Dottorato in NEUROSCIENZE DEL COMPORTAMENTO

Titolo della tesi: The Spatial Representation of Time (and numbers): functional origins and neural basis

The relationship between time and space in the human cognitive system and brain is an active area of research and inquiry. While it is clear that there are connections between the representations of time and space in the brain, the extent to which they are primal and automatic is still a matter of debate. Recent studies suggest that the representation of time and space is functionally linked in the brain, and that activation of one concept can influence the processing of the other. The way we think about spatial relationships can also affect the way we think about time. For example, people who read from left to right tend to think of time as moving from left to right as well, whereas people who read from right to left tend to think of time as moving from right to left. However, the extent to which these connections are automatic and fundamental is still a matter of investigation. In the present thesis we wished to investigate whether a range of cognitive and behavioural conditions could modulate the co-activation and association between time and space processing. In the first Study we examined, using Implicit Association Task, whether the activation of spatial codes in isolation could trigger the activation of conceptual temporal codes and viceversa. Here we examined also if the combined use of both spatial and temporal codes can generate a stable Space-Time Association. In the second Study, we wished to investigate the STEARC Effect as a function of the response speed. To this aim, in two different experiments, we have asked participants to classify the durations of simple visual stimuli with a left-side motor response and a right-side motor response. In the third study we extend the results obtained in the first study in the domain of durations of simple visual stimuli. In this study the experimental procedure was similar to that of Study 1, except for the temporal stimuli. Finally, as an appendix, an inquiry in change of brain connectivity related to the presence of Space-Number Association.