Babies are ingesting far more substances than we once thought. Long before they can sit, talk, or grab a toy, their brains have already categorized what they see into distinct groups.
New research shows this starts much earlier than expected, forcing scientists to rethink what young minds can do.
For a long time, researchers thought that very young babies mostly perceived the world as less structured combinations of shapes and colors.
learnwas thought to have come later. But there is growing evidence that this is not the case. The brain has been busy from the beginning, quietly organizing scenes and patterns long ago. language will appear.
Early signs of organized thinking
A new discovery reveals that two-month-old babies can already classify objects into categories.
Babies are aware of what something is like, not just what it looks like. Cats are different from birds. A tree is different from a shopping cart.
This is important because classification is a core skill. Adults always depend on it. It helps us learn faster, understand new situations, and navigate daily life.
The fact that we can see this ability so early suggests that the brain is wired from the beginning to learn in a structured way.
look at thoughts without using words
This research was led by neuroscientists working at. trinity college dublin. The research team wanted to answer a question that has persisted for generations: What is really going on in a baby’s mind?
To find out, researchers worked with a hospital in Dublin to recruit 130 healthy two-month-olds. infant. Each baby was lying on a soft bean bag, wearing sound-deadening headphones and looking at bright images.
Sessions lasted approximately 15 to 20 minutes, long enough to capture clear brain signals without tiring the baby.
The research team used functional MRI to measure brain activity as young children viewed images from 12 categories of everyday life. These include animals, objects, and natural scenes.
Even at this early stage, the scans showed consistent patterns that matched certain categories.
What researchers observed
“Parents and scientists have long wondered what’s going on in babies’ minds and what they actually see when they look at the world around them. This study highlights the richness of babies’ brain functions.” first year of life” explained Dr. Cliona O’Doherty, lead author of the study.
“At 2 months old, infants’ communication is limited by a lack of language and fine motor control, but their minds already represent not only what things look like, but also understand which category they belong to.”
Dr. O’Doherty pointed out that this shows that the foundations of visual perception are already in place from a very early stage, and much earlier than expected.
This finding suggests that learning does not wait for words. The brain is already building mental structures even when the baby has no way to show it outwardly.
Brain scanning meets artificial intelligence
To better understand brain patterns, the team used: artificial intelligence Create a model with image data.
By comparing how an AI system processes images and how an infant’s brain responds, researchers can map how visual information flows through the brain.
Professor Rhodri Cusack, from Trinity College’s Institute of Neuroscience, said the study was the largest longitudinal study of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in awake infants.
“This rich dataset capturing brain activity opens up entirely new ways to measure what infants are thinking at a very young age. It also highlights the potential for neuroimaging and computational models to be used as diagnostic tools in very young infants,” Professor Cusack said.
“Babies learn much faster than today’s AI models. By studying how babies learn, we hope to develop a new generation of AI models that learn more efficiently and reduce economic and environmental costs.”
This comparison also challenges common assumptions. Instead of machines teaching us how intelligence works, babies may give us better tips for building smarter systems.
Why is the first year so important?
Early childhood is a time when the brain undergoes rapid changes. Connections are formed quickly. Small differences during this period can permanently shape subsequent developments.
“Until recently, it was not possible to reliably measure how specific areas of an infant’s brain interpret visual information. By combining AI and neuroimaging, our study provides very unique insights and helps us better understand how infants learn in their first year of life,” said study co-author Dr. Anna Truzzi.
“The first year is a fast and complex time. brain development. This research provides new foundational knowledge to guide early childhood education, inform clinical support for neurodevelopmental conditions, and encourage more biologically-based approaches in artificial intelligence. ”
Understanding the typical situation at two months can ultimately help you identify when development starts to go off track.
Early brain research in infants
Scanning an awake infant is not easy. Babies move around a lot, get bored, and cry a lot. However, this study achieved a high success rate and opened the door to new possibilities in pediatric research.
Study co-author Professor Eleanor Molloy said: “There is an urgent need to better understand how neurodevelopmental disorders alter early brain development, and awake fMRI has great potential to address this.”
Although this study is not a diagnostic test, it shows that it is possible to measure early brain function. Over time, this approach may allow physicians to recognize differences early, when support can have the greatest impact.
The most remarkable thing is that a lot is already happening inside the tiny brain. Long before their first steps or first words, babies are already categorizing, learning, and understanding the world. It’s much faster than anyone expected.
The entire study was published in the journal natural neuroscience.
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