RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Parametric Representation of Tactile Numerosity in Working Memory
JF eneuro
JO eNeuro
FD Society for Neuroscience
SP ENEURO.0090-19.2019
DO 10.1523/ENEURO.0090-19.2019
VO 7
IS 1
A1 Uluç, Işıl
A1 Velenosi, Lisa Alexandria
A1 Schmidt, Timo Torsten
A1 Blankenburg, Felix
YR 2020
UL http://www.eneuro.org/content/7/1/ENEURO.0090-19.2019.abstract
AB Estimated numerosity perception is processed in an approximate number system (ANS) that resembles the perception of a continuous magnitude. The ANS consists of a right lateralized frontoparietal network comprising the lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) and the intraparietal sulcus. Although the ANS has been extensively investigated, only a few studies have focused on the mental representation of retained numerosity estimates. Specifically, the underlying mechanisms of estimated numerosity working memory (WM) is unclear. Besides numerosities, as another form of abstract quantity, vibrotactile WM studies provide initial evidence that the right LPFC takes a central role in maintaining magnitudes. In the present fMRI multivariate pattern analysis study, we designed a delayed match-to-numerosity paradigm to test what brain regions retain approximate numerosity memoranda. In line with parametric WM results, our study found numerosity-specific WM representations in the right LPFC as well as in the supplementary motor area and the left premotor cortex extending into the superior frontal gyrus, thus bridging the gap in abstract quantity WM literature.