ABSTRACT
The human brain is a marvelous machine that defines every individual’s reality. Much of that reality relies on a concept of space. I am a distinct “self,” partially because within this skin is “me” and outside of it is everyone and everything else. An object is distinct from all others, partially because it is in a different location or can be described in a different spatial frame from other objects. Grounds and surfaces have volume created by boundaries and are spatially arranged relative to other planes that contribute to the global unity of space as we perceive it. Under normal conditions our brains easily compute the spaces in which we live. But the space that emerges into conscious experience appears to require multiple internal representations that begin by encoding specialized information in parallel and are then integrated into the rich space/object hierarchy we see. Even imaginary creatures require some sort of spatial reference frame that is internally available. Santa Claus lives at the North Pole because he must “be” somewhere, if only in our imaginations. His imaginary existence relies on spatial attributes. He has breadth and height as well as all sorts of distinctive features that are in their proper places. His cheeks are rosy, and his beard is white. There is a frame of reference that “knows” where his parts are located. When the heroine of a novel is described as svelte and lanky, we do not need to be told that she has a torso with her flat stomach facing forward and thin arms projecting from each shoulder. We all have a spatial frame on which to hang her various body parts, and she emerges in consciousness with the proper spatial relationships.
