scholarly journals The brain detects stimulus features, but not stimulus conflict in task-irrelevant sensory input

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stijn A. Nuiten ◽  
Andrés Canales-Johnson ◽  
Lola Beerendonk ◽  
Nutsa Nanuashvili ◽  
Johannes J. Fahrenfort ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sensory Input ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Past Research ◽  
Conflict Detection ◽  
Information Analysis ◽  
Task Relevance ◽  
Human Participants ◽  
Stimulus Features ◽  
Task Irrelevant ◽  
The Brain

AbstractCognitive control over conflicting sensory input is central to adaptive human behavior. It might therefore not come as a surprise that past research has shown conflict detection in the absence of conscious awareness. This would suggest that the brain may detect conflict fully automatically, and that it can even occur without paying attention. Contrary to this intuition, we show that task-relevance is crucial for conflict detection. Univariate and multivariate analyses on electroencephalographic data from human participants revealed that when auditory stimuli are fully task-irrelevant, the brain disregards conflicting input entirely, whereas the same input elicits strong neural conflict signals when task-relevant. In sharp contrast, stimulus features were still processed, irrespective of task-relevance. These results show that stimulus properties are only integrated to allow conflict to be detected by prefrontal regions when sensory information is task-relevant and therefore suggests an attentional bottleneck at high levels of information analysis.

scholarly journals Intact sensory processing but hampered conflict detection when stimulus input is task-irrelevant

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stijn A. Nuiten ◽  
Andrés Canales-Johnson ◽  
Lola Beerendonk ◽  
Nutsa Nanuashvili ◽  
Johannes J. Fahrenfort ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Past Research ◽  
Conflict Detection ◽  
Automatic Process ◽  
Object Based ◽  
Fully Automatic ◽  
Stimulus Features ◽  
Conflicting Stimulus ◽  
Sensory Processes ◽  
Task Irrelevant ◽  
Neural Signatures

AbstractConflict detection in sensory input is central to adaptive human behavior. Perhaps unsurprisingly, past research has shown that conflict may be detected even in the absence of conflict awareness, suggesting that conflict detection is a fully automatic process that does not require attention. Across six behavioral tasks, we manipulated task relevance and response overlap of potentially conflicting stimulus features to test the possibility of conflict processing in the absence of attention. Multivariate analyses on human electroencephalographic data revealed that neural signatures of conflict are only present when at least one feature of a conflicting stimulus is attended, regardless of whether that feature is part of the conflict. In contrast, neural signatures of basic sensory processes are present even when a stimulus is completely unattended. These data reveal an attentional bottleneck at the level of objects, suggesting that object-based attention is a prerequisite for cognitive control operations involved in conflict detection.

scholarly journals Preserved sensory processing but hampered conflict detection when stimulus input is task-irrelevant

eLife ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stijn Adriaan Nuiten ◽  
Andres Canales-Johnson ◽  
Lola Beerendonk ◽  
Nutsa Nanuashvili ◽  
Johannes Jacobus Fahrenfort ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sensory Processing ◽  
Past Research ◽  
Conflict Detection ◽  
Automatic Process ◽  
Object Based ◽  
Stimulus Features ◽  
Conflicting Stimulus ◽  
Sensory Processes ◽  
Task Irrelevant ◽  
Neural Signatures

Conflict detection in sensory input is central to adaptive human behavior. Perhaps unsurprisingly, past research has shown that conflict may even be detected in absence of conflict awareness, suggesting that conflict detection is an automatic process that does not require attention. To test the possibility of conflict processing in the absence of attention, we manipulated task relevance and response overlap of potentially conflicting stimulus features across six behavioral tasks. Multivariate analyses on human electroencephalographic data revealed neural signatures of conflict only when at least one feature of a conflicting stimulus was attended, regardless of whether that feature was part of the conflict, or overlaps with the response. In contrast, neural signatures of basic sensory processes were present even when a stimulus was completely unattended. These data reveal an attentional bottleneck at the level of objects, suggesting that object-based attention is a prerequisite for cognitive control operations involved in conflict detection.

scholarly journals The emulation theory of representation: Motor control, imagery, and perception

2004 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 377-396 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rick Grush
Keyword(s):  
Motor Control ◽  
Sensory Feedback ◽  
Sensory Input ◽  
Neural Circuits ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
The Body ◽  
Feedback Delay ◽  
Run Off ◽  
Effects Of Feedback ◽  
The Brain

The emulation theory of representation is developed and explored as a framework that can revealingly synthesize a wide variety of representational functions of the brain. The framework is based on constructs from control theory (forward models) and signal processing (Kalman filters). The idea is that in addition to simply engaging with the body and environment, the brain constructs neural circuits that act as models of the body and environment. During overt sensorimotor engagement, these models are driven by efference copies in parallel with the body and environment, in order to provide expectations of the sensory feedback, and to enhance and process sensory information. These models can also be run off-line in order to produce imagery, estimate outcomes of different actions, and evaluate and develop motor plans. The framework is initially developed within the context of motor control, where it has been shown that inner models running in parallel with the body can reduce the effects of feedback delay problems. The same mechanisms can account for motor imagery as the off-line driving of the emulator via efference copies. The framework is extended to account for visual imagery as the off-line driving of an emulator of the motor-visual loop. I also show how such systems can provide for amodal spatial imagery. Perception, including visual perception, results from such models being used to form expectations of, and to interpret, sensory input. I close by briefly outlining other cognitive functions that might also be synthesized within this framework, including reasoning, theory of mind phenomena, and language.

scholarly journals Attention Promotes the Neural Encoding of Prediction Errors

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cooper A. Smout ◽  
Matthew F. Tang ◽  
Marta I. Garrido ◽  
Jason B. Mattingley
Keyword(s):  
Information Processing ◽  
Coding Theory ◽  
Predictive Coding ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Neural Response ◽  
Prediction Errors ◽  
Feature Information ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Stimulus Features ◽  
The Brain

AbstractThe human brain is thought to optimise the encoding of incoming sensory information through two principal mechanisms: prediction uses stored information to guide the interpretation of forthcoming sensory events, and attention prioritizes these events according to their behavioural relevance. Despite the ubiquitous contributions of attention and prediction to various aspects of perception and cognition, it remains unknown how they interact to modulate information processing in the brain. A recent extension of predictive coding theory suggests that attention optimises the expected precision of predictions by modulating the synaptic gain of prediction error units. Since prediction errors code for the difference between predictions and sensory signals, this model would suggest that attention increases the selectivity for mismatch information in the neural response to a surprising stimulus. Alternative predictive coding models proposes that attention increases the activity of prediction (or ‘representation’) neurons, and would therefore suggest that attention and prediction synergistically modulate selectivity for feature information in the brain. Here we applied multivariate forward encoding techniques to neural activity recorded via electroencephalography (EEG) as human observers performed a simple visual task, to test for the effect of attention on both mismatch and feature information in the neural response to surprising stimuli. Participants attended or ignored a periodic stream of gratings, the orientations of which could be either predictable, surprising, or unpredictable. We found that surprising stimuli evoked neural responses that were encoded according to the difference between predicted and observed stimulus features, and that attention facilitated the encoding of this type of information in the brain. These findings advance our understanding of how attention and prediction modulate information processing in the brain, and support the theory that attention optimises precision expectations during hierarchical inference by increasing the gain of prediction errors.

scholarly journals Input dependent modulation of olfactory bulb activity by GABAergic basal forebrain projections

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik Böhm ◽  
Daniela Brunert ◽  
Markus Rothermel
Keyword(s):  
Olfactory Bulb ◽  
Sensory Processing ◽  
Basal Forebrain ◽  
Sensory Input ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Neuron Activity ◽  
Differential Modulation ◽  
Cholinergic Basal Forebrain ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Cholinergic Projections

AbstractBasal forebrain modulation of central circuits is associated with active sensation, attention and learning. While cholinergic modulations have been studied extensively the effect of non-cholinergic basal forebrain subpopulations on sensory processing remains largely unclear. Here, we directly compare optogenetic manipulation effects of two major basal forebrain subpopulations on principal neuron activity in an early sensory processing area, i.e. mitral/tufted cells (MTCs) in the olfactory bulb. In contrast to cholinergic projections, which consistently increased MTC firing, activation of GABAergic fibers from basal forebrain to the olfactory bulb lead to differential modulation effects: while spontaneous MTC activity is mainly inhibited, odor evoked firing is predominantly enhanced. Moreover, sniff triggered averages revealed an enhancement of maximal sniff evoked firing amplitude and an inhibition of firing rates outside the maximal sniff phase. These findings demonstrate that GABAergic neuromodulation affects MTC firing in a bimodal, sensory-input dependent way, suggesting that GABAergic basal forebrain modulation could be an important factor in attention mediated filtering of sensory information to the brain.

scholarly journals Predictions drive neural representations of visual events ahead of incoming sensory information

2020 ◽  
Vol 117 (13) ◽  
pp. 7510-7515 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tessel Blom ◽  
Daniel Feuerriegel ◽  
Philippa Johnson ◽  
Stefan Bode ◽  
Hinze Hogendoorn
Keyword(s):  
Visual System ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Sensory Input ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Moving Object ◽  
Present Moment ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Predictive Mechanisms

The transmission of sensory information through the visual system takes time. As a result of these delays, the visual information available to the brain always lags behind the timing of events in the present moment. Compensating for these delays is crucial for functioning within dynamic environments, since interacting with a moving object (e.g., catching a ball) requires real-time localization of the object. One way the brain might achieve this is via prediction of anticipated events. Using time-resolved decoding of electroencephalographic (EEG) data, we demonstrate that the visual system represents the anticipated future position of a moving object, showing that predictive mechanisms activate the same neural representations as afferent sensory input. Importantly, this activation is evident before sensory input corresponding to the stimulus position is able to arrive. Finally, we demonstrate that, when predicted events do not eventuate, sensory information arrives too late to prevent the visual system from representing what was expected but never presented. Taken together, we demonstrate how the visual system can implement predictive mechanisms to preactivate sensory representations, and argue that this might allow it to compensate for its own temporal constraints, allowing us to interact with dynamic visual environments in real time.

scholarly journals Generalization of prior information for rapid Bayesian time estimation

2016 ◽  
Vol 114 (2) ◽  
pp. 412-417 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil W. Roach ◽  
Paul V. McGraw ◽  
David J. Whitaker ◽  
James Heron
Keyword(s):  
Sensory Input ◽  
Prior Information ◽  
Effective Interaction ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Time Estimation ◽  
Large Set ◽  
Ample Evidence ◽  
Competing Demands ◽  
Statistical Regularities ◽  
The Brain

To enable effective interaction with the environment, the brain combines noisy sensory information with expectations based on prior experience. There is ample evidence showing that humans can learn statistical regularities in sensory input and exploit this knowledge to improve perceptual decisions and actions. However, fundamental questions remain regarding how priors are learned and how they generalize to different sensory and behavioral contexts. In principle, maintaining a large set of highly specific priors may be inefficient and restrict the speed at which expectations can be formed and updated in response to changes in the environment. However, priors formed by generalizing across varying contexts may not be accurate. Here, we exploit rapidly induced contextual biases in duration reproduction to reveal how these competing demands are resolved during the early stages of prior acquisition. We show that observers initially form a single prior by generalizing across duration distributions coupled with distinct sensory signals. In contrast, they form multiple priors if distributions are coupled with distinct motor outputs. Together, our findings suggest that rapid prior acquisition is facilitated by generalization across experiences of different sensory inputs but organized according to how that sensory information is acted on.

scholarly journals Sensory Attenuation in Sport and Rehabilitation: Perspective from Research in Parkinson’s Disease

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 580
Author(s):  
Joshua Kearney ◽  
John-Stuart Brittain
Keyword(s):  
Parkinson’S Disease ◽  
Parkinson's Disease ◽  
Basal Ganglia ◽  
Sensory Input ◽  
Contextual Information ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Complex Environments ◽  
Contextual Cues ◽  
Task Relevance ◽  
Sensory Attenuation

People with Parkinson’s disease (PD) experience motor symptoms that are affected by sensory information in the environment. Sensory attenuation describes the modulation of sensory input caused by motor intent. This appears to be altered in PD and may index important sensorimotor processes underpinning PD symptoms. We review recent findings investigating sensory attenuation and reconcile seemingly disparate results with an emphasis on task-relevance in the modulation of sensory input. Sensory attenuation paradigms, across different sensory modalities, capture how two identical stimuli can elicit markedly different perceptual experiences depending on our predictions of the event, but also the context in which the event occurs. In particular, it appears as though contextual information may be used to suppress or facilitate a response to a stimulus on the basis of task-relevance. We support this viewpoint by considering the role of the basal ganglia in task-relevant sensory filtering and the use of contextual signals in complex environments to shape action and perception. This perspective highlights the dual effect of basal ganglia dysfunction in PD, whereby a reduced capacity to filter task-relevant signals harms the ability to integrate contextual cues, just when such cues are required to effectively navigate and interact with our environment. Finally, we suggest how this framework might be used to establish principles for effective rehabilitation in the treatment of PD.

scholarly journals Feasibility of generating 90 Hz vibrations in remote implanted magnets

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jordan Montero ◽  
Francesco Clemente ◽  
Christian Cipriani
Keyword(s):  
Sensory Feedback ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Past Research ◽  
Sensory Substitution ◽  
Limb Amputation ◽  
Motor Abilities ◽  
The Past ◽  
Electromagnetic Coils ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Made In

AbstractLimb amputation not only reduces the motor abilities of an individual, but also destroys afferent channels that convey essential sensory information to the brain. Significant efforts have been made in the area of upper limb prosthetics to restore sensory feedback, through the stimulation of residual sensory elements. Most of the past research focused on the replacement of tactile functions. On the other hand, the difficulties in eliciting proprioceptive sensations using either haptic or (neural) electrical stimulation, has limited researchers to rely on sensory substitution. Here we propose the myokinetic stimulation interface, that aims at restoring natural proprioceptive sensations by exploiting the so-called tendon illusion, elicited through the vibration of magnets implanted inside residual muscles. We present a prototype which exploits 12 electromagnetic coils to vibrate up to four magnets implanted in a forearm mockup. The results demonstrated that it is possible to generate highly directional and frequency-selective vibrations. The system proved capable of activating a single magnet, out of many. Hence, this interface constitutes a promising approach to restore naturally perceived proprioception after an amputation. Indeed, by implanting several magnets in independent muscles, it would be possible to restore proprioceptive sensations perceived as coming from single digits.

scholarly journals The Topographic Representation of Time and its Link With Temporal Context and Perception

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shrikanth Kulashekhar ◽  
Sarah Maass ◽  
Hedderik van Rijn ◽  
Domenica Bueti
Keyword(s):  
Supplementary Motor Area ◽  
High Spatial Resolution ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Temporal Context ◽  
Subjective Time ◽  
Human Participants ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Representation Of Time ◽  
Perceived Duration

Abstract Neuronal tuning and topography are mechanisms widely used in the brain to represent sensory information and also abstract features like time. In humans, temporal topography has been shown in a wide circuit of brain regions. However, it is unclear whether chronotopic maps are specific to vision, whether they map time in an absolute or relative fashion, to what extent they reflect objective or subjective time and whether they are influenced by temporal context. Here we asked human participants to reproduce the durations of sounds in two, partially overlapping, temporal contexts while we record high-spatial resolution fMRI. Both model-based and data driven analyses show the presence of auditory chronomaps in the auditory parabelt, intraparietal sulcus, and in supplementary motor area. Most importantly, when the same physical duration is presented in different temporal contexts, and thus perceived differently, different neuronal units respond to it. Those units are also spatially shifted according to the relative position of the perceived duration within each context. Finally, the pattern of activity is more similar within rather than across contexts suggesting their pivotal role in shaping the maps. These results highlight two important properties of chronomaps: their flexibility of representation and their dependency on the context.

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