Neuroscientists find greater complexity in how we perceive motion
December 5, 2011 in Neuroscience
How we perceive motion is a significantly more complex process than previously thought, researchers at New York University's Center for Neural Science, Stanford University and the University of Washington have found. Their results, which appear in the journal Current Biology, show that the relationship between the brain and visual perception varies, depending on the type of motion we are viewing.
Neuroscientists have posited that our perception of motion is derived from a relatively simple processthat is, it relies on a single cortical area in the brain. This region, MT, has a well-established role in processing information about moving visual objects. However, less clear is the scope of its influencedoes it dictate our ability to detect all types of motion or is its function more limited or, perhaps, more nuanced?
With this in mind, the NYU-led team examined how the visual system processes two types of motion: local motion, which involves tracking signals that fall within a small retinal area, and global motion, in which several movements are integrated over larger areas. Specifically, they monitored activity in MT to determine if its neurons were active in response to both types of motion.
In normal scenes, local and global motion are normally in agreement. Here, the researchers conducted experiments in which macaque monkey and human subjects watched specially crafted patterns in which the local and global motion information were in competition. The researchers made physiological and perceptual measurements of brain activity.
Their results showed notable differences in how the visual system functions in processing local and global motion. They found that neuronal activity in MT was controlled by the local motion in the stimulus and unaffected by global motion. Under the same conditions, though, humans' perceptual responses were dominated by global motion, which means that their responses were determined by a second brain mechanism that encodes global motion, whose nature is currently unknown.
J. Anthony Movshon, director of the Center for Neural Science and the paper's senior author, says that the work opens a window for further study: "While comprehending the specifics of this process requires more work, it's clear that motion perception does not depend on a single cortical brain area, but, rather, reflects the action and interaction of multiple mechanisms. We now have new tools to help us identify and study brain systems that are currently unknown."
Provided by
New York University
-
Researchers identify new neurological deficit behind lazy eye
Sep 10, 2010 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Perceptual learning relies on local motion signals to learn global motion
Sep 21, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Study: Color plays role in perception
Apr 19, 2006 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Not just your imagination: The brain perceives optical illusions as real motion
Feb 02, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Brain's center for perceiving 3-D motion is identified (w/ Video)
Jul 21, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Motion perception revisited: High Phi effect challenges established motion perception assumptions
Apr 23, 2013 |
3 / 5 (2) |
2
-
Anything you can do I can do better: Neuromolecular foundations of the superiority illusion (Update)
Apr 02, 2013 |
4.5 / 5 (11) |
5
-
The visual system as economist: Neural resource allocation in visual adaptation
Mar 30, 2013 |
5 / 5 (2) |
9
-
Separate lives: Neuronal and organismal lifespans decoupled
Mar 27, 2013 |
4.9 / 5 (8) |
0
-
Sizing things up: The evolutionary neurobiology of scale invariance
Feb 28, 2013 |
4.8 / 5 (10) |
14
-
Why is zone 1 in liver more prone to ischemic injury?
8 hours ago
-
How can there be villous adenoma in colon, if there are no villi there
May 22, 2013
-
How can there be a term called "intestinal metaplasia" of stomach
May 21, 2013
-
Pressure-volume curve: Elastic Recoil Pressure don't make sense
May 18, 2013
-
If you became brain-dead, would you want them to pull the plug?
May 17, 2013
-
MRI bill question
May 15, 2013
- More from Physics Forums - Medical Sciences
More news stories
The secret lives, and deaths, of neurons
As the human body fine-tunes its neurological wiring, nerve cells often must fix a faulty connection by amputating an axon—the "business end" of the neuron that sends electrical impulses to tissues or other ...
Neuroscience
47 minutes ago |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
|
Regenerating spinal cord fibers may be treatment for stroke-related disabilities
A study by researchers at Henry Ford Hospital found "substantial evidence" that a regenerative process involving damaged nerve fibers in the spinal cord could hold the key to better functional recovery by most stroke victims.
Neuroscience
48 minutes ago |
not rated yet |
0
|
Breakthrough on Huntington's disease
Researchers at Lund University have succeeded in preventing very early symptoms of Huntington's disease, depression and anxiety, by deactivating the mutated huntingtin protein in the brains of mice.
Neuroscience
1 hour ago |
not rated yet |
0
Researchers identify networks of neurons in the brain that are disrupted in psychiatric disease
Studying the networks of connections in the brains of people affected by schizophrenia, bipolar disease or depression has allowed Dr. Peter Williamson, from Western University, to gain a better understanding of the biological ...
Neuroscience
2 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
Pay attention: How we focus and concentrate
Scientists at Newcastle University have shed new light on how the brain tunes in to relevant information.
Neuroscience
2 hours ago |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
|
Motion quotient: IQ predicted by ability to filter motion (w/ video)
A brief visual task can predict IQ, according to a new study. This surprisingly simple exercise measures the brain's unconscious ability to filter out visual movement. The study shows that individuals whose ...
Protein preps cells to survive stress of cancer growth and chemotherapy
Scientists have uncovered a survival mechanism that occurs in breast cells that have just turned premalignant-cells on the cusp between normalcy and cancers-which may lead to new methods of stopping tumors.
Defective cellular waste removal explains why Gaucher patients often develop Parkinson's disease
Gaucher disease causes debilitating and sometimes fatal neurodegeneration in early childhood. Recent studies have uncovered a link between the mutations responsible for Gaucher disease and an increased risk ...
Frequent heartburn may predict cancers of the throat and vocal cord
Frequent heartburn was positively associated with cancers of the throat and vocal cord among nonsmokers and nondrinkers, and the use of antacids, but not prescription medications, had a protective effect, according to data ...
Hormone signal drives motor neuron growth, fish study shows
A discovery made in fish could aid research into motor neuron disease.
Discarded immune cells induce the relocation of stem cells
Spanish researchers have discovered that the daily clearance of neutrophils from the body stimulates the release of hematopoietic stem cells from the bone marrow into the bloodstream, according to a report published today ...
Dec 05, 2011
Rank: not rated yet