1
|
Benedetto A, Chelli E, Petrizzo I, Arrighi R, Anobile G. The role of motor effort on the sensorimotor number system. PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH 2024:10.1007/s00426-024-02002-2. [PMID: 38980356 DOI: 10.1007/s00426-024-02002-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2024] [Accepted: 07/02/2024] [Indexed: 07/10/2024]
Abstract
The integration of numerical information with motor processes has emerged as a fascinating area of investigation in both animal and human cognition. The interest in a sensorimotor number system has recently generated neurophysiological and psychophysical evidence which combine to highlight the importance of motor functions in the encoding of numerical information. Nevertheless, several key questions remain, such as the influence of non-numerical motor parameters over numerical perception. Here we tested the role of physical effort, a parameter positively correlated with the number of actions, in modulating the link between hand-actions and visual numerosity perception. Effort was manipulated during sensorimotor adaptation as well as during a new actions-estimation paradigm. The results of Experiment 1 shows that physical effort in the absence of actions (passive effort) is not sufficient to activate the sensorimotor number system, indicating that self-produced actions are instead necessary. Further experiments demonstrated that effort is marginally integrated during motor adaptation (Experiment 2) but discarded when estimating the number of self-produced hand actions (Experiment 3). Overall, the results indicate that the sensorimotor number system is largely fed by the number of discrete actions rather than the amount of effort but also indicates that effort (under specific circumstances) might be integrated. These findings provide novel insights into the sensorimotor numerical integration, paving the way for future investigations, such as on its functional role.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Benedetto
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Eleonora Chelli
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
- School of Psychology, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Irene Petrizzo
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
- Center for Mind/Brain Science, University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy
| | - Roberto Arrighi
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Giovanni Anobile
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Liao DA, Brecht KF, Veit L, Nieder A. Crows "count" the number of self-generated vocalizations. Science 2024; 384:874-877. [PMID: 38781375 DOI: 10.1126/science.adl0984] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2023] [Accepted: 04/22/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
Producing a specific number of vocalizations with purpose requires a sophisticated combination of numerical abilities and vocal control. Whether this capacity exists in animals other than humans is yet unknown. We show that crows can flexibly produce variable numbers of one to four vocalizations in response to arbitrary cues associated with numerical values. The acoustic features of the first vocalization of a sequence were predictive of the total number of vocalizations, indicating a planning process. Moreover, the acoustic features of vocal units predicted their order in the sequence and could be used to read out counting errors during vocal production.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Diana A Liao
- Animal Physiology, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Katharina F Brecht
- Animal Physiology, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Lena Veit
- Neurobiology of Vocal Communication, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Tübingen Auf der Morgenstelle 28, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Andreas Nieder
- Animal Physiology, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Anobile G, Petrizzo I, Paiardini D, Burr D, Cicchini GM. Sensorimotor mechanisms selective to numerosity derived from individual differences. eLife 2024; 12:RP92169. [PMID: 38564239 PMCID: PMC10987086 DOI: 10.7554/elife.92169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
We have previously shown that after few seconds of adaptation by finger-tapping, the perceived numerosity of spatial arrays and temporal sequences of visual objects displayed near the tapping region is increased or decreased, implying the existence of a sensorimotor numerosity system (Anobile et al., 2016). To date, this mechanism has been evidenced only by adaptation. Here, we extend our finding by leveraging on a well-established covariance technique, used to unveil and characterize 'channels' for basic visual features such as colour, motion, contrast, and spatial frequency. Participants were required to press rapidly a key a specific number of times, without counting. We then correlated the precision of reproduction for various target number presses between participants. The results showed high positive correlations for nearby target numbers, scaling down with numerical distance, implying tuning selectivity. Factor analysis identified two factors, one for low and the other for higher numbers. Principal component analysis revealed two bell-shaped covariance channels, peaking at different numerical values. Two control experiments ruled out the role of non-numerical strategies based on tapping frequency and response duration. These results reinforce our previous reports based on adaptation, and further suggest the existence of at least two sensorimotor number channels responsible for translating symbolic numbers into action sequences.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Giovanni Anobile
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of FlorenceFlorenceItaly
| | - Irene Petrizzo
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of FlorenceFlorenceItaly
| | - Daisy Paiardini
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of FlorenceFlorenceItaly
| | - David Burr
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of FlorenceFlorenceItaly
- School of Psychology, University of Sydney, Camperdown NSWSydneyAustralia
| | | |
Collapse
|
4
|
Kondapaneni N, Perona P. A number sense as an emergent property of the manipulating brain. Sci Rep 2024; 14:6858. [PMID: 38514690 PMCID: PMC10958013 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-56828-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2023] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024] Open
Abstract
The ability to understand and manipulate numbers and quantities emerges during childhood, but the mechanism through which humans acquire and develop this ability is still poorly understood. We explore this question through a model, assuming that the learner is able to pick up and place small objects from, and to, locations of its choosing, and will spontaneously engage in such undirected manipulation. We further assume that the learner's visual system will monitor the changing arrangements of objects in the scene and will learn to predict the effects of each action by comparing perception with a supervisory signal from the motor system. We model perception using standard deep networks for feature extraction and classification. Our main finding is that, from learning the task of action prediction, an unexpected image representation emerges exhibiting regularities that foreshadow the perception and representation of numbers and quantity. These include distinct categories for zero and the first few natural numbers, a strict ordering of the numbers, and a one-dimensional signal that correlates with numerical quantity. As a result, our model acquires the ability to estimate numerosity, i.e. the number of objects in the scene, as well as subitization, i.e. the ability to recognize at a glance the exact number of objects in small scenes. Remarkably, subitization and numerosity estimation extrapolate to scenes containing many objects, far beyond the three objects used during training. We conclude that important aspects of a facility with numbers and quantities may be learned with supervision from a simple pre-training task. Our observations suggest that cross-modal learning is a powerful learning mechanism that may be harnessed in artificial intelligence.
Collapse
|
5
|
Caponi C, Castaldi E, Burr DC, Binda P. Adaptation to numerosity affects the pupillary light response. Sci Rep 2024; 14:6097. [PMID: 38480839 PMCID: PMC10938002 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-55646-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2023] [Accepted: 02/26/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024] Open
Abstract
We recently showed that the gain of the pupillary light response depends on numerosity, with weaker responses to fewer items. Here we show that this effect holds when the stimuli are physically identical but are perceived as less numerous due to numerosity adaptation. Twenty-eight participants adapted to low (10 dots) or high (160 dots) numerosities and subsequently watched arrays of 10-40 dots, with variable or homogeneous dot size. Luminance was constant across all stimuli. Pupil size was measured with passive viewing, and the effects of adaptation were checked in a separate psychophysical session. We found that perceived numerosity was systematically lower, and pupillary light responses correspondingly smaller, following adaptation to high rather than low numerosities. This is consistent with numerosity being a primary visual feature, spontaneously encoded even when task irrelevant, and affecting automatic and unconscious behaviours like the pupillary light response.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Camilla Caponi
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Elisa Castaldi
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.
| | - David Charles Burr
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Paola Binda
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Yang H, Jia L, Zhu J, Zhang J, Li M, Li C, Pan Y. The interplay of motor adaptation and groupitizing in numerosity perception: Insights from visual motion adaptation and proprioceptive motor adaptation. PeerJ 2024; 12:e16887. [PMID: 38436019 PMCID: PMC10906262 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.16887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2023] [Accepted: 01/14/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Groupitizing is a well-established strategy in numerosity perception that enhances speed and sensory precision. Building on the ATOM theory, Anobile proposed the sensorimotor numerosity system, which posits a strong link between number and action. Previous studies using motor adaptation technology have shown that high-frequency motor adaptation leads to underestimation of numerosity perception, while low-frequency adaptation leads to overestimation. However, the impact of motor adaptation on groupitizing, and whether visual motion adaptation produces similar effects, remain unclear. In this study, we investigate the persistence of the advantage of groupitizing after motor adaptation and explore the effects of visual motion adaptation. Surprisingly, our findings reveal that proprioceptive motor adaptation weakens the advantage of groupitizing, indicating a robust effect of motor adaptation even when groupitizing is employed. Moreover, we observe a bidirectional relationship, as groupitizing also weakens the adaptation effect. These results highlight the complex interplay between motor adaptation and groupitizing in numerosity perception. Furthermore, our study provides evidence that visual motion adaptation also has an adaptation effect, but does not fully replicate the effects of proprioceptive motor adaptation on groupitizing. In conclusion, our research underscores the importance of groupitizing as a valuable strategy in numerosity perception, and sheds light on the influence of motion adaptation on this strategy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Huanyu Yang
- Key Laboratory of Basic Psychological and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang, China
| | - Liangzhi Jia
- Key Laboratory of Basic Psychological and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang, China
| | - Jun Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Basic Psychological and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang, China
| | - Jian Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Basic Psychological and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang, China
| | - Mengmeng Li
- Key Laboratory of Basic Psychological and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang, China
| | - Chenli Li
- Key Laboratory of Basic Psychological and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang, China
| | - Yun Pan
- Key Laboratory of Basic Psychological and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang, China
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Nava E, Giraud M, Bolognini N. The emergence of the multisensory brain: From the womb to the first steps. iScience 2024; 27:108758. [PMID: 38230260 PMCID: PMC10790096 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.108758] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2024] Open
Abstract
The becoming of the human being is a multisensory process that starts in the womb. By integrating spontaneous neuronal activity with inputs from the external world, the developing brain learns to make sense of itself through multiple sensory experiences. Over the past ten years, advances in neuroimaging and electrophysiological techniques have allowed the exploration of the neural correlates of multisensory processing in the newborn and infant brain, thus adding an important piece of information to behavioral evidence of early sensitivity to multisensory events. Here, we review recent behavioral and neuroimaging findings to document the origins and early development of multisensory processing, particularly showing that the human brain appears naturally tuned to multisensory events at birth, which requires multisensory experience to fully mature. We conclude the review by highlighting the potential uses and benefits of multisensory interventions in promoting healthy development by discussing emerging studies in preterm infants.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elena Nava
- Department of Psychology & Milan Centre for Neuroscience (NeuroMI), University of Milan-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | - Michelle Giraud
- Department of Psychology & Milan Centre for Neuroscience (NeuroMI), University of Milan-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | - Nadia Bolognini
- Department of Psychology & Milan Centre for Neuroscience (NeuroMI), University of Milan-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
de Hevia MD, Nava E. Intuitive mapping between nonsymbolic quantity and observed action across development. J Exp Child Psychol 2024; 237:105758. [PMID: 37579614 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2023.105758] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2023] [Revised: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 07/19/2023] [Indexed: 08/16/2023]
Abstract
Adults' concurrent processing of numerical and action information yields bidirectional interference effects consistent with a cognitive link between these two systems of representation. This link is in place early in life: infants create expectations of congruency across numerical and action-related stimuli (i.e., a small [large] hand aperture associated with a smaller [larger] numerosity). Although these studies point to a developmental continuity of this mapping, little is known about the later development and thus how experience shapes such relationships. We explored how number-action intuitions develop across early and later childhood using the same methodology as in adults. We asked 3-, 6-, and 8-year-old children, as well as adults, to relate the magnitude of an observed action (a static hand shape, open vs. closed, in Experiment 1; a dynamic hand movement, opening vs. closing, in Experiment 2) to either a small or large nonsymbolic quantity (numerosity in Experiment 1 and numerosity and/or object size in Experiment 2). From 6 years of age, children started performing in a systematic congruent way in some conditions, but only 8-year-olds (added in Experiment 2) and adults performed reliably above chance in this task. We provide initial evidence that early intuitions guiding infants' mapping between magnitude across nonsymbolic number and observed action are used in an explicit way only from late childhood, with a mapping between action and size possibly being the most intuitive. An initial coarse mapping between number and action is likely modulated with extensive experience with grasping and related actions directed to both arrays and individual objects.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maria Dolores de Hevia
- Integrative Neuroscience and Cognition Center, Université Paris Cité, National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), F-75006 Paris, France.
| | - Elena Nava
- Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, 20126 Milan, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Lenoir J, Badets A. Effect of egocentric and allocentric reference frames on spatial-numerical associations. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2023:17470218231216269. [PMID: 37953262 DOI: 10.1177/17470218231216269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2023]
Abstract
From an embodied view of cognition, sensorimotor mechanisms are strongly involved in abstract processing, such as Arabic number meanings. For example, spatial cognition can influence number processing. These spatial-numerical associations (SNAs) have been deeply explored since the seminal SNAs of response code (SNARC) effect (i.e., faster left/right sided responses to small/large magnitude numbers, respectively). Although these SNAs along the transverse plane (left-to-right axis) have been extensively studied in cognitive sciences, no systematic assessment of other planes of the tridimensional space has been afforded. Moreover, there is no evidence of how SNAs organise themselves throughout the changes in spatial body-reference frames (egocentric and allocentric). Hence, this study aimed to explore how SNAs organise themselves along the transverse and sagittal planes when egocentric and allocentric changes are processed during body displacements in the environment. In the first experiment, the results revealed that, when the participants used an egocentric reference, SNAs were observed only along the sagittal plane. In a second experiment that used an allocentric reference, the reversed pattern of results was observed: SNAs were present only along the transverse plane of the body. Overall, these findings suggest that, depending on the spatial reference frames of the body, SNAs are strongly flexible.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Julie Lenoir
- INCIA-UMR 5287-CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
| | - Arnaud Badets
- INCIA-UMR 5287-CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Kirschhock ME, Nieder A. Numerical Representation for Action in Crows Obeys the Weber-Fechner Law. Psychol Sci 2023; 34:1322-1335. [PMID: 37883792 DOI: 10.1177/09567976231201624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The psychophysical laws governing the judgment of perceived numbers of objects or events, called the number sense, have been studied in detail. However, the behavioral principles of equally important numerical representations for action are largely unexplored in both humans and animals. We trained two male carrion crows (Corvus corone) to judge numerical values of instruction stimuli from one to five and to flexibly perform a matching number of pecks. Our quantitative analysis of the crows' number production performance shows the same behavioral regularities that have previously been demonstrated for the judgment of sensory numerosity, such as the numerical distance effect, the numerical magnitude effect, and the logarithmical compression of the number line. The presence of these psychophysical phenomena in crows producing number of pecks suggests a unified sensorimotor number representation system underlying the judgment of the number of external stimuli and internally generated actions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Andreas Nieder
- Animal Physiology Unit, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Tübingen
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Petrizzo I, Pellegrino M, Anobile G, Doricchi F, Arrighi R. Top-down determinants of the numerosity-time interaction. Sci Rep 2023; 13:21098. [PMID: 38036544 PMCID: PMC10689472 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-47507-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2023] [Accepted: 11/14/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous studies have reported that larger visual stimuli are perceived as lasting longer than smaller ones. However, this effect disappears when participants provide a qualitative judgment, by stating whether two stimuli have the "same or different" duration, instead of providing an explicit quantitative judgment (which stimulus lasts longer). Here, we extended these observations to the interaction between the numerosity of visual stimuli, i.e. clouds of dots, and their duration. With "longer vs shorter" responses, participants judged larger numerosities as lasting longer than smaller ones, both when the responses were related to the order (Experiment 1) or color (Experiment 4) of stimuli. In contrast, no similar effect was found with "same vs different" responses (Experiment 2) and in a time motor reproduction task (Experiment 3). The numerosity-time interference in Experiment 1 and Experiment 4 was not due to task difficulty, as sensory precision was equivalent to that of Experiment 2. We conclude that in humans the functional interaction between numerosity and time is not guided, in the main, by a shared bottom-up mechanism of magnitude coding. Rather, high-level and top-down processes involved in decision-making and guided by the use of "magnitude-related" response codes play a crucial role in triggering interference among different magnitude domains.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Irene Petrizzo
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology, and Child Health, University of Florence, 50139, Florence, Italy
| | - Michele Pellegrino
- Dipartimento di Psicologia 39, Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza", Rome, Italy
| | - Giovanni Anobile
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology, and Child Health, University of Florence, 50139, Florence, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Doricchi
- Dipartimento di Psicologia 39, Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza", Rome, Italy.
| | - Roberto Arrighi
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology, and Child Health, University of Florence, 50139, Florence, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Kirschhock ME, Nieder A. Association neurons in the crow telencephalon link visual signs to numerical values. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2313923120. [PMID: 37903264 PMCID: PMC10636302 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2313923120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Many animals can associate signs with numerical values and use these signs in a goal-directed way during task performance. However, the neuronal basis of this semantic association has only rarely been investigated, and so far only in primates. How mechanisms of number associations are implemented in the distinctly evolved brains of other animal taxa such as birds is currently unknown. Here, we explored this semantic number-sign mapping by recording single-neuron activity in the crows' nidopallium caudolaterale (NCL), a brain structure critically involved in avian numerical cognition. Crows were trained to associate visual shapes with varying numbers of items in a number production task. The responses of many NCL neurons during stimulus presentation reflected the numerical values associated with visual shapes in a behaviorally relevant way. Consistent with the crow's better behavioral performance with signs, neuronal representations of numerical values extracted from shapes were more selective compared to those from dot arrays. The existence of number association neurons in crows points to a phylogenetic preadaptation of the brains of cognitively advanced vertebrates to link visual shapes with numerical meaning.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maximilian E. Kirschhock
- Animal Physiology Unit, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen72076, Germany
| | - Andreas Nieder
- Animal Physiology Unit, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen72076, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Burr DC, Morrone MC. The role of neural oscillations in visuo-motor communication at the time of saccades. Neuropsychologia 2023; 190:108682. [PMID: 37717722 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Revised: 09/08/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/19/2023]
Abstract
Saccadic eye-movements are fundamental for active vision, allowing observers to purposefully scan the environment with the high-resolution fovea. In this brief perspective we outline a series of experiments from our laboratories investigating the role of eye-movements and their consequences to active perception. We show that saccades lead to suppression of visual sensitivity at saccadic onset, and that this suppression is accompanied by endogenous neural oscillations in the delta range. Similar oscillations are initiated by purposeful hand movements, which lead to measurable changes in responsivity in area V1, and in the connectivity with motor area M1. Saccades also lead to clear distortions in apparent position, but only for verbal reports, not when participants respond with rapid pointing, consistent with the action of two separate visual systems in neurotypical adults. At the time of saccades, serial dependence, the positive influence on perception of previous stimulus attributes (such as orientation) is particularly strong. Again, these processes are accompanied by neural oscillations, in the alpha and low beta range. In general, oscillations seem to be tightly linked to serial dependence in perception, both in auditory judgments (around 10 Hz), and for visual judgements of face gender (14 Hz for female, 17 Hz for male). Taken together, the studies show that neural oscillations play a fundamental role in dynamic, active vision.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- David C Burr
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology, and Child Health, University of Florence, 50135, Florence, Italy; School of Psychology, University of Sydney, Australia.
| | - Maria Concetta Morrone
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology, and Child Health, University of Florence, 50135, Florence, Italy; Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, via San Zeno 31, 56123, Pisa, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Cicchini GM, Anobile G, Burr DC, Marchesini P, Arrighi R. The role of non-numerical information in the perception of temporal numerosity. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1197064. [PMID: 37588242 PMCID: PMC10425770 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1197064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2023] [Accepted: 07/19/2023] [Indexed: 08/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Numerosity perception refers to the ability to make rapid but approximate estimates of the quantity of elements in a set (spatial numerosity) or presented sequentially (temporal numerosity). Whether numerosity is directly perceived or indirectly recomputed from non-numerical features is a highly debated issue. In the spatial domain, area and density have been suggested as the main parameters through which numerosity would be recomputed. In the temporal domain, stimuli duration and temporal frequency could be similarly exploited to retrieve numerosity. By adapting a psychophysical technique previously exploited in the spatial domain, we investigated whether temporal visual numerosity is directly perceived. Adult participants observed sequences of visual impulses sampled from a stimulus space spanning several levels of temporal frequency and duration (and hence numerosity), and then reproduced the sequence as accurately as possible via a series of keypresses. Crucially, participants were not asked to reproduce any particular property (such as number of impulses) but were free to choose any available cue (such as total duration, or temporal frequency). The results indicate that while the overall sequence duration was barely considered, numerosity and temporal frequency were both spontaneously used as the main cues to reproduce the sequences, with a slight but significant dominance of numerosity. Overall, the results are in line with previous literature suggesting that numerosity is directly encoded, even for temporal sequences, but a non-numerical feature (temporal frequency) is also used in reproducing sequences.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Giovanni Anobile
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - David C. Burr
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
- School of Psychology, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, Australia
| | - Paolo Marchesini
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Roberto Arrighi
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Yuan X, Ni L, Li H, Zhang D, Zhou K. The neural correlates of individual differences in numerosity perception: A voxel-based morphometry study. iScience 2023; 26:107392. [PMID: 37554464 PMCID: PMC10405316 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.107392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2023] [Revised: 03/30/2023] [Accepted: 07/11/2023] [Indexed: 08/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Numerosity perception is a fundamental cognitive function in humans and animals. Using an individual difference approach with a comprehensive dataset (N = 249), we performed a voxel-based morphometry analysis to unravel the neuroanatomical substrates associated with individual differences in numerosity perception sensitivity, measured by a classical non-symbolic numerical judgment task. Results showed that greater gray matter volume (GMV) in the left cerebellum, right temporal pole, and right parahippocampal was positively correlated to higher perceptual sensitivity to numerosity. In contrast, the GMV in the left intraparietal sulcus, and bilateral precentral/postcentral gyrus was negatively correlated to the sensitivity of numerosity perception. These findings indicate that a wide range of brain structures, rather than a specific anatomical structure or circuit, forms the neuroanatomical basis of numerosity perception, lending support to the emerging network view of the neural representation of numerosity. This work contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of how the brain processes numerical information. •Unveils neuroanatomical basis of numerosity perception •Discovers positive and negative greater GMV correlations •Links GMV in a wide range of brain regions to numerical sensitivity •Supports the network view of the neural representation of numerosity perception
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xinyi Yuan
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (Beijing Normal University), Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Liangping Ni
- Department of Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230601, China
- Medical Imaging Research Center, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Huan Li
- Department of Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230601, China
- Medical Imaging Research Center, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Dai Zhang
- Department of Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230601, China
- Medical Imaging Research Center, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China
| | - Ke Zhou
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (Beijing Normal University), Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Abrahamse E, van Dijck JP. Ranking-space: magnitude makes sense through spatially scaffolded ranking. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1224254. [PMID: 37484090 PMCID: PMC10358857 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1224254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 06/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/25/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Elger Abrahamse
- Department of Communication and Cognition, Tilburg University, Tilburg, Netherlands
- Department of Educational Sciences, Atlántico Medio University, Las Palmas, Spain
| | - Jean-Philippe van Dijck
- Expertise Centre for Care and Welfare, Thomas More, Antwerp, Belgium
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Scozia G, Pinto M, Lozito S, Lasaponara S, Binetti N, Pazzaglia M, Doricchi F. Space is a late heuristic of elapsing time: New evidence from the STEARC effect. Cortex 2023; 164:21-32. [PMID: 37148825 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2023.03.009] [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: 01/09/2023] [Revised: 02/24/2023] [Accepted: 03/13/2023] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
To get a concrete representation of its intangible flow, culture frames elapsing time along spatially oriented mental or graphical lines, which are organised according to reading habits, from left to right in western cultures. One of the strongest evidence for this spatial representation of time is the STEARC effect (Spatial-Temporal Association of Response Codes), which consists of faster coding of "short" durations with motor responses in the left side of space and of "long" durations with responses in the right side. Here, we investigated the STEARC as a function of response speed in two different experiments in healthy participants. Surprisingly, in both sub- and supra-second ranges, we found the STEARC only when decisions on time durations were slow, while no spatial representation of time was present with fast decisions. This first demonstrates that space slowly takes over faster non-spatial processing of time flow and that it is possible to empirically separate the behavioural manifestations of the non-spatial and the nurtured spatial mechanisms of time coding.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gabriele Scozia
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università Degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy; Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS, Roma, Italy
| | - Mario Pinto
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università Degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy; Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS, Roma, Italy
| | - Silvana Lozito
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università Degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy; Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS, Roma, Italy
| | - Stefano Lasaponara
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università Degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy; Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS, Roma, Italy
| | - Nicola Binetti
- International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA), Trieste, Italy
| | - Mariella Pazzaglia
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università Degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy; Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS, Roma, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Doricchi
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università Degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy; Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS, Roma, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Sixtus E, Krause F, Lindemann O, Fischer MH. A sensorimotor perspective on numerical cognition. Trends Cogn Sci 2023; 27:367-378. [PMID: 36764902 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2023.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2021] [Revised: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/10/2023] [Indexed: 02/11/2023]
Abstract
Numbers are present in every part of modern society and the human capacity to use numbers is unparalleled in other species. Understanding the mental and neural representations supporting this capacity is of central interest to cognitive psychology, neuroscience, and education. Embodied numerical cognition theory suggests that beyond the seemingly abstract symbols used to refer to numbers, their underlying meaning is deeply grounded in sensorimotor experiences, and that our specific understanding of numerical information is shaped by actions related to our fingers, egocentric space, and experiences with magnitudes in everyday life. We propose a sensorimotor perspective on numerical cognition in which number comprehension and numerical proficiency emerge from grounding three distinct numerical core concepts: magnitude, ordinality, and cardinality.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elena Sixtus
- Empirical Childhood Research, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany.
| | - Florian Krause
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
| | - Oliver Lindemann
- Department of Psychology, Education and Child Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Martin H Fischer
- Department of Psychology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Lee J, Jung M, Lustig N, Lee J. Neural representations of the perception of handwritten digits and visual objects from a convolutional neural network compared to humans. Hum Brain Mapp 2023; 44:2018-2038. [PMID: 36637109 PMCID: PMC9980894 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2022] [Revised: 12/04/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
We investigated neural representations for visual perception of 10 handwritten digits and six visual objects from a convolutional neural network (CNN) and humans using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Once our CNN model was fine-tuned using a pre-trained VGG16 model to recognize the visual stimuli from the digit and object categories, representational similarity analysis (RSA) was conducted using neural activations from fMRI and feature representations from the CNN model across all 16 classes. The encoded neural representation of the CNN model exhibited the hierarchical topography mapping of the human visual system. The feature representations in the lower convolutional (Conv) layers showed greater similarity with the neural representations in the early visual areas and parietal cortices, including the posterior cingulate cortex. The feature representations in the higher Conv layers were encoded in the higher-order visual areas, including the ventral/medial/dorsal stream and middle temporal complex. The neural representations in the classification layers were observed mainly in the ventral stream visual cortex (including the inferior temporal cortex), superior parietal cortex, and prefrontal cortex. There was a surprising similarity between the neural representations from the CNN model and the neural representations for human visual perception in the context of the perception of digits versus objects, particularly in the primary visual and associated areas. This study also illustrates the uniqueness of human visual perception. Unlike the CNN model, the neural representation of digits and objects for humans is more widely distributed across the whole brain, including the frontal and temporal areas.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Juhyeon Lee
- Department of Brain and Cognitive EngineeringKorea UniversitySeoulRepublic of Korea
| | - Minyoung Jung
- Department of Brain and Cognitive EngineeringKorea UniversitySeoulRepublic of Korea
| | - Niv Lustig
- Department of Brain and Cognitive EngineeringKorea UniversitySeoulRepublic of Korea
| | - Jong‐Hwan Lee
- Department of Brain and Cognitive EngineeringKorea UniversitySeoulRepublic of Korea
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Yago Malo J, Cicchini GM, Morrone MC, Chiofalo ML. Quantum spin models for numerosity perception. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0284610. [PMID: 37098002 PMCID: PMC10128973 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0284610] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2022] [Accepted: 04/04/2023] [Indexed: 04/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Humans share with animals, both vertebrates and invertebrates, the capacity to sense the number of items in their environment already at birth. The pervasiveness of this skill across the animal kingdom suggests that it should emerge in very simple populations of neurons. Current modelling literature, however, has struggled to provide a simple architecture carrying out this task, with most proposals suggesting the emergence of number sense in multi-layered complex neural networks, and typically requiring supervised learning; while simple accumulator models fail to predict Weber's Law, a common trait of human and animal numerosity processing. We present a simple quantum spin model with all-to-all connectivity, where numerosity is encoded in the spectrum after stimulation with a number of transient signals occurring in a random or orderly temporal sequence. We use a paradigmatic simulational approach borrowed from the theory and methods of open quantum systems out of equilibrium, as a possible way to describe information processing in neural systems. Our method is able to capture many of the perceptual characteristics of numerosity in such systems. The frequency components of the magnetization spectra at harmonics of the system's tunneling frequency increase with the number of stimuli presented. The amplitude decoding of each spectrum, performed with an ideal-observer model, reveals that the system follows Weber's law. This contrasts with the well-known failure to reproduce Weber's law with linear system or accumulators models.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Yago Malo
- Department of Physics "Enrico Fermi" and INFN, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | | | - Maria Concetta Morrone
- Department of Translational Research and of New Surgical and Medical Technologies, University of Pisa and PisaVisionLab, Pisa, Italy
| | | |
Collapse
|
21
|
Kirschhock ME, Nieder A. Number selective sensorimotor neurons in the crow translate perceived numerosity into number of actions. Nat Commun 2022; 13:6913. [PMID: 36376297 PMCID: PMC9663431 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-34457-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2022] [Accepted: 10/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Translating a perceived number into a matching number of self-generated actions is a hallmark of numerical reasoning in humans and animals alike. To explore this sensorimotor transformation, we trained crows to judge numerical values in displays and to flexibly plan and perform a matching number of pecks. We report number selective sensorimotor neurons in the crow telencephalon that signaled the impending number of self-generated actions. Neuronal population activity during the sensorimotor transformation period predicted whether the crows mistakenly planned fewer or more pecks than instructed. During sensorimotor transformation, both a static neuronal code characterized by persistently number-selective neurons and a dynamic code originating from neurons carrying rapidly changing numerical information emerged. The findings indicate there are distinct functions of abstract neuronal codes supporting the sensorimotor number system.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maximilian E. Kirschhock
- grid.10392.390000 0001 2190 1447Animal Physiology Unit, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Andreas Nieder
- grid.10392.390000 0001 2190 1447Animal Physiology Unit, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Decarli G, Rämä P, Granjon L, Veggiotti L, de Hevia MD. Electrophysiological Evidence for A Number-Action Mapping in Infancy. Brain Sci 2022; 12:1480. [PMID: 36358406 PMCID: PMC9688680 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12111480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2022] [Revised: 10/23/2022] [Accepted: 10/29/2022] [Indexed: 08/16/2023] Open
Abstract
In the last decades, a growing body of literature has focused on the link between number and action. Many studies conducted on adult participants have provided evidence for a bidirectional influence between numerosity processing and grasping or reaching actions. However, it is not yet clear whether this link is functional in early infancy. Here, we used the event-related potential (ERP) technique to record electrical activity of the brain in response to number-hand pairings. We implemented a cueing paradigm where 3- to 4-month-old infants observed images showing either congruency (e.g., a large numerosity primed by a large hand opening) or incongruency (e.g., a large numerosity primed by a small hand opening). Infants' brain activity was modulated by the congruency of the pairings: amplitudes recorded over frontal and parietal-occipital scalp positions differed for congruent versus incongruent pairings. These findings suggest that the association between number and hand action processing is already functional early in life.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Maria Dolores de Hevia
- Integrative Neuroscience and Cognition Center, Université Paris Cité, CNRS, F-75006 Paris, France
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Spatial and chromatic properties of numerosity estimation in isolation and context. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0274564. [PMID: 36107920 PMCID: PMC9477322 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0274564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Numerosity estimation around the subitizing range is facilitated by a shape-template matching process and shape-coding mechanisms are selective to visual features such as colour and luminance contrast polarity. Objects in natural scenes are often embedded within other objects or textured surfaces. Numerosity estimation is improved when objects are grouped into small clusters of the same colour, a phenomenon termed groupitizing, which is thought to leverage on the subitizing system. Here we investigate whether numerosity mechanisms around the subitizing range are selective to colour, luminance contrast polarity and orientation, and how spatial organisation of context and target elements modulates target numerosity estimation. Stimuli consisted of a small number (3-to-6) of target elements presented either in isolation or embedded within context elements. To examine selectivity to colour, luminance polarity and orientation, we compared target-only conditions in which all elements were either the same or different along one of these feature dimensions. We found comparable performance in the same and different feature conditions, revealing that subitizing mechanism do not depend on ‘on-off’ luminance-polarity, colour or orientation channel interactions. We also measured the effect of varying spatial organisation of (i) context, by arranging the elements either in a grid, mirror-symmetric, translation-symmetric or random; (ii) target, by placing the elements either mirror-symmetric, on the vertices of simple shapes or random. Our results indicate higher accuracy and lower RTs in the grid compared to all other context types, with mirror symmetric, translation and random arrangements having comparable effects on target numerosity. We also found improved performance with shape-target followed by symmetric and random target arrangements in the absence and presence of context. These findings indicate that numerosity mechanisms around the subitizing range are not selective to colour, luminance polarity and orientation, and that symmetric, translation and random contexts organisations inhibit target-numerosity encoding stronger than regular/grid context.
Collapse
|
24
|
Abstract
With the increasing need for eye tracking in head-mounted virtual reality displays, the gaze-based modality has the potential to predict user intention and unlock intuitive new interaction schemes. In the present work, we explore whether gaze-based data and hand-eye coordination data can predict a user’s interaction intention with the digital world, which could be used to develop predictive interfaces. We validate it on the eye-tracking data collected from 10 participants in item selection and teleporting tasks in virtual reality. We demonstrate successful prediction of the onset of item selection and teleporting with an 0.943 F1-Score using a Gradient Boosting Decision Tree, which is the best among the four classifiers compared, while the model size of the Support Vector Machine is the smallest. It is also proven that hand-eye-coordination-related features can improve interaction intention recognition in virtual reality environments.
Collapse
|
25
|
Numerosity perception is tuned to salient environmental features. iScience 2022; 25:104104. [PMID: 35402866 PMCID: PMC8983381 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.104104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2021] [Revised: 02/03/2022] [Accepted: 03/15/2022] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Numerosity perception is a key ability to guide behavior. However, current models propose that number units encode an abstract representation of numerosity regardless of the non-numerical attributes of the stimuli, suggesting rather coarse environmental tuning. Here we investigated whether numerosity systems spontaneously adapt to all visible items, or to subsets segregated by salient attributes such as color or pitch. We measured perceived numerosity after participants adapted to highly numerous stimuli with color either matched to or different from the test. Matched colors caused a 25% underestimation of numerosity, while different colors had virtually no effect. This was true both for physically different colors, and for the same colors perceived as different, via a color-assimilation illusion. A similar result occurred in the acoustic domain, where adaptation magnitude was halved when the adaptor and test differed in pitch. Taken together, our results support the idea that numerosity perception is selectively tuned to salient environmental attributes.
Collapse
|
26
|
Pickavance JP, Giles OT, Morehead JR, Mushtaq F, Wilkie RM, Mon-Williams M. Sensorimotor ability and inhibitory control independently predict attainment in mathematics in children and adolescents. J Neurophysiol 2022; 127:1026-1039. [PMID: 35196148 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00365.2021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2021] [Revised: 01/25/2022] [Accepted: 02/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
We previously linked interceptive timing performance to mathematics attainment in 5- to 11-yr-old children, which we attributed to the neural overlap between spatiotemporal and numerical operations. This explanation implies that the relationship should persist through the teenage years. Here, we replicated this finding in adolescents (n = 200, 11-15 yr). However, an alternative explanation is that sensorimotor proficiency and academic attainment are both consequences of executive function. To assess this competing hypothesis, we developed a measure of a core executive function, inhibitory control, from the kinematic data. We combined our new adolescent data with the original children's data (total n = 568), performing a novel analysis controlling for our marker of executive function. We found that the relationship between mathematics and interceptive timing persisted at all ages. These results suggest a distinct functional link between interceptive timing and mathematics that operates independently of our measure of executive function.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Previous research downplays the role of sensorimotor skills in the development of higher-order cognitive domains such as mathematics: using inadequate sensorimotor measures, differences in "executive function" account for any shared variance. Utilizing a high-resolution, kinematic measure of a sensorimotor skill previously linked to mathematics attainment, we show that inhibitory control alone cannot account for this relationship. The practical implication is that the development of children's sensorimotor skills must be considered in their intellectual development.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- John P Pickavance
- School of Psychology, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
- Centre for Applied Education Research, Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Bradford, United Kingdom
| | - Oscar T Giles
- School of Psychology, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
| | - J Ryan Morehead
- School of Psychology, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
| | - Faisal Mushtaq
- School of Psychology, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
| | - Richard M Wilkie
- School of Psychology, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
| | - Mark Mon-Williams
- School of Psychology, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
- Centre for Applied Education Research, Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Bradford, United Kingdom
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Zhang D, Zhou L, Yang A, Li S, Chang C, Liu J, Zhou K. A connectome-based neuromarker of nonverbal number acuity and arithmetic skills. Cereb Cortex 2022; 33:881-894. [PMID: 35254408 PMCID: PMC9890459 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhac108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2021] [Revised: 02/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/16/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The approximate number system (ANS) is vital for survival and reproduction in animals and is crucial for constructing abstract mathematical abilities in humans. Most previous neuroimaging studies focused on identifying discrete brain regions responsible for the ANS and characterizing their functions in numerosity perception. However, a neuromarker to characterize an individual's ANS acuity is lacking, especially one based on whole-brain functional connectivity (FC). Here, based on the resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) data obtained from a large sample, we identified a distributed brain network (i.e. a numerosity network) using a connectome-based predictive modeling (CPM) analysis. The summed FC strength within the numerosity network reliably predicted individual differences in ANS acuity regarding behavior, as measured using a nonsymbolic number-comparison task. Furthermore, in an independent dataset of the Human Connectome Project (HCP), we found that the summed FC strength within the numerosity network also specifically predicted individual differences in arithmetic skills, but not domain-general cognitive abilities. Therefore, our findings revealed that the identified numerosity network could serve as an applicable neuroimaging-based biomarker of nonverbal number acuity and arithmetic skills.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dai Zhang
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, School of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, No. 19, Xinjiekouwai Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100875, China,Guangdong Key Laboratory for Biomedical Measurements and Ultrasound Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen University Health Science Center, No. 1066, Xueyuan Street, Nanshan District, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Liqin Zhou
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, School of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, No. 19, Xinjiekouwai Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Anmin Yang
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, School of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, No. 19, Xinjiekouwai Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Shanshan Li
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, School of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, No. 19, Xinjiekouwai Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Chunqi Chang
- Guangdong Key Laboratory for Biomedical Measurements and Ultrasound Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen University Health Science Center, No. 1066, Xueyuan Street, Nanshan District, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Jia Liu
- Department of Psychology & Tsinghua Laboratory of Brain and Intelligence, Tsinghua University, No. 30, Shuangqing Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Ke Zhou
- Corresponding author: Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, School of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, No. 19, Xinjiekouwai Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100875, China.
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Lou C, Zeng H, Chen L. Asymmetric switch cost between subitizing and estimation in tactile modality. CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s12144-022-02858-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
|
29
|
Kutter EF, Boström J, Elger CE, Nieder A, Mormann F. Neuronal codes for arithmetic rule processing in the human brain. Curr Biol 2022; 32:1275-1284.e4. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.01.054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2020] [Revised: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
|
30
|
Petrizzo I, Anobile G, Chelli E, Arrighi R, Burr DC. Visual Duration but Not Numerosity Is Distorted While Running. Brain Sci 2022; 12:brainsci12010081. [PMID: 35053824 PMCID: PMC8773608 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12010081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Revised: 12/21/2021] [Accepted: 01/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
There is increasing evidence that action and perception interact in the processing of magnitudes such as duration and numerosity. Sustained physical exercise (such as running or cycling) increases the apparent duration of visual stimuli presented during the activity. However, the effect of exercise on numerosity perception has not yet been investigated. Here, we asked participants to make either a temporal or a numerical judgment by comparing the duration or numerosity of standard stimuli displayed at rest with those presented while running. The results support previous reports in showing that physical activity significantly expands perceived duration; however, it had no effect on perceived numerosity. Furthermore, the distortions of the perceived durations vanished soon after the running session, making it unlikely that physiological factors such as heart rate underlie the temporal distortion. Taken together, these results suggest a domain-selective influence of the motor system on the perception of time, rather than a general effect on magnitude.
Collapse
|
31
|
Numbers in action. Behav Brain Sci 2021; 44:e185. [PMID: 34907873 DOI: 10.1017/s0140525x21000996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
To understand the number sense, we need to understand its function. We argue that numerosity estimation is fundamental not only for perception, but also preparation and control of action. We outline experiments that link numerosity estimation with action, pointing to a generalized numerosity system that serves both perception and action preparation.
Collapse
|
32
|
What are we doing when we perceive numbers? Behav Brain Sci 2021; 44:e193. [PMID: 34907876 DOI: 10.1017/s0140525x21001114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Clarke and Beck rightly contend that the number sense allows us to directly perceive number. However, they unnecessarily assume a representationalist approach and incur a heavy theoretical cost by invoking "modes of presentation." We suggest that the relevant evidence is better explained by adopting a radical enactivist approach that avoids characterizing the approximate number system (ANS) as a system for representing number.
Collapse
|
33
|
De Kock R, Gladhill KA, Ali MN, Joiner WM, Wiener M. How movements shape the perception of time. Trends Cogn Sci 2021; 25:950-963. [PMID: 34531138 PMCID: PMC9991018 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2021.08.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2021] [Revised: 08/07/2021] [Accepted: 08/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
In order to keep up with a changing environment, mobile organisms must be capable of deciding both where and when to move. This precision necessitates a strong sense of time, as otherwise we would fail in many of our movement goals. Yet, despite this intrinsic link, only recently have researchers begun to understand how these two features interact. Primarily, two effects have been observed: movements can bias time estimates, but they can also make them more precise. Here we review this literature and propose that both effects can be explained by a Bayesian cue combination framework, in which movement itself affords the most precise representation of time, which can influence perception in either feedforward or active sensing modes.
Collapse
|
34
|
Tsouli A, Harvey BM, Hofstetter S, Cai Y, van der Smagt MJ, Te Pas SF, Dumoulin SO. The role of neural tuning in quantity perception. Trends Cogn Sci 2021; 26:11-24. [PMID: 34702662 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2021.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2021] [Revised: 10/01/2021] [Accepted: 10/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Perception of quantities, such as numerosity, timing, and size, is essential for behavior and cognition. Accumulating evidence demonstrates neurons processing quantities are tuned, that is, have a preferred quantity amount, not only for numerosity, but also other quantity dimensions and sensory modalities. We argue that quantity-tuned neurons are fundamental to understanding quantity perception. We illustrate how the properties of quantity-tuned neurons can underlie a range of perceptual phenomena. Furthermore, quantity-tuned neurons are organized in distinct but overlapping topographic maps. We suggest that this overlap in tuning provides the neural basis for perceptual interactions between different quantities, without the need for a common neural representational code.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Andromachi Tsouli
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Ben M Harvey
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Shir Hofstetter
- The Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Yuxuan Cai
- The Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology, VU University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Maarten J van der Smagt
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Susan F Te Pas
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Serge O Dumoulin
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands; The Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology, VU University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Royal Netherlands Academy of Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Hisakata R, Kaneko H. Temporal enhancement of cross-adaptation between density and size perception based on the theory of magnitude. J Vis 2021; 21:11. [PMID: 34668931 PMCID: PMC8543400 DOI: 10.1167/jov.21.11.11] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability to estimate spatial extent is an important feature of the visual system. A previous study showed that perceived sizes of stimuli shrank after adaptation to a dense texture and that this density-size aftereffect was modulated by the degree of density. In this study, we found that the aftereffect was also modulated by the temporal density of the adapting texture. The test stimuli were two circles, and the adapting stimulus had a dotted texture. The adapting texture refreshed every 67 to 500 ms, or not at all (static), during the adaptation. The results showed that the aftereffects from a refreshing stimulus were larger than those under the static condition. On the other hand, density adaptation lacked such enhancement. This result indicates that repetitive presentation of an adapting texture enhanced the density-size cross-aftereffect. The fact that density modulation occurs in both the spatial and temporal domains is consistent with the theory of magnitude, which assumes that the processing of the magnitude estimation of space, time, and numbers share a common cortical basis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rumi Hisakata
- School of Engineering, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Kanagawa, Japan.,https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7502-4053.,
| | - Hirohiko Kaneko
- School of Engineering, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Kanagawa, Japan.,
| |
Collapse
|
36
|
Segundo-Ortin M, Calvo P. Consciousness and cognition in plants. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2021; 13:e1578. [PMID: 34558231 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2020] [Revised: 08/26/2021] [Accepted: 08/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Unlike animal behavior, behavior in plants is traditionally assumed to be completely determined either genetically or environmentally. Under this assumption, plants are usually considered to be noncognitive organisms. This view nonetheless clashes with a growing body of empirical research that shows that many sophisticated cognitive capabilities traditionally assumed to be exclusive to animals are exhibited by plants too. Yet, if plants can be considered cognitive, even in a minimal sense, can they also be considered conscious? Some authors defend that the quest for plant consciousness is worth pursuing, under the premise that sentience can play a role in facilitating plant's sophisticated behavior. The goal of this article is not to provide a positive argument for plant cognition and consciousness, but to invite a constructive, empirically informed debate about it. After reviewing the empirical literature concerning plant cognition, we introduce the reader to the emerging field of plant neurobiology. Research on plant electrical and chemical signaling can help shed light into the biological bases for plant sentience. To conclude, we shall present a series of approaches to scientifically investigate plant consciousness. In sum, we invite the reader to consider the idea that if consciousness boils down to some form of biological adaptation, we should not exclude a priori the possibility that plants have evolved their own phenomenal experience of the world. This article is categorized under: Cognitive Biology > Evolutionary Roots of Cognition Philosophy > Consciousness Neuroscience > Cognition.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Miguel Segundo-Ortin
- Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Faculty of Humanities, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Paco Calvo
- Minimal Intelligence Laboratory, Universidad de Murcia, Murcia, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
37
|
Abstract
Viewing static images depicting movement can result in a motion aftereffect: people tend to categorise direction signals as moving in the opposite direction relative to the implied motion in still photographs. This finding could indicate that inferred motion direction can penetrate sensory processing and change perception. Equally possible, however, is that inferred motion changes decision processes, but not perception. Here we test these two possibilities. Since both categorical decisions and subjective confidence are informed by sensory information, confidence can be informative about whether an aftereffect probably results from changes to perceptual or decision processes. We therefore used subjective confidence as an additional measure of the implied motion aftereffect. In Experiment 1 (implied motion), we find support for decision-level changes only, with no change in subjective confidence. In Experiment 2 (real motion), we find equal changes to decisions and confidence. Our results suggest the implied motion aftereffect produces a bias in decision-making, but leaves perceptual processing unchanged.
Collapse
|
38
|
Grasso PA, Anobile G, Caponi C, Arrighi R. Implicit visuospatial attention shapes numerosity adaptation and perception. J Vis 2021; 21:26. [PMID: 34448819 PMCID: PMC8399318 DOI: 10.1167/jov.21.8.26] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The perception of numerical quantities is susceptible to adaptation: after inspecting a numerous dot array for a few seconds a subsequent dot array is grossly underestimated. In a recent work we showed that the mere appearance of an additional numerically neutral stimulus significantly reduces the adaptation magnitude. Here we demonstrate that this reduction is likely due to a numerosity underestimation of the adaptor caused by a change of numerosity-related attentional resources deployed on the adapting stimulus. In Experiment 1 we replicated previous findings revealing a robust reduction of numerosity adaptation when an additional adaptor (even if neutral) was displayed. In Experiment 2 we used the method of magnitude estimation to demonstrate that numerosity is underestimated whenever a second task-irrelevant numerical stimulus appears on screen. Furthermore we demonstrated that the same experimental manipulations were not effective in modulating orientation adaptation magnitude as well as orientation estimation accuracy. Our results support the hypothesis of a tight relationship between numerosity perception and implicit visuospatial attention and corroborate the notion that numerosity adaptation depends on perceived rather than physical numerosity. However the lack of an effect of visuospatial attentional deployment for orientation perception suggests that attention might differently shape adaptation aftereffects for different features along the visual hierarchy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Paolo A Grasso
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.,
| | - Giovanni Anobile
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.,
| | - Camilla Caponi
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.,
| | - Roberto Arrighi
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Pharmacology and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.,
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
Belli F, Felisatti A, Fischer MH. "BreaThink": breathing affects production and perception of quantities. Exp Brain Res 2021; 239:2489-2499. [PMID: 34117890 PMCID: PMC8196292 DOI: 10.1007/s00221-021-06147-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2021] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Cognition is shaped by signals from outside and within the body. Following recent evidence of interoceptive signals modulating higher-level cognition, we examined whether breathing changes the production and perception of quantities. In Experiment 1, 22 adults verbally produced on average larger random numbers after inhaling than after exhaling. In Experiment 2, 24 further adults estimated the numerosity of dot patterns that were briefly shown after either inhaling or exhaling. Again, we obtained on average larger responses following inhalation than exhalation. These converging results extend models of situated cognition according to which higher-level cognition is sensitive to transient interoceptive states.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Belli
- Cognitive Sciences Division, Psychology Department, University of Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Str. 24-25, 14476, Potsdam, Germany.
| | - Arianna Felisatti
- Cognitive Sciences Division, Psychology Department, University of Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Str. 24-25, 14476, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Martin H Fischer
- Cognitive Sciences Division, Psychology Department, University of Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Str. 24-25, 14476, Potsdam, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
40
|
Hofstetter S, Dumoulin SO. Tuned neural responses to haptic numerosity in the putamen. Neuroimage 2021; 238:118178. [PMID: 34020014 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2021] [Revised: 05/05/2021] [Accepted: 05/15/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability to perceive the numerosity of items in the environment is critical for behavior of species across the evolutionary tree. Though the focus of studies of numerosity perception lays on the parietal and frontal cortices, the ability to perceive numerosity by a range of species suggests that subcortical nuclei may be implicated in the process. Recently, we have uncovered tuned neural responses to haptic numerosity in the human cortex. Here, we questioned whether subcortical nuclei are also engaged in perception of haptic numerosity. To that end, we utilized a task of haptic numerosity exploration, together with population receptive field model of numerosity selective responses measured at ultra-high field MRI (7T). We found tuned neural responses to haptic numerosity in the bilateral putamen. Similar to the cortex, the population receptive fields tuning width increased with numerosity. The tuned responses to numerosity in the putamen extend its role in cognition and propose that the motor-sensory loops of the putamen and basal ganglia might take an active part in numerosity perception and preparation for future action.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shir Hofstetter
- Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Meibergdreef 75, Amsterdam 1105 BK, the Netherlands.
| | - Serge O Dumoulin
- Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Meibergdreef 75, Amsterdam 1105 BK, the Netherlands; Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1181 BT, the Netherlands; Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht 3584 CS, the Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
The Evolutionary History of Brains for Numbers. Trends Cogn Sci 2021; 25:608-621. [PMID: 33926813 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2021.03.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2021] [Revised: 03/23/2021] [Accepted: 03/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Humans and other animals share a number sense', an intuitive understanding of countable quantities. Having evolved independent from one another for hundreds of millions of years, the brains of these diverse species, including monkeys, crows, zebrafishes, bees, and squids, differ radically. However, in all vertebrates investigated, the pallium of the telencephalon has been implicated in number processing. This suggests that properties of the telencephalon make it ideally suited to host number representations that evolved by convergent evolution as a result of common selection pressures. In addition, promising candidate regions in the brains of invertebrates, such as insects, spiders, and cephalopods, can be identified, opening the possibility of even deeper commonalities for number sense.
Collapse
|
42
|
Abstract
On a now orthodox view, humans and many other animals possess a "number sense," or approximate number system (ANS), that represents number. Recently, this orthodox view has been subject to numerous critiques that question whether the ANS genuinely represents number. We distinguish three lines of critique-the arguments from congruency, confounds, and imprecision-and show that none succeed. We then provide positive reasons to think that the ANS genuinely represents numbers, and not just non-numerical confounds or exotic substitutes for number, such as "numerosities" or "quanticals," as critics propose. In so doing, we raise a neglected question: numbers of what kind? Proponents of the orthodox view have been remarkably coy on this issue. But this is unsatisfactory since the predictions of the orthodox view, including the situations in which the ANS is expected to succeed or fail, turn on the kind(s) of number being represented. In response, we propose that the ANS represents not only natural numbers (e.g. 7), but also non-natural rational numbers (e.g. 3.5). It does not represent irrational numbers (e.g. √2), however, and thereby fails to represent the real numbers more generally. This distances our proposal from existing conjectures, refines our understanding of the ANS, and paves the way for future research.
Collapse
|
43
|
Clark L, Shelley-Tremblay J, Cwikla J. Shared Developmental Trajectories for Fractional Reasoning and Fine Motor Ability in 4 and 5 Year Olds. Behav Sci (Basel) 2021; 11:26. [PMID: 33672025 PMCID: PMC7919489 DOI: 10.3390/bs11020026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2020] [Revised: 01/30/2021] [Accepted: 02/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
We investigated preschool-aged children's understanding of early fractional tasks and how that performance correlates with fine motor skills and use of gestures while counting. Participants were 33 preschoolers aged 4 to 5 in two Southeastern public elementary schools. Children were tested individually in an interview-like setting. Mathematics tasks were presented in a paper and pencil format and the Grooved Pegboard test assessed fine motor skills. Finally, utilization of gestures was evaluated by taking a behavioral rating of the child's hand morphology, accuracy of gestures, and synchrony of gestures and spoken word while performing a counting task. Results indicate that performance on fractional reasoning tasks significantly predicts both fine motor ability and accuracy of gestures.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lindsey Clark
- Department of Psychology, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL 36688, USA;
| | | | - Julie Cwikla
- Creativity & Innovation in STEM, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA;
| |
Collapse
|