On the representation of space in auditory cortex

Orienting in space is a cardinal aspect of goal directed behavior. Unlike the limited "field of view" of the vision somatosensation, audition is optimally situated to provide information from 360 degrees around us, without the need to foveate or reach. However, very little is known about the representation of space in auditory cortex. I will discuss a series of studies using fMRI and EEG in human subjects, in which we investigated the cortical locus of auditory spatial information, the interaction of cortical spatial representation with tonotopic representation, and whether secondary coordinate frameworks, beyond head-related ones (e.g., body- or world-centered), are represented in auditory cortex.