Using technology that measures the magnetic field generated by the activation of neurons in the brain, University of Washington researchers say they’ve found what appears to be a link between the listening and speaking areas of the brain in newborn, 6-month-old and 1-year-old infants.

The study shows Broca’s area, located in the front of the left hemisphere of the brain, is gradually activated during an infant’s initial year of life, according to Toshiaki Imada, lead author of the paper and a research professor at the University of Washington.

Magnetoencephalography is perfectly non-invasive and measures the magnetic field generated by neurons in the brain responding to sensory information that then ‘leaks’ through the skull, said Imada.

We think the connection between perception and production of speech gets formed by experience, and we are trying to determine when and how babies do it, said study co-author Patricia Kuhl.

The research appears in the journal NeuroReport.