Event-related potentials in humans during spatial navigation

Computer-generated, three-dimensional environments were used to study implicit landmark recognition by having participants take on the role of a taxi driver. During the task, electrical activity on the scalp was measured at 128 locations, and behavioral data on actions within the environment was recorded. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were calculated for a time period surrounding the appearance of target and non-target locations on the computer screen, showing the cortical activation during the implicit recognition of these landmarks. Statistical tests reveal that scalp-recorded stimulus-locked voltage fluctuations are significantly greater during the viewing of target as opposed to non-target locations, with a positive-going deflection in the ERP waveform at approximately 300 ms showing strongly on the right parieto-occipital area of the scalp. This effect, called the P300, is seen throughout the related literature, and is associated with stimulus processing. These findings provide evidence for significant differences in neural activity between two related, but functionally different, conditions in a complex spatial navigation task. ERPS DURING SPATIAL NAVIGATION 3