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Vision

Vision

Vision is the result of light being detected and transduced into neural signals by the retina of the eye. This information is then further analyzed and interpreted by the brain. First, light enters the front of the eye and is focused by the cornea and lens onto the retina—a thin sheet of neural tissue lining the back of the eye. Because of refraction through the convex lens of the eye, images are projected onto the retina upside-down and reversed.

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex

The cerebral cortex, the brain's outermost layer, is pivotal in processing complex cognitive tasks, emotions, and various sensory inputs and executing voluntary motor activities. This intricate structure is divided into three primary functional areas: the motor areas, sensory areas, and association areas.
Motor Areas
The motor areas located in the frontal lobe are central to controlling voluntary movements. This region is further subdivided into the primary motor cortex and the premotor cortex.

Association Areas of the Cortex

Association Areas of the Cortex

Association areas are regions of the cerebral cortex that do not have a specific sensory or motor function. Instead, they integrate and interpret information from various sources to enable higher cognitive processes such as memory, learning, and decision-making. Some key association areas include the following:
Prefrontal Association Area: This area is located in the frontal lobe and is involved in planning, decision-making, and moderating social behavior. It connects with primary motor areas,...

Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex

Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex

The somatosensory cortex in the parietal lobes is crucial for interpreting sensory data such as touch, temperature, and proprioception. The somatosensory cortex, situated in the parietal lobes, plays a vital role in interpreting sensory information like touch, temperature, and proprioception—awareness of body position. This specialized brain region features an organized structure wherein neurons at the top primarily process sensations originating from the lower body. In contrast, those at the...

Visual System

Visual System

Light enters the eye through the cornea, a transparent, dome-shaped surface covering the surface of the eyeball that helps to direct and focus incoming light. This light is then channeled toward the pupil, an adjustable opening whose size is controlled by the iris. The iris, a pigmented muscle, regulates the amount of light entering the eye by contracting or dilating the pupil, thereby ensuring optimal light levels for clear vision.
Once through the pupil, the light passes through the lens, a...

Perceptual Constancy

Perceptual Constancy

Perceptual constancy is the ability to recognize that objects remain consistent and unchanged even when their appearance varies due to changes in sensory input. There are four main types of perceptual constancy: size constancy, shape constancy, color constancy, and brightness constancy.
Size constancy is the recognition that an object remains the same size, even when its image on the retina changes. For instance, a bus is perceived to be large enough to carry people, even if it looks tiny from...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 15, 2026

Cross-Modal Multivariate Pattern Analysis

Cross-Modal Multivariate Pattern Analysis

Published on: November 9, 2011

Spontaneously emerging cortical representations of visual attributes.

Tal Kenet¹, Dmitri Bibitchkov, Misha Tsodyks

¹Department of Neurobiology, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel. (tal@phy.ucsf.edu

|October 31, 2003

Summary

Ongoing brain activity, or spontaneous cortical activity, dynamically switches between states resembling visual orientation maps. This suggests these states may represent the brain's internal context, influencing perception and behavior.

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Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Systems Neuroscience
Visual Neuroscience

Background:

Spontaneous cortical activity is crucial for neural development and sensory processing.
It modulates stimulus-evoked activity and correlates with behavior.
The precise role of ongoing activity in processing external information and its relation to internal sensory representations is unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the role of spontaneous cortical activity in the visual cortex.
To determine if ongoing activity relates to internal representations of sensory attributes.
To explore the dynamic nature of cortical states.

Main Methods:

Utilized voltage-sensitive dye imaging in anesthetized cats.
Recorded ongoing activity in the visual cortex.
Analyzed the relationship between spontaneous activity and orientation maps.

Main Results:

Identified dynamically switching cortical states during spontaneous activity.
Observed that many of these states closely correspond to orientation maps.
Found that emergent orientation states spanned multiple hypercolumns and were often followed by states of proximal orientation.

Conclusions:

Dynamically switching cortical states may represent the brain's internal context.
These states could reflect or influence memory, perception, and behavior.
Spontaneous cortical activity plays a significant role in organizing neural representations.