Washington, Mar 29 (IANS): It doesn't hurt to take a break, especially when you are learing a new language, says a new study.
Adult subjects who had been taught to speak and comprehend an artificial language to high proficiency and then took several months break did not show any change in their language abilities, said study authors Michael Ullman and Kara Morgan-Short of Georgetown (Washington) and Illinois (Chicago) Universities, the journal Public Library of Science ONE reported.
The time away from the language even seemed to help the subjects process the artificial language more "naturally," said a university statement.
After the delay, the way the subjects processed the artificial language's syntax in the brain was more similar to processing a first language than it was immediately after they learned the new language.