrocorticography / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D004567:Electrodes, Implanted; D006801:Humans; D007802:Language; D010700:Phonetics; D012660:Semantics; D013060:Speech / Q000502:physiology*; D013067:Speech Perception / Q000502:physiology
keywords: Electrocorticography; Imagined speech; Intracranial recording; Neuroprosthetics; Spatio-temporal pattern of brain activity; Speech decoding; Time course