Abstract

This chapter explores the hypothesis that numerical competence arises from interactions with symbolic cultural tools rather than being an innate human ability. While research in numerical cognition has shown that infants and non-human animals possess inborn abilities to discriminate quantities, these abilities differ fundamentally from the symbolic numerical skills exhibited by adults. The chapter examines the debate between nativist and externalist perspectives, ultimately proposing that inborn quantity-related capacities should be characterized as instances of “quantical cognition”–a form of non-symbolic, non-numerical processing. Building on prior discussions, the chapter provides arguments and evidence to support the claim that quantical cognition, while foundational, does not itself constitute numerical thought.