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Cited by 1,739Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skillsNeurobiology of Language and BilingualismMathematics Education and Pedagogy

Sources of Mathematical Thinking: Behavioral and Brain-Imaging Evidence

Dehaene, S., Spelke, E., Pinel, P., Stanescu, R., Tsivkin, S.·1999·Science
DOI 10.1126/science.284.5416.970
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Abstract

Does the human capacity for mathematical intuition depend on linguistic competence or on visuo-spatial representations? A series of behavioral and brain-imaging experiments provides evidence for both sources. Exact arithmetic is acquired in a language-specific format, transfers poorly to a different language or to novel facts, and recruits networks involved in word-association processes. In contrast, approximate arithmetic shows language independence, relies on a sense of numerical magnitudes, and recruits bilateral areas of the parietal lobes involved in visuo-spatial processing. Mathematical intuition may emerge from the interplay of these brain systems.

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Crossref · 10.1126/science.284.5416.970

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  • When one mentally solves simple arithmetic problems, linguistic processing areas of the brain including the Broca's and Wernicke's areas are strongly engaged.

    “It has long been known that when one mentally solves simple arithmetic problems, say, '12 þ 32', linguistic processing areas of the brain including the Broca's and Wernicke's areas are strongly engaged (Dehaene and Cohen, 1995;Dehaene, et al., 1999).”

    From Cultural neuroscience of the self: understanding the social grounding of the brain (2010) · cites this paper as Dehaene, et al., 1999

  • The neuroimaging claims are based largely on observations of activation for a nonlanguage task in or near a general brain region previously implicated in language, without a direct demonstration of overlap of linguistic and nonlinguistic activations in the same subjects.

    “However, the neuroimaging claims are based largely on observations of activation for a nonlanguage task in or near a general brain region previously implicated in language (e.g., Broca's area), without a direct demonstration of overlap of linguistic and nonlinguistic activations in the same subjects.”

    From Functional specificity for high-level linguistic processing in the human brain (2011) · cites this paper as [7]

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Authors
Dehaene, S., Spelke, E., Pinel, P., Stanescu, R., & Tsivkin, S.
Affiliations
  • Inserm (FR)
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US)
Corresponding author
Dehaene, S.
ORCID
Venue
Science
Publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Published
1999-05-07
Volume
284
Issue
5416
Pages
970-974
ISSN
  • 0036-8075 (ISSN-L)
  • 1095-9203
DOI
10.1126/science.284.5416.970
OpenAlex
W2159733978
Cited by
1,739
References
50
Citations by year
2026: 23 · 2025: 51 · 2024: 33 · 2023: 30 · 2022: 35 · 2021: 37 · 2020: 63 · 2019: 85 · 2018: 74 · 2017: 58 · 2016: 68 · 2015: 77 · 2014: 67 · 2013: 80 · 2012: 98
FWCI
53.05
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Science (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HD23103)
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Mathematics › Statistics and Probability › Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skills
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism
  • Physical Sciences › Mathematics › Applied Mathematics › Mathematics Education and Pedagogy
Keywords
mathematical intuition, arithmetic, language skills, approximate number system, number magnitude, language specificity, word association, parietal cortex, brain networks, language transfer
MeSH terms
Adult, Brain Mapping, Evoked Potentials, Female, Frontal Lobe, Humans, Language, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Mathematics, Parietal Lobe, Thinking, Intuition

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