Simple arithmetic: not so simple for highly math anxious individuals.

Fluency with simple arithmetic, typically achieved in early elementary school, is thought to be one of the building blocks of mathematical competence. Behavioral studies with adults indicate that math anxiety (feelings of tension or apprehension about math) is associated with poor performance on cognitively demanding math problems. However, it remains unclear whether there are fundamental differences in how high and low math anxious individuals approach overlearned simple arithmetic problems that are less reliant on cognitive control.

Selective regions of the visuomotor system are related to gain-induced changes in force error.

When humans perform movements and receive on-line visual feedback about their performance, the spatial qualities of the visual information alter performance. The spatial qualities of visual information can be altered via the manipulation of visual gain and changes in visual gain lead to changes in force error. The current study used functional magnetic resonance imaging during a steady-state precision grip force task to examine how cortical and subcortical brain activity can change with visual gain induced changes in force error.