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Updated: Apr 8, 2026
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The Spatial Memory Game: Testing the Relationship Between Spatial Language, Object Knowledge, and Spatial Cognition
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The cognitive origins of geometry
1New York University, 6 Washington Place, New York, NY 10003, USA.
Trends in Cognitive Sciences
|April 7, 2026
Summary
Human geometry may stem from navigation skills, not just abstract thought. This challenges the idea of a specialized language of thought, suggesting shared animal and human processes approximate Euclidean geometry.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Science
- Comparative Psychology
- Linguistics
Background:
- Geometry is a foundational model for abstract thought.
- A dominant hypothesis suggests a specialized language of thought underpins human geometric abilities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To challenge the dominant hypothesis on human geometric cognition.
- To propose the Wanderers Hypothesis for Geometry, linking it to navigation.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of infant experiments.
- Review of cross-cultural studies.
- Cognitive modeling.
Main Results:
- Human geometry appears rooted in navigation-like processes shared with nonhuman animals.
- These processes approximate Euclidean geometry.
- Natural language facilitates access to and flexible application of these primitive geometric processes.
Conclusions:
- Human geometric cognition may not require a specialized language of thought.
- Navigation-based mental processes are central to human geometry.
- This perspective enhances understanding of cognitive abilities and the human mind.
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