Cognitive Science

The latest breakthroughs, innovations, and cool happenings at the cutting edge of the world of cognitive science. Updated daily.

Iranian Herbalists, But Not Cooks, Are Better at Naming Odors Than Laypeople

Abstract Odor naming is enhanced in communities where communication about odors is a central part of daily life (e.g., wine experts, flavorists, and some hunter‐gatherer groups). In this study, we investigated how expert knowledge and daily experience affect the ability to name odors in a group of experts that has not previously been investigated in […]

Published on June 17, 2019

When Stronger Knowledge Slows You Down: Semantic Relatedness Predicts Children’s Co‐Activation of Related Items in a Visual Search Paradigm

Abstract A large literature suggests that the organization of words in semantic memory, reflecting meaningful relations among words and the concepts to which they refer, supports many cognitive processes, including memory encoding and retrieval, word learning, and inferential reasoning. The co‐activation of related items has been proposed as a mechanism by which semantic knowledge influences […]

Published on June 16, 2019

Rationalization and Reflection Differentially Modulate Prior Attitudes Toward the Purity Domain

Abstract Outside Western, predominantly secular‐liberal environments, norms restricting bodily and sexual conduct are widespread. Moralization in the so‐called purity domain has been treated as evidence that some putative violations are victimless. However, respondents themselves disagree: They often report that private yet indecent acts incur self‐harm, or harm to one’s family and the wider community—a result […]

Published on June 16, 2019