Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Vision01:24

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.
Anatomy of the Eyeball01:20

Anatomy of the Eyeball

The eye is a spherical, hollow structure composed of three tissue layers. The outer layer — the fibrous tunic, comprises the sclera — a white structure — and the cornea, which is transparent. The sclera encompasses some of the ocular surface, most of which is not visible. However, the 'white of the eye' is distinctively visible in humans compared to other species. The cornea, a clear covering at the front of the eye, enables light penetration. The eye's middle layer, the vascular tunic,...
Visual System01:26

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...
Gestalt Principles of Perception01:21

Gestalt Principles of Perception

Gestalt principles provide a framework for understanding how humans perceive objects as unified wholes within their context. These principles are essential in explaining the cognitive processes that make sense of complex visual stimuli by organizing them into coherent groups. One fundamental principle is proximity, which posits that objects located close to each other are perceived as a collective group. For instance, when dots are positioned near one another, the visual system interprets them...
Depth Perception and Spatial Vision01:15

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.
Perceptual Constancy01:12

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...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Dynamic competition between selective attention and spatial prediction during visual search.

Journal of experimental psychology. Human perception and performance·2026
Same author

Methodological foundations for locating the neural correlates of low-level visual experience.

Frontiers in psychology·2026
Same author

An open-access multi-site fMRI dataset for investigating conscious visual perception.

Scientific data·2026
Same author

Attention in the wild: balancing flexibility and stability.

Trends in cognitive sciences·2026
Same author

Stimulus dependencies-rather than next-word prediction-can explain pre-onset brain encoding in naturalistic listening designs.

eLife·2026
Same author

Where learning paths meet: Convergence and divergence of statistical and reinforcement learning.

Current opinion in neurobiology·2026
Same journal

Dynamic coordination and segregation mechanisms in higher cortex for parallel task processing.

Neuron·2026
Same journal

Higher-order thalamic bursts are drivers of attention control.

Neuron·2026
Same journal

Composing trajectories for rapid inference of navigational goals.

Neuron·2026
Same journal

Peri-head distance coding in the mouse brainstem.

Neuron·2026
Same journal

A two-timepoint framework for sensitive and specific single-cell activity screening.

Neuron·2026
Same journal

From first impressions to bonds: The neural dynamics of social relationships.

Neuron·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 20, 2026

Central and Divided Visual Field Presentation of Emotional Images to Measure Hemispheric Differences in Motivated Attention
05:36

Central and Divided Visual Field Presentation of Emotional Images to Measure Hemispheric Differences in Motivated Attention

Published on: November 16, 2017

Less is more: expectation sharpens representations in the primary visual cortex.

Peter Kok1, Janneke F M Jehee, Floris P de Lange

  • 1Radboud University Nijmegen, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, 6500 HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands.

Neuron
|July 31, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Prior expectations sharpen neural representations in the primary visual cortex (V1), enhancing perception. This effect improves stimulus decoding and behavioral performance, independent of attention.

More Related Videos

Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments
13:00

Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments

Published on: January 23, 2017

How to Find Effects of Stimulus Processing on Event Related Brain Potentials of Close Others when Hyperscanning Partners
09:52

How to Find Effects of Stimulus Processing on Event Related Brain Potentials of Close Others when Hyperscanning Partners

Published on: May 31, 2018

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 20, 2026

Central and Divided Visual Field Presentation of Emotional Images to Measure Hemispheric Differences in Motivated Attention
05:36

Central and Divided Visual Field Presentation of Emotional Images to Measure Hemispheric Differences in Motivated Attention

Published on: November 16, 2017

Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments
13:00

Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments

Published on: January 23, 2017

How to Find Effects of Stimulus Processing on Event Related Brain Potentials of Close Others when Hyperscanning Partners
09:52

How to Find Effects of Stimulus Processing on Event Related Brain Potentials of Close Others when Hyperscanning Partners

Published on: May 31, 2018

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Science
  • Visual Perception

Background:

  • Prior expectations aid in interpreting ambiguous visual information.
  • The neural basis for expectation-driven perceptual enhancement is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how neural activity in the early visual cortex is modulated by prior expectations.
  • To determine the impact of expectation on both the amplitude and representational content of neural signals.

Main Methods:

  • Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was employed to measure brain activity.
  • Multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) was used to decode stimulus representations from neural data.
  • Neural response amplitude and representational content in V1 were analyzed.

Main Results:

  • Perceptual expectation decreased neural response amplitude in V1.
  • Expectation enhanced the quality of stimulus representation in V1, as shown by MVPA.
  • This enhancement was observed independently of attentional modulation.
  • Improved V1 representation correlated with better behavioral performance.

Conclusions:

  • Expectation facilitates perception by sharpening sensory representations in the early visual cortex.
  • This sharpening mechanism enhances the brain's ability to interpret visual input.
  • The findings provide insights into the neural underpinnings of predictive coding in vision.