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The Mind in Action: how we see, name, and decide
How do we turn what we see into words and decisions? This event explores how different languages shape colour naming and how our brains make rapid choices under pressure.
From ordering a drink to picking a meal, discover how perception, language, and action work together in everyday life.
Speakers: Prof. Dimitris Mylonas and Prof. Matteo Carandini & Flóra Takács
Talking About Colour in Different Languages
Colour naming links vision and language. Our eyes have three types of cone cells, tuned to different wavelengths of light. But how does that ratio of biological signals become the word “orange” in English or “serandu” in Himba? We have collected multilingual colour names to train computational models that map the continuous perceptual colour space into discrete colour categories. Our findings suggest that cultural factors shape colour vocabularies more than innate mechanisms for effective colour communication. So how can all this help us ask for a golden or amber pint in a London pub?
What can I get for you? – Perception under action pressure
Wine or beer? Pasta or pizza? These seemingly easy decisions are actually high-speed tests of perception. You can’t look at google reviews forever: you need to act now, so your brain needs to stop recording and start betting. In this session, we will explore perception under action pressure. We will dive into how we weigh what we see and hear, the neural ‘gas pedals’ that create the urge to order and what happens when you are simply not sure. Finally, we will look at how mice do the same and how different brain areas work together to win this high-stakes perceptual gamble.
Doors open - 7pm
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