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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.

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...

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...

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...

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,...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 18, 2026

Extracting Visual Evoked Potentials from EEG Data Recorded During fMRI-guided Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

Extracting Visual Evoked Potentials from EEG Data Recorded During fMRI-guided Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

Published on: May 12, 2014

Decoding the contents of visual short-term memory from human visual and parietal cortex.

Thomas B Christophel¹, Martin N Hebart, John-Dylan Haynes

¹Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience, Charité Universitätsmedizin, 10115 Berlin, Germany. thomas.christophel@bccn-berlin.de

The Journal of Neuroscience : the Official Journal of the Society for Neuroscience

|September 21, 2012

Summary

Visual short-term memory (VSTM) storage extends beyond visual areas to the posterior parietal cortex. Frontal regions were not found to maintain VSTM content, suggesting parietal cortex involvement in the frontoparietal network.

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Investigating Object Representations in the Macaque Dorsal Visual Stream Using Single-unit Recordings

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Last Updated: May 18, 2026

Extracting Visual Evoked Potentials from EEG Data Recorded During fMRI-guided Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

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Investigating Object Representations in the Macaque Dorsal Visual Stream Using Single-unit Recordings

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Published on: August 1, 2018

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Cognitive Neuroscience

Background:

The precise neural mechanisms and locations for content storage in human visual short-term memory (VSTM) remain debated.
Current theories propose storage in prefrontal, parietal, or visual cortical areas.

Purpose of the Study:

To differentiate between competing theories of VSTM storage by investigating the content-specificity of brain activity.
To identify brain regions that encode specific information during VSTM maintenance.

Main Methods:

Utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and multivariate pattern classification (MVPA) analysis.
Examined blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) signals from various brain regions during a VSTM task.
Assessed whether local fMRI signal patterns could decode the specific visual content held in memory.

Main Results:

Identified two brain regions where fMRI signal patterns represented remembered content.
Confirmed content-specific activity in visual areas, consistent with prior research.
Discovered content-specific activity in the posterior parietal cortex, indicating its role in VSTM storage.

Conclusions:

VSTM content storage is not limited to visual processing areas.
The posterior parietal cortex plays a significant role in maintaining specific visual information in VSTM.
Contrary to some theories, no frontal regions were identified as critical for VSTM content maintenance in this study.