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Related Concept Videos

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,...

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...

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.

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...

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.

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 2, 2026

Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity

Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity

Published on: March 18, 2019

The temporal dynamics of object processing in visual cortex during the transition from distributed to focused spatial

Chien-Te Wu¹, Melissa E Libertus, Karen L Meyerhoff

¹Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Duke University, Box 90999, Durham, NC 27708, USA.

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience

|May 14, 2011

Summary

Focal spatial attention is not strictly required for initial object perception. Brain activity shows object representations form in parallel before focused attention, which then amplifies discrimination.

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Last Updated: Jun 2, 2026

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

Published on: January 19, 2024

Area of Science:

Cognitive Neuroscience
Visual Perception
Electrophysiology

Background:

Cognitive models propose focal spatial attention is crucial for integrating object features for perception.
Behavioral studies present conflicting evidence regarding the necessity of focused attention for complex discrimination.

Purpose of the Study:

Investigate the role of focal spatial attention in object categorization.
Explore the neural mechanisms and temporal dynamics of attention and perception in the visual cortex.

Main Methods:

Recorded human electrophysiological brain activity using a cued visual search paradigm.
Manipulated the timing of attentional cues relative to visual array presentation (simultaneous, 50ms delay, 100ms delay).
Examined object-related visual processing under distributed versus focal spatial attention.

Main Results:

Object-specific representations can form in parallel across the visual field under distributed attention.
These representations are amplified once focal spatial attention is directed to a specific object.
Electrophysiological data reveal parallel processing precedes focused attentional enhancement.

Conclusions:

Challenges the necessity of focal spatial attention for initial object representation formation.
Suggests a two-stage process: parallel distributed representation followed by focused attentional amplification.
Provides neurophysiological evidence for the temporal cascade of attention and perception.