S.O.T.T: Researchers have discovered a sixth sense mapped out in the human brain: the ability to compare the amount of any given object, whether it be the number of people in a concert hall or jelly beans in a glass jar. Called "numerosity," researchers have long suspected that this sense existed, but were unable to detect its presence within the brain. In particular, researchers were unable to identify a topographical map in which neurons related to numerosity assessment were laid out in such a way that those most closely related were able to interact over the shortest possible distance -- a phenomenon characteristic of the primary senses. A new paper published in the journal Science changes all of that. Led by Utrecht University's Benjamin Harvey, the study included eight participants, each of whom were asked to look at patterns of dots whose numbers changed over time. Meanwhile, the scientists analyzed the neural response properties in a part of the brain linked to numerosity using high-field functional magnetic resonance imaging.
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