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Cao B, Zeng X, Zhang J, Wang X, Li F. Stronger spatial bias induced more by numbers in mind than numbers in eye: Evidence from event-related potentials. Biol Psychol 2023; 179:108565. [PMID: 37062354 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2022] [Revised: 04/06/2023] [Accepted: 04/13/2023] [Indexed: 04/18/2023]
Abstract
The relationship between number and space is an important issue in numerical cognition. The spatial-numerical association of response codes (SNARC) effect is a classic example of the association between numbers and spaces. It refers to the phenomenon whereby left-handed responses occur faster to small number and right-handed responses occur faster to large number. The current study explored the shared and distinct neural correlates of the SNARC effect considering numbers in eye and numbers in mind, by using event-related potentials (ERPs) technology. In each trial of the task, participants were asked to press freely one of two keys as a response to a number presented visually (numbers in eye) or via imagination (numbers in mind). The behavioral results indicated that the free-choice key presses were affected by the magnitudes of the numbers either in eye or in mind. Electrophysiological results observed that the SNARC effect appeared only in the 110 - 140 ms time window for numbers in eye. In contrast, for numbers in mind, the SNARC effect appeared during a longer time window (110 - 330 ms). These results suggest that both, numbers in eye and numbers in mind, can induce spatial bias at the early stimulus-representation stage, but the time duration of the spatial bias is longer for numbers in mind than numbers in eye. This may reflect a closer connection between numbers in mind and mental number line.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bihua Cao
- School of Psychology, Jiangxi Normal University, Nanchang, 330022, China.
| | - Xiaodong Zeng
- School of Psychology, Jiangxi Normal University, Nanchang, 330022, China
| | - Jing Zhang
- School of Psychology, Jiangxi Normal University, Nanchang, 330022, China
| | - Xiaotao Wang
- School of Psychology, Jiangxi Normal University, Nanchang, 330022, China
| | - Fuhong Li
- School of Psychology, Jiangxi Normal University, Nanchang, 330022, China.
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2
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Kolarik AJ, Raman R, Moore BCJ, Cirstea S, Gopalakrishnan S, Pardhan S. The accuracy of auditory spatial judgments in the visually impaired is dependent on sound source distance. Sci Rep 2020; 10:7169. [PMID: 32346036 PMCID: PMC7189236 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-64306-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2019] [Accepted: 04/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Blindness leads to substantial enhancements in many auditory abilities, and deficits in others. It is unknown how severe visual losses need to be before changes in auditory abilities occur, or whether the relationship between severity of visual loss and changes in auditory abilities is proportional and systematic. Here we show that greater severity of visual loss is associated with increased auditory judgments of distance and room size. On average participants with severe visual losses perceived sounds to be twice as far away, and rooms to be three times larger, than sighted controls. Distance estimates for sighted controls were most accurate for closer sounds and least accurate for farther sounds. As the severity of visual impairment increased, accuracy decreased for closer sounds and increased for farther sounds. However, it is for closer sounds that accurate judgments are needed to guide rapid motor responses to auditory events, e.g. planning a safe path through a busy street to avoid collisions with other people, and falls. Interestingly, greater visual impairment severity was associated with more accurate room size estimates. The results support a new hypothesis that crossmodal calibration of audition by vision depends on the severity of visual loss.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew J Kolarik
- Vision and Eye Research Institute, School of Medicine, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, United Kingdom. .,Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
| | - Rajiv Raman
- Vision and Eye Research Institute, School of Medicine, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, United Kingdom.,Shri Bhagwan Mahavir Vitreoretinal Services, Sankara Nethralaya Eye Hospital, Chennai, India
| | - Brian C J Moore
- Vision and Eye Research Institute, School of Medicine, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, United Kingdom.,Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Silvia Cirstea
- Vision and Eye Research Institute, School of Medicine, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, United Kingdom.,School of Computing and Information Science, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Sarika Gopalakrishnan
- Faculty of Low Vision Care, Elite School of Optometry, Chennai, India.,Low Vision Care Department, Sankara Nethralaya Eye Hospital, Chennai, India
| | - Shahina Pardhan
- Vision and Eye Research Institute, School of Medicine, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, United Kingdom
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3
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Pasqualotto A, Furlan M, Proulx MJ, Sereno MI. Visual loss alters multisensory face maps in humans. Brain Struct Funct 2018; 223:3731-3738. [PMID: 30043118 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-018-1713-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2015] [Accepted: 07/04/2018] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Topographically organised responses to visual and tactile stimulation are aligned in the ventral intraparietal cortex. The critical biological importance of this region, which is thought to mediate visually guided defensive movements of the head and upper body, suggests that these maps might be hardwired from birth. Here, we investigated whether visual experience is necessary for the creation and positioning of these maps by assessing the representation of tactile stimulation in congenitally and totally blind participants, who had no visual experience, and late and totally blind participants. We used a single-subject approach to the analysis to focus on the potential individual differences in the functional neuroanatomy that might arise from different causes, durations and sensory experiences of visual impairment among participants. The overall results did not show any significant difference between congenitally and late blind participants; however, single-subject trends suggested that visual experience is not necessary to develop topographically organised maps in the intraparietal cortex, whilst losing vision disrupted topographic maps' integrity and organisation. These results discussed in terms of brain plasticity and sensitive periods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Achille Pasqualotto
- School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK. .,Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, UK. .,Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Sabanci University, 34956, Tuzla, Istanbul, Turkey.
| | - Michele Furlan
- SISSA (Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati), Trieste, Italy
| | - Michael J Proulx
- School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.,Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, UK
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4
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Rinaldi L, Merabet LB, Vecchi T, Cattaneo Z. The spatial representation of number, time, and serial order following sensory deprivation: A systematic review. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2018; 90:371-380. [PMID: 29746876 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2018.04.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2017] [Revised: 03/15/2018] [Accepted: 04/27/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The spatial representation of numerical and temporal information is thought to be rooted in our multisensory experiences. Accordingly, we may expect visual or auditory deprivation to affect the way we represent numerical magnitude and time spatially. Here, we systematically review recent findings on how blind and deaf individuals represent abstract concepts such as magnitude and time (e.g., past/future, serial order of events) in a spatial format. Interestingly, available evidence suggests that sensory deprivation does not prevent the spatial "re-mapping" of abstract information, but differences compared to normally sighted and hearing individuals may emerge depending on the specific dimension considered (i.e., numerical magnitude, time as past/future, serial order). Herein we discuss how the study of sensory deprived populations may shed light on the specific, and possibly distinct, mechanisms subserving the spatial representation of these concepts. Furthermore, we pinpoint unresolved issues that need to be addressed by future studies to grasp a full understanding of the spatial representation of abstract information associated with visual and auditory deprivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luca Rinaldi
- Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milano, Italy; NeuroMI, Milan Center for Neuroscience, Milano, Italy.
| | - Lotfi B Merabet
- The Laboratory for Visual Neuroplasticity, Department of Ophthalmology, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA
| | - Tomaso Vecchi
- Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy; IRCCS Mondino Foundation, Pavia, Italy
| | - Zaira Cattaneo
- Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milano, Italy; IRCCS Mondino Foundation, Pavia, Italy.
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5
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The Spatial Musical Association of Response Codes does not depend on a normal visual experience: A study with early blind individuals. Atten Percept Psychophys 2018; 80:813-821. [DOI: 10.3758/s13414-018-1495-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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6
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Karim AKMR, Proulx MJ, Likova LT. Anticlockwise or clockwise? A dynamic Perception-Action-Laterality model for directionality bias in visuospatial functioning. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2016; 68:669-693. [PMID: 27350096 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.06.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2015] [Revised: 06/18/2016] [Accepted: 06/22/2016] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Orientation bias and directionality bias are two fundamental functional characteristics of the visual system. Reviewing the relevant literature in visual psychophysics and visual neuroscience we propose here a three-stage model of directionality bias in visuospatial functioning. We call this model the 'Perception-Action-Laterality' (PAL) hypothesis. We analyzed the research findings for a wide range of visuospatial tasks, showing that there are two major directionality trends in perceptual preference: clockwise versus anticlockwise. It appears these preferences are combinatorial, such that a majority of people fall in the first category demonstrating a preference for stimuli/objects arranged from left-to-right rather than from right-to-left, while people in the second category show an opposite trend. These perceptual biases can guide sensorimotor integration and action, creating two corresponding turner groups in the population. In support of PAL, we propose another model explaining the origins of the biases - how the neurogenetic factors and the cultural factors interact in a biased competition framework to determine the direction and extent of biases. This dynamic model can explain not only the two major categories of biases in terms of direction and strength, but also the unbiased, unreliably biased or mildly biased cases in visuosptial functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- A K M Rezaul Karim
- Envision Research Institute, 610 N. Main St, Wichita, KS 67203, USA; The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute, 2318 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA 94115, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh.
| | - Michael J Proulx
- Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK.
| | - Lora T Likova
- The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute, 2318 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA 94115, USA.
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7
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The effect of hand movements on numerical bisection judgments in early blind and sighted individuals. Cortex 2015; 71:76-84. [PMID: 26184675 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2015.06.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2015] [Revised: 06/07/2015] [Accepted: 06/08/2015] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Recent evidence suggests that in representing numbers blind individuals might be affected differently by proprioceptive cues (e.g., hand positions, head turns) than are sighted individuals. In this study, we asked a group of early blind and sighted individuals to perform a numerical bisection task while executing hand movements in left or right peripersonal space and with either hand. We found that in bisecting ascending numerical intervals, the hemi-space in which the hand was moved (but not the moved hand itself) influenced the bisection bias similarly in both early blind and sighted participants. However, when numerical intervals were presented in descending order, the moved hand (and not the hemi-space in which it was moved) affected the bisection bias in all participants. Overall, our data show that the operation to be performed on the mental number line affects the activated spatial reference frame, regardless of participants' previous visual experience. In particular, both sighted and early blind individuals' representation of numerical magnitude is mainly rooted in world-centered coordinates when numerical information is given in canonical orientation (i.e., from small to large), whereas hand-centered coordinates become more relevant when the scanning of the mental number line proceeds in non-canonical direction.
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8
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Brown DJ, Simpson AJR, Proulx MJ. Visual objects in the auditory system in sensory substitution: how much information do we need? Multisens Res 2015; 27:337-57. [PMID: 25693300 DOI: 10.1163/22134808-00002462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Sensory substitution devices such as The vOICe convert visual imagery into auditory soundscapes and can provide a basic 'visual' percept to those with visual impairment. However, it is not known whether technical or perceptual limits dominate the practical efficacy of such systems. By manipulating the resolution of sonified images and asking naïve sighted participants to identify visual objects through a six-alternative forced-choice procedure (6AFC) we demonstrate a 'ceiling effect' at 8 x 8 pixels, in both visual and tactile conditions, that is well below the theoretical limits of the technology. We discuss our results in the context of auditory neural limits on the representation of 'auditory' objects in a cortical hierarchy and how perceptual training may be used to circumvent these limitations.
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Fischer MH, Shaki S. Spatial Associations in Numerical Cognition—From Single Digits to Arithmetic. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2014; 67:1461-83. [DOI: 10.1080/17470218.2014.927515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 125] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
The literature on spatial associations during number processing is dominated by the SNARC (spatial–numerical association of response codes) effect. We describe spatial biases found for single digits and pairs of numbers, first in the “original” speeded parity task and then extending the scope to encompass different tasks, a range of measures, and various populations. Then we review theoretical accounts before surveying the emerging evidence for similar spatial associations during mental arithmetic. We conclude that the mental number line hypothesis and an embodied approach are useful frameworks for further studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin H. Fischer
- Division of Cognitive Sciences, University of Potsdam, Potsdam OT Golm, Germany
| | - Samuel Shaki
- Psychology Department, Ariel University, Ariel, Israel
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Ricciardi E, Handjaras G, Pietrini P. The blind brain: How (lack of) vision shapes the morphological and functional architecture of the human brain. Exp Biol Med (Maywood) 2014; 239:1414-20. [DOI: 10.1177/1535370214538740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Since the early days, how we represent the world around us has been a matter of philosophical speculation. Over the last few decades, modern neuroscience, and specifically the development of methodologies for the structural and the functional exploration of the brain have made it possible to investigate old questions with an innovative approach. In this brief review, we discuss the main findings from a series of brain anatomical and functional studies conducted in sighted and congenitally blind individuals by our’s and others' laboratories. Historically, research on the ‘blind brain’ has focused mainly on the cross-modal plastic changes that follow sensory deprivation. More recently, a novel line of research has been developed to determine to what extent visual experience is truly required to achieve a representation of the surrounding environment. Overall, the results of these studies indicate that most of the brain fine morphological and functional architecture is programmed to develop and function independently from any visual experience. Distinct cortical areas are able to process information in a supramodal fashion, that is, independently from the sensory modality that carries that information to the brain. These observations strongly support the hypothesis of a modality-independent, i.e. more abstract, cortical organization, and may contribute to explain how congenitally blind individuals may interact efficiently with an external world that they have never seen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emiliano Ricciardi
- Laboratory of Clinical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dept. of Surgery, Medical, Molecular, and Critical Area Pathology, University of Pisa, I-56127 Pisa, Italy
- Research Center ‘E. Piaggio’, University of Pisa, I-56127 Pisa, Italy
| | - Giacomo Handjaras
- Laboratory of Clinical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dept. of Surgery, Medical, Molecular, and Critical Area Pathology, University of Pisa, I-56127 Pisa, Italy
| | - Pietro Pietrini
- Laboratory of Clinical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dept. of Surgery, Medical, Molecular, and Critical Area Pathology, University of Pisa, I-56127 Pisa, Italy
- Research Center ‘E. Piaggio’, University of Pisa, I-56127 Pisa, Italy
- Clinical Psychology Branch, Pisa University Hospital, I-56127 Pisa, Italy
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