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The units of thought
Author(s) -
Bar Moshe,
Aminoff Elissa,
Mason Malia,
Fenske Mark
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
hippocampus
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.767
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 1098-1063
pISSN - 1050-9631
DOI - 10.1002/hipo.20287
Subject(s) - ascription , cognition , cognitive science , associative property , neuroimaging , psychology , neuroscience , action (physics) , perception , cognitive psychology , functional neuroimaging , epistemology , philosophy , physics , mathematics , quantum mechanics , pure mathematics
That associative processing provides the vehicle of thought is a long‐standing idea. We describe here observations from cognitive neuroimaging that elucidate the neural processing that mediates this element. This account further allows a more specific ascription of a cognitive function to the brain's “default” activity in mindwandering. We extend this account to argue that one primary outcome of associative processing is the generation of predictions, which approximate the immediately relevant future and thus facilitate perception, action, and the progression of thought. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.