Visual Processing (Higher Centres) Flashcards by Mia Philip

Define

Ablation

the surgical removal of body tissue.

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Define

Area V1

the first stage of cortical processing of visual information. It contains a complete map of the visual field covered by the eyes

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Define

Brain imaging

the use of various techniques to either directly or indirectly image the structure, function, or pharmacology of the nervous system

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Define

Contralateral eye

the eye ball which is on the opposite side of the body of some other item of construction

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Cortical magnification

describes how many neurons in an area of the visual cortex are ‘responsible’ for processing a stimulus of a given size, as a function of visual field location

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Define

Distributed representation

describes the same data features across multiple scalable and interdependent layers. Each layer defines the information with the same level of accuracy, but adjusted for the level of scale

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Define

Dorsal pathway

a pathway that carries visual information from the primary visual cortex to the parietal lobe. According to one widely-accepted hypothesis, it carries information related to movement and spatial relationships between objects in the visual field. It is sometimes called the “where” pathway

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Define

Double dissociations

two related mental processes are shown to function independently of each other

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Define

Expertise hypothesis

suggests the mechanisms involved in face processing are also engaged by objects with high within-class similarity for which people have become experts at rapid individuation

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Define

Extrastriate body area (EBA)

a subpart of the extrastriate visual cortex involved in the visual perception of human body and body parts, akin in its respective domain to the fusiform face area, involved in the perception of human faces

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Define

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

a device that measures brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow

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Define

Fusiform face area (FFA)

a part of the human visual system that is specialized for facial recognition. It is located in the Inferior temporal cortex (IT)

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Define

Hippocampus

the elongated ridges on the floor of each lateral ventricle of the brain, thought to be the centre of emotion, memory, and the autonomic nervous system.

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Define

How pathway

Also known as the parietal stream or the “where” stream, this pathway stretches from the primary visual cortex (V1) in the occipital lobe forward into the parietal lobe. It is interconnected with the parallel ventral stream (the “what” stream) which runs downward from V1 into the temporal lobe

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Define

Hypercolumn

a 1 mm block of V1 containing both the ocular dominance and orientation columns for a particular region in visual space

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Ipsilateral eye

the eye located on the same side of the body as another structure or object

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Define

Landmark discrimination problem

the behavioral task used in Ungerleider and Mishkin’s experiement in which they provided evidence for the dorsal, or where, visual processing stream

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Define

Lateral occipital complex (LOC)

a large cortical region that appears to play a central role in object recognition

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Location columns

columns of the visual cortex that contain information from receptive fields at the same location on the retina

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M-ganglion cell

cells project to the magnocellular layers of the lateral geniculate nucleus

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Define

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body

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Define

Mind-body problem

a debate concerning the relationship between thought and consciousness in the human mind, and the brain as part of the physical body

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Define

Modularity

the idea that there are self-contained areas in the brain that store mental processes such as the “lower level” reflexes

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Define

Modules

functionally specialized cognitive systems that are domain-specific and may also contain innate knowledge about the class of information processed

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# Define Neuropsychology

a branch of psychology that aims to study the relationships between the brain and behaviour

# Define Object discrimination problem

the behavioral task used in ungerleider and mishkins experiment in which they provided evidence for the ventral, or what, visual processing stream

# Define Ocular dominance columns

Columns in the visual cortex that respond preferentially to one eye

# Define Orientation columns

organized regions of neurons that are excited by visual line stimuli of varying angles. These columns are located in the primary visual cortex (V1) and span multiple cortical layers

# Define P-ganglion cell

cells project to the parvocellular layers of the lateral geniculate nucleus

# Define Parahippocampal place area (PPA)

a region in the human collateral sulcus that responds more strongly to visual scenes (e.g. images of landscapes or cityscapes) than to other visual stimuli

# Define Prosopagnosia

a neurological condition characterized by the inability to recognize the faces of familiar people

# Define Retinotopic map

the point-by-point representation of the retinal surface in another structure in the visual system, such as the striate cortex

# Define Spatial organisation

an aspect of spatial perception and concerns the perception of spatial relationships

# Define Ventral pathway

a pathway that carries visual information from the primary visual cortex to the temporal lobe. According to one widely-accepted hypothesis, it carries information related to object form and recognition

# Define What pathway

also known as the ventral stream, it leads to the temporal lobe, which is involved with object and visual identification and recognition

# Define Where pathway

Also known as the parietal stream or the "how" stream, this pathway stretches from the primary visual cortex (V1) in the occipital lobe forward into the parietal lobe. It is interconnected with the parallel ventral stream (the "what" stream) which runs downward from V1 into the temporal lobe

# Definition the surgical removal of body tissue.

Ablation

# Definition the first stage of cortical processing of visual information. It contains a complete map of the visual field covered by the eyes

Area V1

# Definition the use of various techniques to either directly or indirectly image the structure, function, or pharmacology of the nervous system

Brain imaging

# Definition the eye ball which is on the opposite side of the body of some other item of construction

Contralateral eye

# Definition describes how many neurons in an area of the visual cortex are 'responsible' for processing a stimulus of a given size, as a function of visual field location

Cortical magnification

# Definition describes the same data features across multiple scalable and interdependent layers. Each layer defines the information with the same level of accuracy, but adjusted for the level of scale

Distributed representation

# Definition a pathway that carries visual information from the primary visual cortex to the parietal lobe. According to one widely-accepted hypothesis, it carries information related to movement and spatial relationships between objects in the visual field. It is sometimes called the "where" pathway

Dorsal pathway

# Definition two related mental processes are shown to function independently of each other

Double dissociations

# Definition suggests the mechanisms involved in face processing are also engaged by objects with high within-class similarity for which people have become experts at rapid individuation

Expertise hypothesis

# Definition a subpart of the extrastriate visual cortex involved in the visual perception of human body and body parts, akin in its respective domain to the fusiform face area, involved in the perception of human faces

Extrastriate body area (EBA)

# Definition a device that measures brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

# Definition a part of the human visual system that is specialized for facial recognition. It is located in the Inferior temporal cortex (IT)

Fusiform face area (FFA)

# Definition the elongated ridges on the floor of each lateral ventricle of the brain, thought to be the centre of emotion, memory, and the autonomic nervous system.

Hippocampus

# Definition Also known as the parietal stream or the "where" stream, this pathway stretches from the primary visual cortex (V1) in the occipital lobe forward into the parietal lobe. It is interconnected with the parallel ventral stream (the "what" stream) which runs downward from V1 into the temporal lobe

How pathway

# Definition a 1 mm block of V1 containing both the ocular dominance and orientation columns for a particular region in visual space

Hypercolumn

# Definition the eye located on the same side of the body as another structure or object

Ipsilateral eye

# Definition the behavioral task used in Ungerleider and Mishkin's experiement in which they provided evidence for the dorsal, or where, visual processing stream

Landmark discrimination problem

# Definition a large cortical region that appears to play a central role in object recognition

Lateral occipital complex (LOC)

# Definition columns of the visual cortex that contain information from receptive fields at the same location on the retina

Location columns

# Definition cells project to the magnocellular layers of the lateral geniculate nucleus

M-ganglion cell

# Definition a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

# Definition a debate concerning the relationship between thought and consciousness in the human mind, and the brain as part of the physical body

Mind-body problem

# Definition the idea that there are self-contained areas in the brain that store mental processes such as the "lower level" reflexes

Modularity

# Definition functionally specialized cognitive systems that are domain-specific and may also contain innate knowledge about the class of information processed

Modules

# Definition a branch of psychology that aims to study the relationships between the brain and behaviour

Neuropsychology

# Definition the behavioral task used in ungerleider and mishkins experiment in which they provided evidence for the ventral, or what, visual processing stream

Object discrimination problem

# Definition Columns in the visual cortex that respond preferentially to one eye

Ocular dominance columns

# Definition organized regions of neurons that are excited by visual line stimuli of varying angles. These columns are located in the primary visual cortex (V1) and span multiple cortical layers

Orientation columns

# Definition cells project to the parvocellular layers of the lateral geniculate nucleus

P-ganglion cell

# Definition a region in the human collateral sulcus that responds more strongly to visual scenes (e.g. images of landscapes or cityscapes) than to other visual stimuli

Parahippocampal place area (PPA)

# Definition a neurological condition characterized by the inability to recognize the faces of familiar people

Prosopagnosia

# Definition the point-by-point representation of the retinal surface in another structure in the visual system, such as the striate cortex

Retinotopic map

# Definition an aspect of spatial perception and concerns the perception of spatial relationships

Spatial organisation

# Definition a pathway that carries visual information from the primary visual cortex to the temporal lobe. According to one widely-accepted hypothesis, it carries information related to object form and recognition

Ventral pathway

# Definition also known as the ventral stream, it leads to the temporal lobe, which is involved with object and visual identification and recognition

What pathway

# Definition Also known as the parietal stream or the "how" stream, this pathway stretches from the primary visual cortex (V1) in the occipital lobe forward into the parietal lobe. It is interconnected with the parallel ventral stream (the "what" stream) which runs downward from V1 into the temporal lobe

Where pathway

What is the order of the brain structures that signals from the retina pass through?

Signals from the retina travel through the optic nerve to the: 1. Lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) 2. Primary visual receiving area in the occipital lobe (the striate cortex) 3. And then through two pathways to the temporal lobe and the parietal lobe (what and how pathways) 4. Finally ariving at the frontal lobe

What type of receptive field do all LGN cells have?

Center-surround

What is the major function of the LGN?

Regulate neural information from the retina to the visual cortex

Where does the LGN receive signals from?

Retina Cortex Brain stem Thalamus

The LGN organises retinal signals by what categories?

Eye Receptor type Type of environmental information

Where do 90% of the fibers from the eye immediately project to?

Describe the bottom-up and top-down processing of the LGN

Top-down: information received from cortex Bottom-up: information received from eyes

How many layers does the LGN have?

True or False: Each layer of the LGN receives signals from only one eye

True

Which eye does layers 2,3 and 5 recieve signals from?

Ipsilateral eye

Which eye does layers 1, 4 and 6 recieve signals from?

Contralateral eye

Which LGN layers receive information from the ipsilateral eye?

2, 3 and 5

Which LGN layers receive information from the contralateral eye?

1, 4 and 6

True or False: the LGN combines information from the left and right eyes

False the LGN keeps information from the left and right eyes seperate in layers

How is the visual information in the LGN arranged?

Retinotopic map

How do you determine the retinotopic map of an organism?

Record from neurons with an electrode that penetrates the LGN obliquely Stimulating receptive felds on the retina shows the location of the corresponding neuron in the LGN

Penetrating the LGN obliquely would pass through neurons with what in common?

Retinal receptive fields adjacent to one another

Penetrating the LGN perpendicular would pass through neurons with what in common?

Neurons with roughly the same visual field

True or False: The cortex displays a retinotopic map

True

What types of neurons are found in the striate cortex?

Simple cortical cells Complex cells End-stopped cells

What does the receptive field of a simple cortical cells with an excitatory centre that favours vertical light look like?

What do simple cortical cells respond best to?

Respond best to bar of light oriented along the length of the receptive field

What does an orientation tuning curve show?

Shows response of simple cortical cell for orientations of stimuli

How are complex cells similar to simple cells? How are the different?

Similar: Respond to bars of light of a particular orientation Different: Respond to moveent of bars of light in specific direction

What do end-stopped cells respond to? What do they not respond to?

Respond to: Moving lines of specific length; Moving corners or angles No response to: Stimuli that are too long

What cortical cells are considered feature detectors?

Simple cortical cell Complex cortical cell End-stopped cortical cell

What is the term given to neurons that fire to specific features of a stimulus?

Feature detectors

What does neural fatigue or adaption to stimulus cause?

* Neural firing rate to decrease * Neuron to fire less when stimulus immediately presented again

What is the method for selective adaptation?

* Measure sensitivity to tange of one stimulus characteristic (i.e. orientation) * Adapt to that characteristic by extended exposure (i.e. staring) * Re-measure the sensitivity/contrast threshold to range of the stimulus characteristic (see how adaptation has changed perception of the stimuli)

How does contrast threshold and orientation tuning curves demonstrate the link between perception and physiology?

What type of columns are found within the visual cortex?

Hypercolumns that contain: Location columns Orientation columns Ocular dominance columns

Removal of the ____________ lobe tissue resulted in problems with the object discrimination task

Removal of the **temporal** lobe tissue resulted in problems with the object discrimination task

Removal of the ____________ lobe tissue resulted in problems with the landmark discrimination task

Removal of the **parietal** lobe tissue resulted in problems with the landmark discrimination task

What do both the what and where/how pathways have in common?

* Originate in retina and continue through ganglion cells in the LGN * Have some interconnections * Receive feedback from higher brain areas

What type of ganglion cell is involved in the parietal "where" pathway?

M-ganglion cells

What type of ganglion cell is involved in the temporal "what" pathway?

P-ganglion cell

Which has a larger receptive field: M- or P-ganglion cells?

M-ganglion cell Large receptive field makes it easier to determine location

Which visual pathway helps determine function of an observed object?

Where/how pathway

Which region of the brain responds best to faces in monkeys? What about humans?

Monkeys: Inferotemporal (IT) cortex Humans: Fusiform face area (FFA)

What does damage to the fusiform face area (FFA) cause?

Face blindness

Fusiform face area (FFA) responds best to \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ Parahippocampal place area (PPA) responds best to \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ Extrastriate body area (EBA) responds best to \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ Lateral occipital complex (LOC) responds best to \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

Fusiform face area (FFA) responds best to **faces** Parahippocampal place area (PPA) responds best to **spatial layout** Extrastriate body area (EBA) responds best to **pictures of full bodies and body parts** Lateral occipital complex (LOC) responds best to **objects**

What is the evidence that nature is the main cause of neural specialisation? What about for nurture?

**Nature:** * Newborn monkeys respond to direction of movement and depth of objects * Babies prefer looking a picture of assembled parts of faces **Nurture:** * Brain imaging experiments show areas that respond best to letters and words * fMRI experiments whoe that training results in areas of the FFA responding best to: * Cars and birds for experts in these areas * Greeble stimuli