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When people see, the brain's algebra area lights up.
When people see, the brain's algebra area lights up.
Maybe that explains why I can't see (I bump into things) when I'm doing algebra or other complex logical thinking.
When people see, the brain's algebra area lights up.
I get your point but it's absurd to call V1 - V3 an "algebra area". We actually do have a thing called "primary visual cortex" and mental calculations are known to exploit a number of existing functional areas (visual word-form area, primary visual cortex, etc).
I mean it's not like there's an owners manual for the human brain.
When people see, the brain's algebra area lights up.
I tend to agree with the premise of the article, which is brain areas can be reapportioned for different tasks.
When people see, the brain's algebra area lights up.
Except that the article says sighted people do not have an increase in that area when doing algebra. I tend to agree with the premise of the article, which is brain areas can be reapportioned for different tasks.
I wouldn't consider myself a very visual person otherwise.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I get your point but it's absurd to call V1 - V3 an "algebra area". We actually do have a thing called "primary visual cortex" and mental calculations are known to exploit a number of existing functional areas (visual word-form area, primary visual cortex, etc).
I don't think that the name many humans have agreeds to call an area of the brain is an objectively true label for it. I mean it's not like there's an owners manual for the human brain.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Except that the article says sighted people do not have an increase in that area when doing algebra. I tend to agree with the premise of the article, which is brain areas can be reapportioned for different tasks.
I'm pretty sure that I engage the visual part of my brain in those moments when I truly understand algebra. It's very beautifully overwhelming and understanding such complex mathematics through visualisation brings about one of the few moments where I get naturally high through cognitive tasks. I wouldn't consider myself a very visual person otherwise.
With no offence meant to your self knowledge, and with the understanding that you were probably not one of those tested and that our (meaning their, I guess) understanding of the workings of the brain is imperfect, I think that the point of brain imaging software is in large part so that we don't have to rely on "I'm pretty sure", and indeed can have confidence even in unintuitive conclusions.
This seems to provide once more evidence for the hypotheses that the cortex implements some sort of general purpose algorithm. The visual cortex of a blind person does not receive any sensory information, but just information from other cortical areas. Perhaps it then simply learns (by reward modulation) to augment the high-order association that occurs in the occipital lobe. Interesting stuff.