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Poster Session A: Tuesday, August 12, 1:30 – 4:30 pm, de Brug & E‑Hall

Simultaneity or Rhythmic sampling in working memory? Examining the temporal dynamics of maintaining multiple items in human EEG and gaze patterns

Felix Bröhl¹, Anouk Bielefeldt, Juan Linde-Domingo, Bernhard Spitzer²; ¹Technische Universität Dresden, ²Max-Planck Institute

Presenter: Felix Bröhl

The ability to briefly maintain information for upcoming tasks in working memory (WM) is a central aspect of human cognition. While signatures of WM information have been disclosed with a variety of neural recording techniques, similar correlates have recently been found in miniature gaze patterns. However, the precise temporal dynamics of WM information in eye movements remains unclear. To address this, we investigated whether human gaze patterns exhibit encoding of multiple items statically or by rhythmic alternation, and how the ocular activity relates to concurrently recorded EEG signals. Our findings indicate that eye movements capture WM information of up to three items at a time. Contrary to evidence for rhythmic WM replay in neural recordings, we found that on a single-trial level, eye movements appeared to reflect the orientations of multiple items rather statically at the same time. These preliminary results corroborate that eye tracking provides a complementary window into WM processes not directly captured with EEG.

Topic Area: Memory, Spatial Cognition & Skill Learning

Extended Abstract: Full Text PDF