{"title":"Cognitive archeology, technological evolution, and the current agenda for extended cognition.","authors":"Emiliano Bruner","doi":"10.1080/17588928.2025.2585993","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/17588928.2025.2585993","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p><i>Homo sapiens</i> has evolved a specialized \"prosthetic ability\", necessary to integrate tools into the cognitive process. The neural toolkit associated with such technological extension is particularly influenced by the fronto-parietal system, the working memory network, and a set of unidentified skills linked to the concept of embodiment. The agenda for investigating these topics in the frame of evolution will require the refinement of proper definitions, and the application of experimental approaches in cognitive archeology. Of course, the fact that our technological ability is the result of natural selection does not mean that it is free from risks and drawbacks.</p>","PeriodicalId":10413,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Neuroscience","volume":" ","pages":"1-3"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145470842","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The role of affordances in technological cognition.","authors":"Peter Gärdenfors","doi":"10.1080/17588928.2025.2585996","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/17588928.2025.2585996","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The model of technological cognition presented by Federico et al. does not specify how information is processed in and between the different hubs. Following Cisek's proposal for an 'ecological' perspective on cognition, I discuss the role of affordances in action specification and action selection. Artifacts afford a multitude of action, but most of them must be learned. This involves learning new causal mappings from actions to effects.</p>","PeriodicalId":10413,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Neuroscience","volume":" ","pages":"1-2"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145457813","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Stefano Federici, Maria Laura Mele, Rosella De Leonibus
{"title":"Enriching the neurocognitive model of technological cognition: the role of emotional and reward-related processes.","authors":"Stefano Federici, Maria Laura Mele, Rosella De Leonibus","doi":"10.1080/17588928.2025.2585991","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/17588928.2025.2585991","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Federico et al. (this issue) present an integrated neurocognitive model of technological cognition encompassing causal-technical reasoning, semantic cognition, visuospatial abilities, motor control, and social learning. We propose extending this framework to include emotional and reward-related systems, particularly limbic circuits and episodic memory processes. These affective systems shape technological engagement, from adoption to problematic use, influencing salience, persistence, and emotional valence. The limbic system and frontostriatal circuits are integral components of technological cognition, working in concert with, rather than merely modulating, the core cognitive processes. Their integration enhances the model's explanatory power and bridges cognitive and affective neuroscience in understanding technological cognition.</p>","PeriodicalId":10413,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Neuroscience","volume":" ","pages":"1-3"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-11-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145457897","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Bridging technical cognition and manipulation knowledge.","authors":"Mathieu Lesourd","doi":"10.1080/17588928.2025.2573893","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/17588928.2025.2573893","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>While technical reasoning enables us to understand physical interactions, manipulation knowledge provides motor solutions grounded in prior experiences. Neuropsychological and neuroimaging studies suggest that mechanical knowledge is central, but manipulation knowledge may still play a supporting role in familiar contexts. We argue that these two systems coexist within the cognitive architecture, supported by partially distinct neural substrates. Clarifying their interactions is essential for developing a comprehensive model of tool use within the broader framework of technological cognition.</p>","PeriodicalId":10413,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Neuroscience","volume":" ","pages":"1-3"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145400040","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lois K Burnett, Sidonia E Compton, Michael K Scullin, Jared F Benge
{"title":"Bidirectionality and the application of the integrated neurocognitive model of technological cognition to late life cognitive health.","authors":"Lois K Burnett, Sidonia E Compton, Michael K Scullin, Jared F Benge","doi":"10.1080/17588928.2025.2573891","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/17588928.2025.2573891","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRDs) are a pressing public health concern worldwide, and there is a need for innovative strategies to understand and address its impact. The integrated neurocognitive model introduced by Federico et al. (2025) integrates neural systems with everyday technology use and offers valuable implications for ADRD prevention, detection, and care. Future validation of the model could clarify mechanisms of resilience for late life cognitive health and inform clinical detection and intervention.</p>","PeriodicalId":10413,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Neuroscience","volume":" ","pages":"1-2"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145400059","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A network-level perspective on technological cognition.","authors":"Luca Turella","doi":"10.1080/17588928.2025.2573888","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/17588928.2025.2573888","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Federico et al. (2025) propose a comprehensive neurocognitive model of technological cognition, i.e. the brain's capability to generate and interact with technology. We situate their framework within the Affordance Competition Hypothesis, extending the notion of affordances from physical tools to technological devices. We highlight how specific aspects of technological cognition may rely on the interactions between parietal and temporal networks together with their interplay with the social brain. Understanding how these networks interact offers a promising path to explain how technological cognition emerges depending on the characteristics of the adopted tool and of the context in which it is used.</p>","PeriodicalId":10413,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Neuroscience","volume":" ","pages":"1-2"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145400007","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Area PFt is the parietal hub for goal-directed complex tool use, whether physical or digital.","authors":"Gregory Kroliczak, Maciej Ras","doi":"10.1080/17588928.2025.2573901","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/17588928.2025.2573901","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The tenuicortical supramarginal gyrus, i.e., area PFt, as a node controlling tool use, multisensory integration, or even some aspects of language, can be considered a hub for causal/technical reasoning and, putatively, the control of technological artifacts. By analogy to its involvement in motor-to-mechanical goal-directed physical transformations associated with complex tool use, we suggest that it should also be invoked in more complex mental-to-digital goal-directed conceptual transformations supported by digital devices. Conversely, a simple 'outsourcing' of mental functions to a handy digital tool - by clicking or touch-selecting for a desired outcome - will not suffice to its engagement.</p>","PeriodicalId":10413,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Neuroscience","volume":" ","pages":"1-2"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145400104","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Giovanni Federico, François Osiurak, Maria A Brandimonte, Paola Marangolo, Ciro Rosario Ilardi
{"title":"An integrated account for technological cognition.","authors":"Giovanni Federico, François Osiurak, Maria A Brandimonte, Paola Marangolo, Ciro Rosario Ilardi","doi":"10.1080/17588928.2025.2542195","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/17588928.2025.2542195","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Understanding how the human brain generates, utilizes, and adapts to technology is one of our most urgent scientific questions today. Recent advances in cognitive neuroscience reveal a complex neurocognitive structure that underpins human interaction with technology. Here, we propose an integrated framework that considers the interplay of causal reasoning, semantic cognition, visuospatial skills, sensorimotor knowledge, and social learning in shaping our technological abilities. Drawing on neuroimaging, lesion studies, and evolutionary evidence, we identify key brain regions that act as specialized <i>processors</i> and integrative <i>hubs</i> within a distributed network supporting 'technological cognition.' We argue that different categories of technologies - mechanical versus digital - activate separate neural subsystems, reflecting their diverse cognitive demands. Ultimately, we situate technological cognition within the broader concepts of <i>embodied cognition</i> and <i>extended mind</i> theories, suggesting that technology can expand human mental capacities and actively influence the structure and functioning of the mind itself. This framework advocates for an interdisciplinary approach to deepen our understanding of how technology influences and integrates with human cognition.</p>","PeriodicalId":10413,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Neuroscience","volume":" ","pages":"1-13"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144834340","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cognitive NeurosciencePub Date : 2025-01-01Epub Date: 2025-07-03DOI: 10.1080/17588928.2025.2520313
Ryan Singh, Alexander Tschantz, Christopher L Buckley
{"title":"Paying attention to process.","authors":"Ryan Singh, Alexander Tschantz, Christopher L Buckley","doi":"10.1080/17588928.2025.2520313","DOIUrl":"10.1080/17588928.2025.2520313","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":10413,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Neuroscience","volume":" ","pages":"24-25"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144552432","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}