Abstract
This chapter describes how visual information is processed in the cerebral cortex. Major events that precede cortical processing include (1) phototransduction by retinal photoreceptors, (2) the establishment of On and Off pathways and center/surround receptive fields, (3) the transmission of visual signals from the retina to the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN), and (4) the transmission of visual signals from the LGN to the primary visual cortex. Although other pathways transmit visual information to the visual cortex, the retino-geniculo-cortical pathway is the major route for visual signal conduction to the cerebral cortex. The retinogeniculo- cortical pathway carries information about the brightness, color, and contrast of objects within a visual scene, as well as information about the timing and motion of these objects. If the human brain used only this rudimentary composition of information to knit together a representation of the surrounding world, people would not be capable of seeing and interpreting the complex scenes of daily life: cars rushing by while waiting to cross the street, a soccer ball flying toward a goal, or even these words you are reading. Humans’ ability to process and react to these highly complicated images is made possible by the properties of the visual cortex.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Neuroscience in the 21st Century |
| Subtitle of host publication | From Basic to Clinical, Second Edition |
| Publisher | Springer New York |
| Pages | 773-792 |
| Number of pages | 20 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9781493934744 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9781493934737 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 1 2016 |
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Keywords
- Binocular disparity
- Columnar organization
- Dorsal and ventral visual pathways
- Extrastriate cortical areas
- Fusiform face area (FFA)
- History
- Laminar organization
- Lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN)
- LGN
- Nissl-stained visual cortex
- Ocular dominance columns (ODCs)
- ODCs
- Orientation columns
- Posteromedial lateral suprasylvian area (PMLS)
- Retinal ganglion cells (RGCs)
- Simple and complex cells
- Spatial frequency
- Stimulus properties
- Temporal frequency
- Visual cortex
- Visuotopy
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Medicine(all)
- Neuroscience(all)
- Agricultural and Biological Sciences(all)
Cite this
Cortical processing of visual signals. / Kiley, Caitlin Williams; Usrey, William Martin.
Neuroscience in the 21st Century: From Basic to Clinical, Second Edition. Springer New York, 2016. p. 773-792.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter
}
TY - CHAP
T1 - Cortical processing of visual signals
AU - Kiley, Caitlin Williams
AU - Usrey, William Martin
PY - 2016/1/1
Y1 - 2016/1/1
N2 - This chapter describes how visual information is processed in the cerebral cortex. Major events that precede cortical processing include (1) phototransduction by retinal photoreceptors, (2) the establishment of On and Off pathways and center/surround receptive fields, (3) the transmission of visual signals from the retina to the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN), and (4) the transmission of visual signals from the LGN to the primary visual cortex. Although other pathways transmit visual information to the visual cortex, the retino-geniculo-cortical pathway is the major route for visual signal conduction to the cerebral cortex. The retinogeniculo- cortical pathway carries information about the brightness, color, and contrast of objects within a visual scene, as well as information about the timing and motion of these objects. If the human brain used only this rudimentary composition of information to knit together a representation of the surrounding world, people would not be capable of seeing and interpreting the complex scenes of daily life: cars rushing by while waiting to cross the street, a soccer ball flying toward a goal, or even these words you are reading. Humans’ ability to process and react to these highly complicated images is made possible by the properties of the visual cortex.
AB - This chapter describes how visual information is processed in the cerebral cortex. Major events that precede cortical processing include (1) phototransduction by retinal photoreceptors, (2) the establishment of On and Off pathways and center/surround receptive fields, (3) the transmission of visual signals from the retina to the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN), and (4) the transmission of visual signals from the LGN to the primary visual cortex. Although other pathways transmit visual information to the visual cortex, the retino-geniculo-cortical pathway is the major route for visual signal conduction to the cerebral cortex. The retinogeniculo- cortical pathway carries information about the brightness, color, and contrast of objects within a visual scene, as well as information about the timing and motion of these objects. If the human brain used only this rudimentary composition of information to knit together a representation of the surrounding world, people would not be capable of seeing and interpreting the complex scenes of daily life: cars rushing by while waiting to cross the street, a soccer ball flying toward a goal, or even these words you are reading. Humans’ ability to process and react to these highly complicated images is made possible by the properties of the visual cortex.
KW - Binocular disparity
KW - Columnar organization
KW - Dorsal and ventral visual pathways
KW - Extrastriate cortical areas
KW - Fusiform face area (FFA)
KW - History
KW - Laminar organization
KW - Lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN)
KW - LGN
KW - Nissl-stained visual cortex
KW - Ocular dominance columns (ODCs)
KW - ODCs
KW - Orientation columns
KW - Posteromedial lateral suprasylvian area (PMLS)
KW - Retinal ganglion cells (RGCs)
KW - Simple and complex cells
KW - Spatial frequency
KW - Stimulus properties
KW - Temporal frequency
KW - Visual cortex
KW - Visuotopy
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85018899191&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85018899191&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/978-1-4939-3474-4_24
DO - 10.1007/978-1-4939-3474-4_24
M3 - Chapter
AN - SCOPUS:85018899191
SN - 9781493934737
SP - 773
EP - 792
BT - Neuroscience in the 21st Century
PB - Springer New York
ER -