ScienceDaily (Oct. 28, 2012) —
Primates' brains see the world through triangular grids, according to a new
study published online October 28 in the journal Nature.
Scientists at Yerkes National Primate
Research Center, Emory University, have identified grid cells, neurons that
fire in repeating triangular patterns as the eyes explore visual scenes, in the
brains of rhesus monkeys.
The finding has implications for
understanding how humans form and remember mental maps of the world, as well as
how neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's erode those abilities. This
is the first time grid cells have been detected directly in primates. Grid
cells were identified in rats in 2005, and their existence in humans has been
indirectly inferred through magnetic resonance imaging.
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