  Faces and words both evoke an N170, a strong electrophysiological response
that is often used as a marker for the early stages of expert pattern
perception. We examine the relationship of neural selectivity between faces and
words by using a novel application of cross-category adaptation to the N170. We
report a strong asymmetry between N170 adaptation induced by faces and by
words. This is the first electrophysiological result showing that neural
selectivity to faces encompasses neural selectivity to words, and suggests that
the N170 response to faces constitutes a neural marker for versatile
representations of familiar visual patterns.
