OUR ability to solve spatial tasks may be linked to our linguistic skills, say researchers who studied the effect of sign language on spatial cognition.
at Wellesley College in Massachusetts and colleagues studied two groups of deaf people who learned to communicate using Nicaraguan sign language. The first cohort learned a simple form that had few signs for spatial terms. The second learned an expanded version 10 years later at the same age, which included a variety of directional signs.
To test their spatial awareness, Pyers placed a cup in each corner of a room with three…
