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Organizing conceptual knowledge in humans with a gridlike code

Constantinescu, AO; O'Reilly, JX; Behrens, TEJ; (2016) Organizing conceptual knowledge in humans with a gridlike code. Science , 352 (6292) pp. 1464-1468. 10.1126/science.aaf0941. Green open access

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Abstract

It has been hypothesized that the brain organizes concepts into a mental map, allowing conceptual relationships to be navigated in a manner similar to that of space. Grid cells use a hexagonally symmetric code to organize spatial representations and are the likely source of a precise hexagonal symmetry in the functional magnetic resonance imaging signal. Humans navigating conceptual two-dimensional knowledge showed the same hexagonal signal in a set of brain regions markedly similar to those activated during spatial navigation. This gridlike signal is consistent across sessions acquired within an hour and more than a week apart. Our findings suggest that global relational codes may be used to organize nonspatial conceptual representations and that these codes may have a hexagonal gridlike pattern when conceptual knowledge is laid out in two continuous dimensions.

Type: Article
Title: Organizing conceptual knowledge in humans with a gridlike code
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1126/science.aaf0941
Publisher version: http://doi.org/10.1126/science.aaf0941
Language: English
Additional information: Copyright © 2016, American Association for the Advancement of Science. This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: Science & Technology, Multidisciplinary Sciences, Science & Technology - Other Topics, SPATIAL NAVIGATION, MEMORY, BRAIN, CELLS, REPRESENTATION, FUTURE, CORTEX, SYSTEM, MAP
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology > Clinical and Experimental Epilepsy
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10043572
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