Fast implicit and slow explicit learning of temporal context
Abstract One is seldom aware of the anticipatory and preemptive feats that the eyeblink system achieves in daily life but it frequently protects the eye from projectiles gone awry and insects on apparent collision courses. This poor awareness is why predictive eyeblinks are considered a form of impl...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-01664-1 |
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| author | Luca Mangili Charlotte Wissing Devika Narain |
| author_facet | Luca Mangili Charlotte Wissing Devika Narain |
| author_sort | Luca Mangili |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract One is seldom aware of the anticipatory and preemptive feats that the eyeblink system achieves in daily life but it frequently protects the eye from projectiles gone awry and insects on apparent collision courses. This poor awareness is why predictive eyeblinks are considered a form of implicit learning. In motor neuroscience, implicit learning is considered to be slow and, eyeblink conditioning, in particular, is believed to be a rigid and inflexible cerebellar-dependent behavior. In cognitive neuroscience, however, implicit and automatic processes are thought to be rapidly acquired. Here we show that the eyeblink system is, in fact, capable of remarkable cognitive flexibility and can learn on more rapid timescales than previously expected. In a task where we yoked contextual learning of predictive eyeblinks and manual responses in humans, well-timed eyeblink responses flexibly adjusted to external context on each trial. The temporal precision of the predictive eyeblinks exceeded that of manual response times. Learning of the well-timed eyeblink responses was also more rapid than that for the manual response times. This pattern persevered with the use of a cognitive strategy, which seemed to accelerate both types of learning. These results suggest that behaviors associated with the cerebellar cortex that were previously believed to be inflexible and largely implicit, can demonstrate rapid and precise context-dependent temporal control. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e993670203ec45ea8ce471d1d0fe63b8 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
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| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-e993670203ec45ea8ce471d1d0fe63b82025-08-20T01:51:36ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-05-0115111110.1038/s41598-025-01664-1Fast implicit and slow explicit learning of temporal contextLuca Mangili0Charlotte Wissing1Devika Narain2Dept. of Neuroscience, Erasmus University Medical CenterDept. of Neuroscience, Erasmus University Medical CenterDept. of Neuroscience, Erasmus University Medical CenterAbstract One is seldom aware of the anticipatory and preemptive feats that the eyeblink system achieves in daily life but it frequently protects the eye from projectiles gone awry and insects on apparent collision courses. This poor awareness is why predictive eyeblinks are considered a form of implicit learning. In motor neuroscience, implicit learning is considered to be slow and, eyeblink conditioning, in particular, is believed to be a rigid and inflexible cerebellar-dependent behavior. In cognitive neuroscience, however, implicit and automatic processes are thought to be rapidly acquired. Here we show that the eyeblink system is, in fact, capable of remarkable cognitive flexibility and can learn on more rapid timescales than previously expected. In a task where we yoked contextual learning of predictive eyeblinks and manual responses in humans, well-timed eyeblink responses flexibly adjusted to external context on each trial. The temporal precision of the predictive eyeblinks exceeded that of manual response times. Learning of the well-timed eyeblink responses was also more rapid than that for the manual response times. This pattern persevered with the use of a cognitive strategy, which seemed to accelerate both types of learning. These results suggest that behaviors associated with the cerebellar cortex that were previously believed to be inflexible and largely implicit, can demonstrate rapid and precise context-dependent temporal control.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-01664-1 |
| spellingShingle | Luca Mangili Charlotte Wissing Devika Narain Fast implicit and slow explicit learning of temporal context Scientific Reports |
| title | Fast implicit and slow explicit learning of temporal context |
| title_full | Fast implicit and slow explicit learning of temporal context |
| title_fullStr | Fast implicit and slow explicit learning of temporal context |
| title_full_unstemmed | Fast implicit and slow explicit learning of temporal context |
| title_short | Fast implicit and slow explicit learning of temporal context |
| title_sort | fast implicit and slow explicit learning of temporal context |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-01664-1 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT lucamangili fastimplicitandslowexplicitlearningoftemporalcontext AT charlottewissing fastimplicitandslowexplicitlearningoftemporalcontext AT devikanarain fastimplicitandslowexplicitlearningoftemporalcontext |