Edwin Burns
@edwinburns.bsky.social
Researcher and Senior Lecturer at Swansea University. Interested in prosopagnosia, aphantasia, autism and other neurodivergent populations. Contact me here through a DM
Reposted by Edwin Burns
A comic I made when I realised I have aphantasia, and lots of things seemed to make sense suddenly
November 10, 2025 at 8:32 PM
A comic I made when I realised I have aphantasia, and lots of things seemed to make sense suddenly
Interesting qualitative paper shows people with aphantasia report troubles with faces, autobiographical memory and navigation.
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Aligns with a preprint we released this year that shows faceblindness is a common complaint amongst this group.
tinyurl.com/efkshpt3
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Aligns with a preprint we released this year that shows faceblindness is a common complaint amongst this group.
tinyurl.com/efkshpt3
“I just see nothing. It’s literally just black”: a qualitative investigation into congenital aphantasia
Aphantasia, the inability to form voluntary sensory imagery, is a newly emerging field. While quantitative evidence regarding the prevalence and profile of aphantasia is increasing, few studies hav...
www.tandfonline.com
October 29, 2025 at 3:28 PM
Interesting qualitative paper shows people with aphantasia report troubles with faces, autobiographical memory and navigation.
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Aligns with a preprint we released this year that shows faceblindness is a common complaint amongst this group.
tinyurl.com/efkshpt3
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Aligns with a preprint we released this year that shows faceblindness is a common complaint amongst this group.
tinyurl.com/efkshpt3
Reposted by Edwin Burns
40 minutes of functional imagery training reduced anxiety and motivated students with high anxiety achieve their goals. Here's the evidence: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
September 18, 2025 at 9:52 PM
40 minutes of functional imagery training reduced anxiety and motivated students with high anxiety achieve their goals. Here's the evidence: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Paper suggests multilingualism may improve mental imagery.
emerginginvestigators.org/articles/24-...
Given multilinguals also exhibit improvements in face recognition (e.g., Burns et al., 2019), possibly by enhancing domain general attention, I wonder if that is responsible here too? #aphantasia
emerginginvestigators.org/articles/24-...
Given multilinguals also exhibit improvements in face recognition (e.g., Burns et al., 2019), possibly by enhancing domain general attention, I wonder if that is responsible here too? #aphantasia
The relationship between multilingualism and visual imagery: Investigating aphantasia using the VVIQ | Journal of Emerging Investigators
JEI is a scientific journal for middle and high school scientists
emerginginvestigators.org
October 2, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Paper suggests multilingualism may improve mental imagery.
emerginginvestigators.org/articles/24-...
Given multilinguals also exhibit improvements in face recognition (e.g., Burns et al., 2019), possibly by enhancing domain general attention, I wonder if that is responsible here too? #aphantasia
emerginginvestigators.org/articles/24-...
Given multilinguals also exhibit improvements in face recognition (e.g., Burns et al., 2019), possibly by enhancing domain general attention, I wonder if that is responsible here too? #aphantasia
Reposted by Edwin Burns
Excited to share a new article from @icevislab.bsky.social! In a sample of over 60 people, we found distinct neural differences underlying object and face recognition in dyslexia. These findings highlight crucial domain-general visual processes that may contribute to word reading challenges.
Distinct neural processing underlying visual face and object perception in dyslexia
Developmental dyslexia is a disorder marked by difficulties in reading, spelling, and connecting sounds to written language. The high-level visual dys…
www.sciencedirect.com
September 23, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Excited to share a new article from @icevislab.bsky.social! In a sample of over 60 people, we found distinct neural differences underlying object and face recognition in dyslexia. These findings highlight crucial domain-general visual processes that may contribute to word reading challenges.
Feel like this has just captured the attachment style of respondents.
Do you think human beings are naturally...
Sympathetic and cooperative: 50%
Self-serving and uncooperative: 33%
yougov.co.uk/topics/socie...
Sympathetic and cooperative: 50%
Self-serving and uncooperative: 33%
yougov.co.uk/topics/socie...
September 15, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Feel like this has just captured the attachment style of respondents.
Reposted by Edwin Burns
Are you, or someone you know, looking for a funded PhD position? I'm interested in supervising PhDs on topics related to my work, e.g., emerging neurodivergent populations, prosopagnosia, validity of psychological science, or political violence. Get in touch if interested:
e.j.burns@swansea.ac.uk
e.j.burns@swansea.ac.uk
Student-led General Competition – Welsh Graduate School for the Social Sciences
wgsss.ac.uk
September 11, 2025 at 7:57 AM
Are you, or someone you know, looking for a funded PhD position? I'm interested in supervising PhDs on topics related to my work, e.g., emerging neurodivergent populations, prosopagnosia, validity of psychological science, or political violence. Get in touch if interested:
e.j.burns@swansea.ac.uk
e.j.burns@swansea.ac.uk
Are you, or someone you know, looking for a funded PhD position? I'm interested in supervising PhDs on topics related to my work, e.g., emerging neurodivergent populations, prosopagnosia, validity of psychological science, or political violence. Get in touch if interested:
e.j.burns@swansea.ac.uk
e.j.burns@swansea.ac.uk
Student-led General Competition – Welsh Graduate School for the Social Sciences
wgsss.ac.uk
September 11, 2025 at 7:57 AM
Are you, or someone you know, looking for a funded PhD position? I'm interested in supervising PhDs on topics related to my work, e.g., emerging neurodivergent populations, prosopagnosia, validity of psychological science, or political violence. Get in touch if interested:
e.j.burns@swansea.ac.uk
e.j.burns@swansea.ac.uk
Reposted by Edwin Burns
New paper with @ManuKirberg 💭
Is “unconscious mental imagery” real? The evidence is weaker than it seems. We explain why—and how to move the debate forward.
🔗 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Is “unconscious mental imagery” real? The evidence is weaker than it seems. We explain why—and how to move the debate forward.
🔗 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Aphantasia and the unconscious imagery hypothesis
Until recently, mental imagery has largely been regarded as an exclusively conscious phenomenon. However, recent empirical results suggest that mental…
www.sciencedirect.com
September 4, 2025 at 5:12 AM
New paper with @ManuKirberg 💭
Is “unconscious mental imagery” real? The evidence is weaker than it seems. We explain why—and how to move the debate forward.
🔗 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Is “unconscious mental imagery” real? The evidence is weaker than it seems. We explain why—and how to move the debate forward.
🔗 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Teilo the corgi out for brunch in Swansea.
August 17, 2025 at 10:50 AM
Teilo the corgi out for brunch in Swansea.
A striking personal account of someone's experiences with severely deficient autobiographical memory. While memory conditions rightly garner considerable research interest, the paucity of papers on SDAM is notable, despite difficulties associated with its presence.
substack.com/inbox/post/1...
substack.com/inbox/post/1...
The Life I Can’t Remember
I was born in the 1940s, in the last days of Empire.
substack.com
August 7, 2025 at 1:29 PM
A striking personal account of someone's experiences with severely deficient autobiographical memory. While memory conditions rightly garner considerable research interest, the paucity of papers on SDAM is notable, despite difficulties associated with its presence.
substack.com/inbox/post/1...
substack.com/inbox/post/1...
Reposted by Edwin Burns
Just out: JASP 0.95! With sandboxing, a new plot builder, ESCI, and more.
jasp-stats.org/2025/08/02/i...
jasp-stats.org/2025/08/02/i...
Introducing JASP 0.95: Sandboxing, Plotbuilder, ESCI, Parametric Survival Analysis, and Much More - JASP - Free and User-Friendly Statistical Software
We are proud to announce that JASP 0.95 has been released and is now available on our download page. JASP 0.95 presents a big step forwards, as you can see from the full release notes. Some of the hig...
https://jasp-stats.org/2025/08/02/introducing-jasp-0-95-sandboxing-plotbuilder-esci-parametric-survival-analysis-and-much-more/"
August 2, 2025 at 10:05 AM
Just out: JASP 0.95! With sandboxing, a new plot builder, ESCI, and more.
jasp-stats.org/2025/08/02/i...
jasp-stats.org/2025/08/02/i...
Interesting personal account of what living with prosopagnosia is like.
We can learn a lot about a person simply through a face, and it’s the single most unique way of identifying someone. For those of us with prosopagnosia, or face blindness, connecting these clues doesn’t come easily.
medium.com/@limolnar/li...
#psychology #diversity #motivation
medium.com/@limolnar/li...
#psychology #diversity #motivation
Living with Prosopagnosia
Seeing the World in Pieces
medium.com
July 31, 2025 at 4:24 PM
Interesting personal account of what living with prosopagnosia is like.
Reposted by Edwin Burns
After five years of confused staring at Greek letters, it is my absolute pleasure to finally share our (with @smfleming.bsky.social) computational model of mental imagery and reality monitoring: Perceptual Reality Monitoring as Higher-Order inference on Sensory Precision ✨
osf.io/preprints/ps...
osf.io/preprints/ps...
OSF
osf.io
July 23, 2025 at 2:18 PM
After five years of confused staring at Greek letters, it is my absolute pleasure to finally share our (with @smfleming.bsky.social) computational model of mental imagery and reality monitoring: Perceptual Reality Monitoring as Higher-Order inference on Sensory Precision ✨
osf.io/preprints/ps...
osf.io/preprints/ps...
Someone with aphantasia talks movingly about how difficult it is being in a Big Brother House with no mental imagery of loved ones. Mentions she does not know what family members look like, but some aphants online say they do know. So why do these differences exist? Thread 1/2 #bb27 #aphantasia
Kelley: I have aphantasia. When you close your eyes, can you picture people you love? You can see their faces, right? I see darkness. All the time. 100% of the time. It just feels...I don't remember what Cory looks like. I don't remember what my mom looks like. #bb27
July 20, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Someone with aphantasia talks movingly about how difficult it is being in a Big Brother House with no mental imagery of loved ones. Mentions she does not know what family members look like, but some aphants online say they do know. So why do these differences exist? Thread 1/2 #bb27 #aphantasia
Reposted by Edwin Burns
🧠 Just out with @pennypexman.bsky.social “Simulation in the ‘Blind’ Mind”.
We found that even without conscious imagery (aphantasia), people still simulate sensorimotor info when processing language. 💭🔤
We found that even without conscious imagery (aphantasia), people still simulate sensorimotor info when processing language. 💭🔤
July 17, 2025 at 4:55 PM
🧠 Just out with @pennypexman.bsky.social “Simulation in the ‘Blind’ Mind”.
We found that even without conscious imagery (aphantasia), people still simulate sensorimotor info when processing language. 💭🔤
We found that even without conscious imagery (aphantasia), people still simulate sensorimotor info when processing language. 💭🔤
Reposted by Edwin Burns
"when primary care clinicians classified a child as having definite autism... they were 100% accurate, but only 57% accurate when they indicated a child definitely did not have autism"? journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/... diagnostic impressions of toddlers referred for developmental concerns
Short report: Autism diagnostic impressions in young children formed by primary care clinicians and through telemedicine expert assessments - Andrea Trubanova Wieckowski, Ashley de Marchena, Alexia F ...
Formal autism diagnosis is often critical for children to access early, autism-specific services and supports. However, barriers to traditional in-person evalua...
journals.sagepub.com
July 13, 2025 at 9:25 AM
"when primary care clinicians classified a child as having definite autism... they were 100% accurate, but only 57% accurate when they indicated a child definitely did not have autism"? journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/... diagnostic impressions of toddlers referred for developmental concerns
New study suggests aphantasia may be associated with qualitative differences in early visual cortex responses. Suggest there's something unique about how aphantasics' brains respond, and retrieve information, when attempting to generate imagery.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
www.cell.com/current-biol...
Imageless imagery in aphantasia revealed by early visual cortex decoding
Chang et al. report that during imagery attempts, those with validated aphantasia
have decreased perceptual BOLD response and higher ipsilateral imagery response. Imagery
content could be decoded usin...
www.cell.com
July 10, 2025 at 2:17 PM
New study suggests aphantasia may be associated with qualitative differences in early visual cortex responses. Suggest there's something unique about how aphantasics' brains respond, and retrieve information, when attempting to generate imagery.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
www.cell.com/current-biol...
Reposted by Edwin Burns
My first publication in Trends in Cognitive Sciences: Varieties of aphantasia
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Varieties of aphantasia
www.sciencedirect.com
June 25, 2025 at 9:15 AM
My first publication in Trends in Cognitive Sciences: Varieties of aphantasia
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Edwin Burns
What a cool preprint! From @gaenplancher.bsky.social
Different subtypes of aphantasia show different performance on spatial, verbal & perceptual tasks:
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
Different subtypes of aphantasia show different performance on spatial, verbal & perceptual tasks:
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
(PDF) Uncovering spatial and verbal cognitive profiles in aphantasia through unsupervised clustering
PDF | Mental images are a ubiquitous phenomenon for many people. In recent years, attention has focused on a condition defined by the absence of mental... | Find, read and cite all the research you ne...
www.researchgate.net
June 21, 2025 at 4:57 PM
What a cool preprint! From @gaenplancher.bsky.social
Different subtypes of aphantasia show different performance on spatial, verbal & perceptual tasks:
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
Different subtypes of aphantasia show different performance on spatial, verbal & perceptual tasks:
www.researchgate.net/publication/...
New preprint from our lab! 🚨
Developmental aphantasia is characterised by a lifelong absence of mental imagery.
In our preprint on PsyArXiv below, we ask is aphantasia a neurodevelopmental condition, like autism, ADHD, and dyslexia? But how would you show this? Thread 👇
Developmental aphantasia is characterised by a lifelong absence of mental imagery.
In our preprint on PsyArXiv below, we ask is aphantasia a neurodevelopmental condition, like autism, ADHD, and dyslexia? But how would you show this? Thread 👇
Is aphantasia a neurodevelopmental condition? Evidence from face recognition and developmental prosopagnosia: https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/gpnhc_v1
June 18, 2025 at 8:06 AM
New preprint from our lab! 🚨
Developmental aphantasia is characterised by a lifelong absence of mental imagery.
In our preprint on PsyArXiv below, we ask is aphantasia a neurodevelopmental condition, like autism, ADHD, and dyslexia? But how would you show this? Thread 👇
Developmental aphantasia is characterised by a lifelong absence of mental imagery.
In our preprint on PsyArXiv below, we ask is aphantasia a neurodevelopmental condition, like autism, ADHD, and dyslexia? But how would you show this? Thread 👇
Developmental coordination disorder is a lifelong condition characterised by problems with movement. It has been associated with social problems, which can contribute to DCD's diagnostic process. However, our recent research shows these issues could be due to developmental prosopagnosia (thread)
June 17, 2025 at 7:39 AM
Developmental coordination disorder is a lifelong condition characterised by problems with movement. It has been associated with social problems, which can contribute to DCD's diagnostic process. However, our recent research shows these issues could be due to developmental prosopagnosia (thread)
Touched that I was nominated for a teaching excellence award in my first full year at Swansea University. I would like to thank the students who took the time to nominate me for the award, and also my new colleagues at Swansea whose training and support really sets you up to succeed. 🥳
June 16, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Touched that I was nominated for a teaching excellence award in my first full year at Swansea University. I would like to thank the students who took the time to nominate me for the award, and also my new colleagues at Swansea whose training and support really sets you up to succeed. 🥳
Reposted by Edwin Burns
the psych department at Waikato (in Hamilton, New Zealand) is recruiting at the junior level, in developmental and/or perception/cognition
(in NZ 'lecturer' means 'assistant professor', and is a permanent role)
(in NZ 'lecturer' means 'assistant professor', and is a permanent role)
Lecturer in Psychology - Hamilton, New Zealand job with UNIVERSITY OF WAIKATO | 394487
We are looking for a stellar individual who will bring professional and academic experience to facilitate our portfolio of research ...
www.timeshighereducation.com
June 13, 2025 at 8:33 PM
the psych department at Waikato (in Hamilton, New Zealand) is recruiting at the junior level, in developmental and/or perception/cognition
(in NZ 'lecturer' means 'assistant professor', and is a permanent role)
(in NZ 'lecturer' means 'assistant professor', and is a permanent role)
Reposted by Edwin Burns
📢"Aphantasia as a functional disconnection"! in TICS
A disconnection between the Fusiform Imagery Node (FIN) & the left PFC may explain retained memory for objects, despite lacking subjective imagery in aphantasics.
left PFC, awareness, attention network...🧵
authors.elsevier.com/a/1lCs3_V1r-...
A disconnection between the Fusiform Imagery Node (FIN) & the left PFC may explain retained memory for objects, despite lacking subjective imagery in aphantasics.
left PFC, awareness, attention network...🧵
authors.elsevier.com/a/1lCs3_V1r-...
June 5, 2025 at 4:03 PM
📢"Aphantasia as a functional disconnection"! in TICS
A disconnection between the Fusiform Imagery Node (FIN) & the left PFC may explain retained memory for objects, despite lacking subjective imagery in aphantasics.
left PFC, awareness, attention network...🧵
authors.elsevier.com/a/1lCs3_V1r-...
A disconnection between the Fusiform Imagery Node (FIN) & the left PFC may explain retained memory for objects, despite lacking subjective imagery in aphantasics.
left PFC, awareness, attention network...🧵
authors.elsevier.com/a/1lCs3_V1r-...