Cognitive Science

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

Do They Know It’s Christmash? Lexical Knowledge Directly Impacts Speech Perception

Abstract We recently reported strong, replicable (i.e., replicated) evidence for lexically mediated compensation for coarticulation (LCfC; Luthra et al., 2021), whereby lexical knowledge influences a prelexical process. Critically, evidence for LCfC provides robust support for interactive models of cognition that include top-down feedback and is inconsistent with autonomous models that allow only feedforward processing. McQueen, Jesse, […]

Published on May 21, 2024

Behavioral science should start by assuming people are reasonable

Should policymaking assume humans are irrational? Using empirical, theoretical, and philosophical arguments, we suggest a more useful frame is that human behavior is reasonable. Through identifying goals and systemic factors shaping behavior, we suggest that assuming people are reasonable enables behavioral science to be more effective in shaping public policy. Read Full Article (External Site) […]

Published on May 19, 2024

Signal switching may enhance processing power of the brain

Our ability to perceive multiple objects is mysterious. Sensory neurons are broadly tuned, producing potential overlap in the populations of neurons activated by each object in a scene. This overlap raises questions about how distinct information is retained about each item. We present a novel signal switching theory of neural representation, which posits that neural […]

Published on May 19, 2024