Chapter 11: Visual Imagery and Spatial Cognition

Question 1

When performing a mental rotation, a block can rotate on the page, known as ___ ___, or rotate in depth (3D), known as ___ ___

Answer 1

When performing a mental rotation, a block can rotate on the page, known as PICTURE PLANE, or rotate in depth (3D), known as DEPTH PLANE

Question 2

is it easier to determine if an object is the same if it was rotate in the picture or depth plane?

Answer 2

no. There is no differences in reaction time between depth plane or picture-plane rotated pictures.

Question 3

Other than __ __, men and women have equal spatial ability.

Answer 3

other than BLOCK ROTATION.

Question 4

what is the relationship between the ability to answer whether or not a block is the same block shown in a picture and the degree of rotation?

Answer 4

there is a PERFECTLY linear relationship between degrees of rotation and ability to answer.

Question 5

Describe the object location task. Which sex had better scores?

Answer 5

in the object rotation task, people are asked to look at a page of random object (not told to memorize them). They are then given a distraction test.

They are then provided with another picture that has the same objects as the first but some have been rearranged. Asked to note which objects ARE THE SAME between the two pictures

women are better at object location.

Question 6

5 Principles of visual imagery

Answer 6

1) implicit encoding
2) perceptual equivalence
3) transformational equivalence
4) Structural equivalence
5) Spatial equivalence

Question 7

What is implicit encoding? (Principles of visual imagery)

Answer 7

we encode mental images of experiences whether we intend to or not. It’s implicit (unconcious and automatic).

Question 8

What is perceptual equivalence? (Principles of visual imagery)

Answer 8

there are similar brain areas at work during mental visualization of objects as during real interactions

Question 9

What is transformational equivalence? (Principles of visual imagery)

Answer 9

Imagined transformations are bound by the same laws of motion as physical transformations.

Question 10

What is Structural equivalence? (Principles of visual imagery)

Answer 10

the basic structure of mental images corresponds to the actual objects, but fine details may be missed.

Question 11

What is spatial equivalence? (Principles of visual imagery)

Answer 11

the relative spatial relationships among elements are preserved in the visual images.

Question 12

___ ___ is used to navigate to and from places

Answer 12

Spatial memory

Question 13

spatial memory and the ability to navigate are dependent on two factors

Answer 13

1) complexity of environment

2) cognitive capability

Question 14

2 strategies of naviation. Describe.

Answer 14

1) egocentric navigation: remember where you started from and you figure out how you get somewhere based on info from yourself.
2) Allocentric navigation: using your surroundings and landmarks and environment to infer where you need to go.

Question 15

Which type of navigation strategy is more sophisticated?

Answer 15

allocentric navigation.

Question 16

in egocentric navigation, position is tracked relative to ___ ___ and based purely on ___ ___ of the navigator, like turn rate and distance.

Answer 16

in egocentric navigation, position is tracked relative to START POINT and based purely on PHYSICAL MOVEMENT of the navigator, like turn rate and distance.

Question 17

which part of the brain is activated during egocentric navigation? What is this part of the brain also associated with?

Answer 17

the partial lobe of the brain is activated during egocentric navigation. which is also activated during PROCEDURAL tasks.

Question 18

When would using egocentric navigation be okay?

Answer 18

good for short distances, but not good for long distances, because you may go in circles.

Question 19

in allocentric navigation, a location is remembered relative to its ___ to ___

Answer 19

in allocentric navigation, a location is remembered relative to its POSITION to LANDMARKS

Question 20

Which part of the brain is associated with allocentric navigation? Downfall of using allocentric navigation?

Answer 20

need a hippocampus.

allocentric navigation is more time consuming because you often need multiple experiences from multiple directions and viewpoints to create a 3D image relative to landmark.

Question 21

utilizing allocentric navigation can create a ___ ___ in long term memory. What does this allow for?

Answer 21

COGNITIVE MAP in LTM can be created. This can allow for viewpoint-independent navigation, you can get to the same place multiple ways because you know where objects are relative to each other. Allows for NOVEL SHORTCUTTING

Question 22

What does it mean by saying allocentric navigation is viewpoint independent?

Answer 22

using allocentric navigation, they can navigate their way regardless of position.

Question 23

___ ___ allow you to find short cuts without experiencing that exact path, you just know its the fastest because of ___ ____.

Answer 23

COGNITIVE MAPS allow you to find short cuts without experiencing that exact path, you just know its the fastest because of LANDMARK RELATIVISM.

This phenomena is known as NOVEL SHORTCUTTING.

Question 24

which cells in the hippocampus are specially designed to process spatial info?

Answer 24

PLACE CELLS

Question 25

Describe place cell specificity

Answer 25

specific place cells fire when person is in that specific area the cell is “primed to.”

As you walk through a maze, place cells fire and strengthen to build the spatial map more and more as you walk through a location.

Question 26

What is the multiple trace theory?

Answer 26

the idea that as we build our spatial memories, we leave details in the hippocampus. Damage to HC prevents you from retaining details of memory that have already been encoded away from the HC because the HC still has some remnants.

Question 27

London taxi drivers are known for their very good allosteric navigation. Which part of the london taxi drivers differ from normal route-based bus drivers?

Answer 27

london taxi drivers have larger POSTERIOR hippocampi, signalling that there are PLASTIC EFFECTS ( if taxi drivers take an extended leave, the HC goes back to normal).

Question 28

Differences between men and women in their spatial ability and accuracy?

Answer 28

No differences. both men and women have equal spatial ability and ability to get to their destinations successfully. Women are able to locate objects better (seen in object recognition tasks) and men are able to do the block rotation test a bit better.

Question 29

Even though men and women are able to navigate with the same degree of success, they pay attention to different things in order to get to their destination. What are the sex differences?

Answer 29

Men speak more in terms of CARDINAL DIRECTIONS (go south)

Women describe landmarks (go down until you see the statue on the corner)

Question 30

Explain the spatial memory capabilities and brain changes seen in the food-storing bird Clark’s Nutcracker.

Answer 30

the clark nutcracker eats pine seens in the fall and stores caches of seeds for the winter. They need to create a MIND MAP about where he stores all his pine nuts.

There are noticeable HIPPOCAMPAL CHANGES because of the increased demand for spatial memory in the fall and winter. In the summer the HC GOES BACK TO NORMAL because it does not need to find its caches

There is HIPPOCAMPAL PLASTICITY.

Question 31

Explain the 2 navigation techniques used by European starlings that migrate from norway to spain every winter

Answer 31

European starlings use Vector navigation and True navigation

1) vector navigation: uses EGOCENTRIC strategies, simpler. If you displace them thousands of km east, they try and go back south, but they cannot find their way back to spain, they usually end up in italy.
VECTOR NAVIGATION IS USED BY YOUNGEr BIRDS

2) True navigation: used by adult birds.. More complex, still find their way to spain even if they are physically displaced. Probably has a bunch of adapations for true navigation that develops through experience.

Question 32

4 cues that homing pigeons use for long distance navigation

Answer 32

1) magnetic cues
2) olfactory cues
3) sun compass: internal clock and where the sun is located in the sky
4) landmarks; they can follow railways/roads.

Question 33

2 types of magnet cues used by pigeons for navigation

Answer 33

1) magnetite magnetoreception: centered in the beak

2) chemical magnetoreception: photoreceptors of eyes sensitive to changes in magnetic field.

Question 34

Local vs global landmarks used in navigation

Answer 34

local landmarks : near home landmarkers

global landmarkers: more permanent markers that signify going in a general direction (ex/ mountain range)

Question 35

Birds who can’t rely on landmarks (ex/ ocean birds) tend to rely on what for navigation?

Answer 35

sense of smell over magnetoreception. When researchers disabled the magnetoreceptors in ocean birds, they were still able to get back to their nest. When they disabled the olfactory cells, the birds were not able to navigate until their nasal cells regenerated.

Question 36

T/F: there is true navigation in insects.

Answer 36

false. they do not have many neurons and no hippocampus. cognitive maps cannot be be produced to form routes

Question 37

If insects cannot use true navigation, how do monarch butterflies undergo long distance migration from canada to mexico?

Answer 37

they still use vector navigation because they do not have a hippocampus for cognitive mapping. The also have a STRONG SUN COMPASS and INTERNAL CLOCK to keep precise course in particular direction.

This is also a one way trip.

Question 38

If insects cannot use true navigation, how do african desert ants return back from their colonies after finding food in the middle of the sand filled desert?

Answer 38

there are no landmarks in the desert and even if there were, the ants couldn’t use them because they are not able to allocentrically navigate since they have no HC.

They also have a STRONG SUN COMPASS and can look at sun and PATTERNS of POLARIZED LIGHT every few steps as a method of STEP COUNTING.

When the ant needs to return back to the nest, it uses its calculations of steps and lights to reference where they are.

Therefore, ants use sun and steps for directionality.

Question 39

How do honey bees communicate spatial knowledge (ex/ where food is located)

Answer 39

through coreographed movements, the waggle dance. Figure 8 dance is orientated at a dif rotation; angle is indicative of angle that the food source is relative to the hive.

Question 40

For honey bees, the sun acts as a ____ cue rather than a time cue

Answer 40

DIRECTIONAL CUE (like how desert ants uses polarized sun rays as a method of step counting and orientation).

bees (like most insects) are sensitive to UV light and helps them locate themselves relative to sun.

Question 41

How do honey bees guage distance from the hive?

Answer 41

they use OPTIC FLOW: how fast the environment passes by you to detect their own speed, and gives a sense of distance based on how FAST THE ENVIRONMENT PASSED their eye.