Rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) spontaneously compute addition operations over large numbers

Flombaum, Jonathan; Junge, Justin A.; Hauser, Marc D.

doi:10.1016/j.cognition.2004.09.004

Cited by 144 publications

(91 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Evidence to support this claim comes from studies showing that young children (22,(30)(31)(32) and adults in cultures without any training in mathematics (33)(34)(35) perform many numerical tasks with ratios of sufficiently large numbers independent of controlled nonnumeric properties such as size or density. Similar abilities have been noted in nonhuman primates (36,37), and the presence of age-and species-invariant number ability suggests that the core knowledge, which underlies coarse numerical processing, may be ontogenetically and phylogenetically conserved in primates.…”

mentioning

confidence: 64%

Numerosity representation is encoded in human subcortex

Collins

Park

Behrmann

2017

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Certain numerical abilities appear to be relatively ubiquitous in the animal kingdom, including the ability to recognize and differentiate relative quantities. This skill is present in human adults and children, as well as in nonhuman primates and, perhaps surprisingly, is also demonstrated by lower species such as mosquitofish and spiders, despite the absence of cortical computation available to primates. This ubiquity of numerical competence suggests that representations that connect to numerical tasks are likely subserved by evolutionarily conserved regions of the nervous system. Here, we test the hypothesis that the evaluation of relative numerical quantities is subserved by lower-order brain structures in humans. Using a monocular/dichoptic paradigm, across four experiments, we show that the discrimination of displays, consisting of both large (5-80) and small (1-4) numbers of dots, is facilitated in the monocular, subcortical portions of the visual system. This is only the case, however, when observers evaluate larger ratios of 3:1 or 4:1, but not smaller ratios, closer to 1:1. This profile of competence matches closely the skill with which newborn infants and other species can discriminate numerical quantity. These findings suggest conservation of ontogenetically and phylogenetically lower-order systems in adults' numerical abilities. The involvement of subcortical structures in representing numerical quantities provokes a reconsideration of current theories of the neural basis of numerical cognition, inasmuch as it bolsters the crossspecies continuity of the biological system for numerical abilities.subcortex | numerical cognition | vision | development | phylogeny

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mentioning

confidence: 64%

Numerosity representation is encoded in human subcortex

Collins

Park

Behrmann

2017

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Even in the absence of symbols and language, infants and animals are able to perceive the number of items in a set and engage in simple calculations (Brannon & Terrace, 2000;Flombaum et al, 2005;Hauser, Tsao, Garcia, & Spelke, 2003;McCrink & Wynn, 2004;Wynn, 1992;Xu & Spelke, 2000). It is thought that they use a nonverbal system (number sense) which represents numbers analogically and approximately (Dantzig, 1967;Dehaene, 1997).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Calibrating the mental number line

2008

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Human adults are thought to possess two dissociable systems to represent numbers: an approximate quantity system akin to a mental number line, and a verbal system capable of representing numbers exactly. Here, we study the interface between these two systems using an estimation task. Observers were asked to estimate the approximate numerosity of dot arrays. We show that, in the absence of calibration, estimates are largely inaccurate: responses increase monotonically with numerosity, but underestimate the actual numerosity. However, insertion of a few inducer trials, in which participants are explicitly (and sometimes misleadingly) told that a given display contains 30 dots, is sufficient to calibrate their estimates on the whole range of stimuli. Based on these empirical results, we develop a model of the mapping between the numerical symbols and the representations of numerosity on the number line.

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“…This set limit of 3 or 4 objects, when coupled with studies of numerical representation in rhesus (Brannon & Terrace, 1998;Flombaum, Junge, & Hauser, 2005), provides evidence that rhesus monkeys deploy at least two distinct mechanisms that represent quantity: (1) an approximate number system for computing the cardinal value of a set (where numerical discrimination is limited by the ratio between the quantities), and (2) a parallel individuation system 1 for tracking individuals through space and time and storing information about those individuals, with a storage capacity of 4 items per set.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Free-ranging rhesus monkeys spontaneously individuate and enumerate small numbers of non-solid portions

et al. 2008

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Fundamental questions in cognitive science concern the origins and nature of the units that compose visual experience. Here, we investigate the capacity to individuate and store information about non-solid portions, asking in particular whether free-ranging rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) quantify portions of a non-solid substance presented in discrete pouring actions. When presented with portions of carrot pieces poured from a cup into opaque boxes, rhesus picked the box with the greatest number of portions for comparisons of 1 vs. 2, 2 vs. 3, and 3 vs. 4, but not for comparisons of 4 vs. 5 and 3 vs. 6. Additional experiments indicate that rhesus based their decisions on both the number of portions and the total amount of food. These results show that the capacity to individuate non-solid portions is not unique to humans, and does not depend on structures of natural language. Further, the fact that rhesus' ability to represent non-solid portions is constrained by the same 4-item limit typically ascribed to the system of parallel individuation that operates over solid objects suggests that the visual system recruits common working memory processes for retaining information about solid objects and non-solid portions. We discuss our results with respect to theories of visual processing, as well as to the role that the human language faculty may have played in both the evolution and development of quantification.3

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Rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) spontaneously compute addition operations over large numbers

Cited by 144 publications

References 25 publications

Numerosity representation is encoded in human subcortex

Numerosity representation is encoded in human subcortex

Calibrating the mental number line

Free-ranging rhesus monkeys spontaneously individuate and enumerate small numbers of non-solid portions

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