The limits of counting: numerical cognition between evolution and culture

Science
Sieghard Beller, Andrea Bender

Abstract

Number words that, in principle, allow all kinds of objects to be counted ad infinitum are one basic requirement for complex numerical cognition. Accordingly, short or object-specific counting sequences in a language are often regarded as earlier steps in the evolution from premathematical conceptions to greater abstraction. We present some instances from Melanesia and Polynesia, whose short or object-specific sequences originated from the same extensive and abstract sequence. Furthermore, the object-specific sequences can be shown to be cognitively advantageous for calculations without notation because they use larger counting units, thereby abbreviating higher numbers, enhancing the counting process, and extending the limits of counting. These results expand our knowledge both regarding numerical cognition and regarding the evolution of numeration systems.

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Citations

Jun 2, 2009·Animal Cognition·Emmanuelle NormandChristophe Boesch
Dec 18, 2013·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Andrea Bender, Sieghard Beller
Nov 25, 2011·Cognitive Psychology·Michael C FrankEdward Gibson
Jun 7, 2011·Cognition·Rafael NúñezAnastasia Nikoulina
Sep 10, 2015·Topics in Cognitive Science·Andrea BenderNancy J Nersessian
Jul 1, 2010·Topics in Cognitive Science·Andrea BenderDouglas Medin
May 6, 2016·Frontiers in Psychology·Andrea Bender, Sieghard Beller
Feb 27, 2016·Cognitive Science·Andrea Bender, Sieghard Beller
Mar 1, 2013·Behavioral Sciences·Andrea Bender, Sieghard Beller
Oct 4, 2008·Annual Review of Psychology·Nathan J Emery, Nicola S Clayton
Aug 9, 2019·Topics in Cognitive Science·Andrea Bender
Nov 1, 2013·Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews. Cognitive Science·Barbara C Malt, Asifa Majid
Apr 6, 2020·Topics in Cognitive Science·Sieghard BellerFiona Jordan
Dec 1, 2020·Open Mind : Discoveries in Cognitive Science·Yang XuTerry Regier
Mar 23, 2021·Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences·Andreea S Calude

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