Abstract

The angular gyrus (AG) has been implicated in number processing for several decades but its functional significance is still far from being understood. Much evidence has been accumu-lated indicating that it supports the retrieval of verbally stored arithmetic facts from long-term memory and that differences in AG activation between individuals of lower and higher ma-thematical competence reflect differential reliance on fact retrieval. In this talk, I will present recent fMRI studies challenging this account. These studies focus on training effects in the AG, the impact of mathematical competence, and interference effects in arithmetic fact re-trieval. The obtained results suggest that the function of the AG in number processing goes beyond retrieval of verbally stored arithmetic facts and may be best accounted for in terms of symbol-referent mapping processes.

Host: Miss Bettina Studer