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Numbers are not like words: Different pathways for literacy and numeracy
Manuel Carreiras1, Philip J Monahan2, Mikel Lizarazu3
1Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL), Donostia, Spain; Ikerbasque, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, Spain; Department of Basque Language and Communication, University of the Basque Country EHU/UPV, Bilbao, Spain.
Neuroimage
|June 13, 2015
Summary
Brain imaging reveals distinct neural pathways for reading and math. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) shows literacy processing engages the left hemisphere, while numeracy processing activates the right hemisphere.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive neuroscience
- Neuroimaging
- Psycholinguistics
Background:
- Literacy and numeracy are crucial cognitive skills involving symbolic systems.
- The brain's processing of numbers and words, and their timing, is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the distinct neural processing of literacy and numeracy.
- To identify the temporal dynamics and brain regions involved in processing words and numbers.
Main Methods:
- Magnetoencephalography (MEG) was used to record brain activity.
- Participants (native Spanish speakers) performed a go/no-go task with visual stimuli: words, pseudowords, numbers, letter strings, and symbol strings.
Main Results:
- Literacy (words/pseudowords) showed greater activation in left occipito-temporal and temporal-parietal regions (~120-130ms, ~200ms) compared to symbols.
- Numeracy (numbers) showed greater activation in right homologous regions (~100-130ms) compared to symbols.
- Direct comparison revealed distinct hemispheric lateralization for words (left) and numbers (right).
Conclusions:
- Literacy and numeracy processing involve distinct neural streams, primarily in the left and right hemispheres, respectively.
- Occipito-temporal and temporal-parietal regions interact during alphanumeric stimuli processing.
- Early brain activation differences suggest specialized pathways for language and number representation.
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