Carnegie Mellon University

Jessica Cantlon

Jessica Cantlon

Ronald J. and Mary Ann Zdrojkowski Professor of Developmental Neuroscience/Psychology

  • 327M Baker Hall
Address
5000 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Areas of Expertise

Cognitive Neuroscience, Cognitive Science, Developmental

Bio

Jessica uses behavioral and neuroimaging methods to study the origins of quantitative reasoning in human adults, children, and non-human primates. Her research shows the impact of early-developing and evolutionarily primitive nonverbal concepts on human thought. Using behavioral methods, her work observed parallel numerical processing capabilities between human children and non-human primates. Using fMRI, she found that the IPS processes quantitative information in children as young as 4 years of age. Her research implicates a primitive cognitive and neural basis for the development of human mathematical cognition derived from very old, evolutionary processes.