Cited by 46Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skillsReading and Literacy DevelopmentNeurobiology of Language and Bilingualism

Functional neuroanatomy of arithmetic and word reading and its relationship to age

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Evans, Tanya M., Flowers, D. Lynn, Luetje, Megan M., Napoliello, Eileen, Eden, Guinevere F.·2016·NeuroImage

Abstract

Arithmetic and written language are uniquely human skills acquired during early schooling and used daily. While prior studies have independently characterized the neural bases for arithmetic and reading, here we examine both skills in a single study to capture their shared and unique cognitive mechanisms, as well as the role of age/experience in modulating their neural representations. We used functional MRI in 7- to 29-year-olds who performed single-digit subtraction, single-digit addition, and single-word reading. Using a factorial design, we examined the main effects of Task (subtraction, addition, reading) and Age (as a continuous variable), and their interactions. A main effect of Task revealed preferential activation for subtraction in bilateral intraparietal sulci and supramarginal gyri, right insula, inferior frontal gyrus, and cingulate. The right middle temporal gyrus and left superior temporal gyrus were preferentially active for both addition and reading, and left fusiform gyrus was preferentially active for reading. A main effect of Age revealed increased activity in older participants in right angular gyrus, superior temporal sulcus, and putamen, and less activity in left supplementary motor area, suggesting a left frontal to right temporo-parietal shift of activity with increasing age/experience across all tasks. Interactions for Task by Age were found in right hippocampus and left middle frontal gyrus, with older age invoking greater activity for addition and at the same time less activity for subtraction and reading. Together, in a study conducted in the same participants using similar task and acquisition parameters, the results reveal the neural substrates of these educationally relevant cognitive skills in typical participants in the context of age/experience.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2016.08.048

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  • We believe these results are a product of using an active baseline condition during data acquisition and may reflect the role of the supramarginal gyrus during arithmetic, language, and phonological processing tasks.

    “We believe these results are a product of using an active baseline condition during data acquisition (Stark and Squire, 2001) and may reflect the role of the supramarginal gyrus during arithmetic, language, and phonological processing tasks (Hartwigsen et al., 2010; Evans et al., 2016).”

    From Neural Correlates of Long-Term Memory Enhancement Following Retrieval Practice (2021) · cites this paper as Evans et al., 2016

    The Results (§3.3.1; page not provided) report supramarginal gyrus activation during subtraction, supporting its role in arithmetic. For reading, the same section reports activation in temporal and inferior frontal regions, not the supramarginal gyrus; the copy does not establish an SMG role in language or phonological processing tasks. The active-baseline explanation is cited to Stark and Squire, not Evans. (LLM, conf=0.84)

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Research works printed but not linked: 1

  1. Martin A Schurz M Kronbichler M Richlan F 2015b Reading in the brain of children and adults: a meta-analysis of 40 functional magnetic resonance imaging studies Hum Brain Mapp 36 1963 1981 25628041 PMC4950303

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Authors
Evans, T. M., Flowers, D. L., Luetje, M. M., Napoliello, E., & Eden, G. F.
Affiliations
Georgetown University Medical Center (US)
Corresponding author
Eden, Guinevere F.
Venue
NeuroImage
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2016-12
Volume
143
Pages
304-315
ISSN
1053-8119 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2516459901
Cited by
46
References
100
Citations by year
2026: 5 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 3
FWCI
3.38
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • NeuroImage (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center (IDDRC5P30HD040677)
  • National Science Foundation
  • National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (P50HD40095, R01HD056107)
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Mathematics › Statistics and Probability › Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skills
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Reading and Literacy Development
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism
Keywords
arithmetic, word reading, age differences, single-digit addition, intraparietal sulcus, supramarginal gyrus, angular gyrus, hippocampus, supplementary motor area
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Age Factors, Brain Mapping, Cerebral Cortex, Child, Female, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Problem Solving, Reading, Mathematical Concepts, Young Adult

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