It has long been stressed that the physical dimensions of time and space bear some intriguing similarities, culminating in the concept of spacetime. These considerations raise the interesting question of whether and how the perceptual dimensions of time and space are interrelated.
Does the perception of time and space emerge from the same neuronal system? In accordance with this assumption, it was found that hippocampal place cells additionally exhibit a temporal firing pattern. Neurons in the rodents hippocampus and entorhinal cortex seem to code similarly for specific locations in space and for specific moments in time.
In several behavioural and imaging studies we investigate the mutual interactions between time and space. One of the specific questions refers to the symmetry (or asymmetry) of space-time interactions. In a current DFG-funded project we investigate the development of time-space interferences in advanced age.
Key publications:
Riemer, M., Achtzehn, J., Kuehn, E., & Wolbers, T. (2022). Cross-dimensional interference between time and distance during spatial navigation is mediated by speed representations in intraparietal sulcus and area hMT+. NeuroImage, 257: 119336. [link]
Riemer, M., Shine, J. P., & Wolbers, T. (2018). On the (a)symmetry between the perception of time and space in large-scale environments. Hippocampus, 28: 539-548. [link]
Riemer, M., Diersch, N., Bublatzky, F., & Wolbers, T. (2016). Space, time, and numbers in the right posterior parietal cortex: Differences between response code associations and congruency effects. NeuroImage, 129: 72-79. [link]