Structure and Function Come Unglued in the Visual Cortex

Wallisch, Pascal; Movshon, J. Anthony

doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2008.10.008

Cited by 28 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…The receptive field is a central concept in Neuroscience, defined as the spatial region over which an adequate stimulus solicits rigorous response of a neuron (Sherrington, 1906). In the primate visual cortical system, starting with V1, the receptive field size of single neurons progressively enlarges along a hierarchy (Hubel and Wiesel, 1962;Hubel, 1988;Wallisch and Movshon, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A large-scale circuit mechanism for hierarchical dynamical processing in the primate cortex

Chaudhuri

Knoblauch

Gariel

et al. 2015

Preprint

194

451

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We developed a large-scale dynamical model of the macaque neocortex based on recent quantitative connectivity data. A hierarchy of timescales naturally emerges from this system: sensory areas show brief, transient responses to input (appropriate for sensory processing), whereas association areas integrate inputs over time and exhibit persistent activity (suitable for decision-making and working memory). The model displays multiple temporal hierarchies, as evidenced by contrasting responses to visual and somatosensory stimulation. Moreover, slower prefrontal and temporal areas have a disproportionate impact on global brain dynamics. These findings establish for the first time a circuit mechanism for "temporal receptive windows" that are progressively enlarged along the cortical hierarchy, extend the concept of working memory from local to large circuits, and suggest a re-interpretation of functional connectivity measures.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A large-scale circuit mechanism for hierarchical dynamical processing in the primate cortex

Chaudhuri

Knoblauch

Gariel

et al. 2015

Preprint

194

451

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In the primate visual cortical system the receptive field size of neurons progressively enlarges along a hierarchy (Hubel and Wiesel, 1962; Hubel, 1988; Wallisch and Movshon, 2008). As a result, higher areas can integrate stimuli over a greater spatial extent, which is essential for such functions as size-invariance of object recognition in the ventral (“what”) stream for visual perception (Kobatake and Tanaka, 1994).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Large-Scale Circuit Mechanism for Hierarchical Dynamical Processing in the Primate Cortex

Chaudhuri

Knoblauch

Gariel

et al. 2015

Neuron

548

401

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We developed a large-scale dynamical model of the macaque neocortex, which is based on recently acquired directed- and weighted-connectivity data from tract-tracing experiments, and which incorporates heterogeneity across areas. A hierarchy of timescales naturally emerges from this system: sensory areas show brief, transient responses to input (appropriate for sensory processing), whereas association areas integrate inputs over time and exhibit persistent activity (suitable for decision-making and working memory). The model displays multiple temporal hierarchies, as evidenced by contrasting responses to visual versus somatosensory stimulation. Moreover, slower prefrontal and temporal areas have a disproportionate impact on global brain dynamics. These findings establish a circuit mechanism for “temporal receptive windows” that are progressively enlarged along the cortical hierarchy, suggest an extension of time integration in decision-making from local to large circuits, and should prompt a re-evaluation of the analysis of functional connectivity (measured by fMRI or EEG/MEG) by taking into account inter-areal heterogeneity.

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“…Technological advances in neuroscience are allowing researchers to map circuits and start defining the relationship between architectural aspects of the brain and function. However, such relationship remains a complex one; defining and establishing causal structure-function relations is not a trivial matter (e.g., Wallisch & Movshon, 2008). Explanations of behavior based on the workings of specific circuits must be established empirically and causally, not by assuming the existence of dedicated networks or describing neural correlates.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hardwiring: innateness in the age of the brain

Grossi

2017

Biol Philos

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Abstract"Hardwired" is a term commonly used to describe the properties of certain behaviors or brain regions. As its usage has increased exponentially in the past 50 years, both in popular media and the scholarly literature, the concept appears to have gained a cloak of respectability in scientific discourse. However, its specific meaning is difficult to pinpoint. In this paper, I examine how "hardwired" has been used in the psychological and neuroscientific literature. The analysis reveals two major themes: one centers on certain purported characteristics of behaviors or brain regions, such as fixedness; the other places these and other characteristics within an evolutionary framework.Overall, the analysis reveals a degree of overlap between "hardwiring" and the folk biology concept of innateness. Various complications arise from such overlap, casting doubts on the usefulness and legitimacy of "hardwired" in scientific discourse.Running head: "Hardwired" as innate 3 Introduction "Insofar as "biological bases" have replaced innate knowledge and structure in the vocabularies of many, they have inherited, so to speak, the implications of the earlier terms while legitimating them with the aura of methodological sanctity." (Oyama, 2000a, p. 6) It is a common refrain that human beings are "hardwired" for some types of behavior. References to "hardwiring" are found frequently in a variety of contexts and texts, not only magazines or popular books about psychology, but also plays and literary essays, typically within the overarching narrative of "human nature" (e.g., Stoppard, 2015;Wallace, 2005). For example, humans are said to be "hardwired" for prejudice (Wartik, 2004), morality (Tancredi, 2005), ripeness (Herbert, 2010), and relationships (Jap, 2016). The term has enjoyed a wide and enduring popularity in reference to sex (2002) remarked on the ambiguity of its meaning:"If "hardwired" means "a behavior that depends on brain wiring," then we need to ask, "As opposed to what? So far as is known, all behavior depends on brain wiring. If "hardwired" means "caused by genes," we have already seen unqualified versions of this idea wrecked on the shoals of developmental complexity. Sometimes "hardwired" is used to refer to a circuit that is not modifiable postnatally. Typically, this usage too is Running head: "Hardwired" as innate 4 problematic, since virtually all of a brain's functions are modifiable in one way or another … Perhaps there exists in some subculture a consistent, useful, and unambiguous role for the expression of "hardwired," but because it is so heavily encrusted with misconception and misdirection, it is preferable to see more precise terminology." (pp. 327-328; italics in the original). INSERT FIGURES 1 AND 2 APPROXIMATELY HEREMore recently, Lilienfeld et al. (2015) too contended that its use should be dismissed, as "… growing data on neural plasticity suggest that, with the possible exception of inborn reflexes, remarkably few psychological capacities in humans are genuinely hard-wired, that is, in...

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Structure and Function Come Unglued in the Visual Cortex

Cited by 28 publications

References 11 publications

A large-scale circuit mechanism for hierarchical dynamical processing in the primate cortex

A large-scale circuit mechanism for hierarchical dynamical processing in the primate cortex

A Large-Scale Circuit Mechanism for Hierarchical Dynamical Processing in the Primate Cortex

Hardwiring: innateness in the age of the brain

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