No counting necessary: people track quantities even when distracted

Science News, August 16, 2008 by Bruce Bower

WASHINGTON -- Shhh. Listen--that's the sound of people keeping track of quantities without using or thinking of number words.

English speakers can identify small numbers of items even as they perform a task that interferes with counting, according to a study presented on July 25 at a Cognitive Science Society meeting. The finding adds to evidence that language is not required for thinking about numbers of objects, said study coauthor Michael Frank of MIT. Instead, number words are abstract-thinking tools that help people manipulate and remember quantities with greater efficiency by building on basic, nonverbal knowledge, Frank proposed.

MIT's Edward Gibson, who directed the investigation, and his team already reported that the Piraha, an Amazonian hunter-gatherer group, lack number words but could accurately place small numbers of uninflated balloons next to corresponding spools on a table (SN.. 7/19/08, p. 5).

Participants in the new study listened to radio clips and repeated what was said as quickly as possible while matching balloons to spools. The participants performed much as the Piraha did on the same tasks, though English speakers did better at remembering quantities greater than four, Frank said.