@article{dcac7e3c9fd54b978e9440e032a63ee2,
title = "Spatial behavior: The impact of global and local geometry",
abstract = "Humans and other animals use the global geometry of the surrounding environment in order to orient and determine which direction they are facing. Accordingly, the impact of environment geometry on spatial behavior is reflected in the paths of progression in the environment. When the perception of the global geometry is limited, such as in large or dark environments, the global geometry of the environment has to be constructed gradually as the accumulated geometry of locales. In the present study, we progressively altered the form of a dark square test arena by means of local alterations to its corners and walls, in order to differentiate the impact of the global arena geometry from that of the local arena geometry sectors on spatial behavior in rats. We found that as long as the local alterations did not distort the global square geometry of the dark environment, the rats' behavior did not significantly change. In contrast, distortion of the square shape of the arena resulted in significant changes in the spatial distribution of the rats' activity. Accordingly, we suggest that the perceived global geometry affects spatial behavior, overriding the impact of the local geometry.",
keywords = "Cognitive map, Environment geometry, Exploration, Geometric module, Home-base behavior, Navigation, Spatial behavior",
author = "Dafna Ben-Yehoshua and Osnat Yaski and David Eilam",
note = "Funding Information: Acknowledgments The present study complies with the current law in Israel and the institutional guidelines for animal care and use in research (permit #L-10-013). The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest. This study was supported by The Israel Science Foundation, Grant 177/09.",
year = "2011",
month = may,
doi = "10.1007/s10071-010-0368-z",
language = "אנגלית",
volume = "14",
pages = "341--350",
journal = "Animal Cognition",
issn = "1435-9448",
publisher = "Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH",
number = "3",
}