The Face of Controversy

Neuroscientists have long puzzled over whether our brains process and represent information according to modules (precise brain areas respond to separate and specific stimuli) or in a distributed fashion (different brain areas cooperate to represent the same stimulus). In an enlightening Perspective, [Cohen and Tong][1] discuss two fascinating neuroimaging studies that identify areas of the human brain that represent the perception of human faces and other parts of the human body ([ Downing et al .][2], [ Haxby et al .][3]). As the Perspective authors explain, one group invokes modularity and the other group invokes distributed representation to explain their results, raising the debate about modularity versus distributed representation to new heights. [1]: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/293/5539/2405 [2]: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/short/293/5539/2470 [3]: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/short/293/5539/2425

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