Visuospatial coding as ubiquitous scaffolding for human cognition.

Iris I A Groen, Tessa M Dekker, Tomas Knapen, Edward H Silson

Journal: Trends in cognitive sciences 2022;26(1):81-96

PMID: 34799253

Full Text on Elsevier Science View on PubMed

Abstract

For more than 100 years we have known that the visual field is mapped onto the surface of visual cortex, imposing an inherently spatial reference frame on visual information processing. Recent studies highlight visuospatial coding not only throughout visual cortex, but also brain areas not typically considered visual. Such widespread access to visuospatial coding raises important questions about its role in wider cognitive functioning. Here, we synthesise these recent developments and propose that visuospatial coding scaffolds human cognition by providing a reference frame through which neural computations interface with environmental statistics and task demands via perception-action loops.

Address: Institute for Informatics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.; Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London, London, UK.; Behavioral and Movement Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Spinoza Centre for NeuroImaging, Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.; Department of Psychology, School of Philosophy, Psychology & Language Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK. Electronic address: [email protected].

DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2021.10.011

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MeSH Terms: Brain Mapping, Cognition, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Space Perception, Visual Cortex, Visual Perception