Vector Trace cells are a novel type of neuron (also known as nerve cell).
Neurons carry electrical impulses from one place to another, transmitting information through electrical and chemical signals.
Vector Trace cells encode combined distances and directions to objects, as well as memory for the presence of objects recently seen, but now absent. It looks like Vector Trace cells connect to creative brain networks which help us to plan our actions and imagine complex scenarios in our mind s eye, said study co-author Dr Colin Lever at the University of Durham. Vector trace cells acting together likely allow us to recreate the spatial relationships between ourselves and objects, and between the objects in a scene, even when those objects are not directly visible to us.