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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.

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.

Parallel Processing

Parallel Processing

The brain processes sensory information rapidly due to parallel processing, which involves sending data across multiple neural pathways at the same time. This method allows the brain to manage various sensory qualities, such as shapes, colors, movements, and locations, all concurrently. For instance, when observing a forest landscape, the brain simultaneously processes the movement of leaves, the shapes of trees, the depth between them, and the various shades of green. This enables a quick and...

Depth Perception and Spatial Vision

Depth Perception and Spatial Vision

Depth perception is the ability to perceive objects three-dimensionally. It relies on two types of cues: binocular and monocular. Binocular cues depend on the combination of images from both eyes and how the eyes work together. Since the eyes are in slightly different positions, each eye captures a slightly different image. This disparity between images, known as binocular disparity, helps the brain interpret depth. When the brain compares these images, it determines the distance to an object.

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...

Reason and Intuition

Reason and Intuition

The human brain processes information for decision-making using one of two routes: an intuitive system and a rational system (Epstein, 1994; popularized by Kahneman, 2011 as System 1 and System 2, respectively). The intuitive system is quick, impulsive, and operates with minimal effort, relying on emotions or habits to provide cues for what to do next, while the rational system is logical, analytical, deliberate, and methodical. Research in neuropsychology suggests that the brain can only use...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 5, 2026

Eye Movements in Visual Duration Perception: Disentangling Stimulus from Time in Predecisional Processes

Eye Movements in Visual Duration Perception: Disentangling Stimulus from Time in Predecisional Processes

Published on: January 19, 2024

Temporal dynamics of decision-making during motion perception in the visual cortex.

Stephen Grossberg¹, Praveen K Pilly

¹Department of Cognitive and Neural Systems, Center for Adaptive Systems, Center of Excellence for Learning in Education, Science, and Technology, Boston University, 677 Beacon Street, Boston, MA 02215, USA. steve@bu.edu <steve@bu.edu>

Vision Research

|May 3, 2008

Summary

This study models brain decision-making, simulating how neural circuits process visual information for accurate choices. The model explains perceptual decisions without Bayesian inference, detailing neuronal dynamics and behavior.

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Last Updated: Jul 5, 2026

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Methods to Explore the Influence of Top-down Visual Processes on Motor Behavior

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Published on: April 16, 2014

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Computational Neuroscience
Cognitive Science

Background:

Perceptual decision-making speed and accuracy depend on input certainty and evidence accumulation.
Parietal and frontal cortical neurons show activity correlating with decision processes.
Existing models often rely on Bayesian inference, lacking mechanistic explanations for neocortical processes.

Purpose of the Study:

To develop a biophysically realistic model of brain circuits involved in perceptual decision-making.
To simulate and explain the dynamic properties of decision-making in response to visual stimuli.
To elucidate the neural mechanisms underlying probabilistic decisions without relying on Bayesian concepts.

Main Methods:

A computational model simulating interactions between retinal, LGN, V1, MT, MST, LIP, and basal ganglia.
Modeling the aperture problem solution and recurrent competitive networks for choice selection.
Simulating neurophysiological experiments involving ambiguous visual motion stimuli.

Main Results:

The model successfully simulates perceptual decision-making dynamics, including LIP neuronal activity, behavioral accuracy, and reaction times.
It explains how visual processing circuits and competitive networks contribute to real-time probabilistic decisions.
The model generates perceptual representations and choice dynamics consistent with experimental data.

Conclusions:

The developed model provides a mechanistic explanation for perceptual decision-making in the brain.
It demonstrates how neural circuits can perform probabilistic decisions without explicit Bayesian computations.
The model offers insights into the interplay between visual processing areas and decision-related neural populations.