Anne-Sophie Kieslinger | Abstract number representation in the developing brain

Project Presentation (internal)

  • Date: Jun 21, 2021
  • Time: 02:00 PM - 03:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
  • Speaker: Anne-Sophie Kieslinger
  • ERC Research Group Learning in Early Childhood
  • Location: MPI for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences
  • Room: Zoom Meeting
  • Host: ERC Research Group Learning in Early Childhood
  • Contact: kieslinger@cbs.mpg.de
Anne-Sophie Kieslinger, Shreya Kapoor, Robert Trampel, Andreas Nieder, Michael A. Skeide

Humans are born with an intuitive understanding of number. For example, even neonates are able to instantly discriminate up to four visually displayed items. Besides this early understanding, it takes several years of learning and instruction until abstract number representations emerge that are invariant to low-level sensory features, multimodal and symbolic. The brain reorganization processes underlying this transition are currently unknown.

To shed light on this question, we will conduct a longitudinal study with 3-year-old children who will participate in four ultra-high-field fMRI scanning sessions over five months. During this time, these children will receive either a number learning intervention (target group) or an intervention focusing on foundational skills for reading (active control group).

We will test the hypothesis that abstract number representations are based on population coding for specific numerosities. To this end, we will reconstruct numerotopic hemodynamic responses to dots, visual digits and auditory number words using a population receptive field model introduced in recent groundwork in adults. Following single-cell recording data of macaques and human patients, we expect that abstract numerotopic responses gradually emerge in left intraparietal, dorsolateral prefrontal and parahippocampal cortices.

The present project will provide basic insights into the development of abstract thinking and provide a clinical framework for developmental learning difficulties, like dyscalculia.
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