Neural Processes Underlying the Flexible Control and Learning of Attentional Selection

Neural Processes Underlying the Flexible Control and Learning of Attentional Selection PDF Author: Mariann Oemisch
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
In every-day life we are usually surrounded by a plethora of stimuli, of which only some may be relevant to us at a given moment in time. The dynamic interaction between internal factors, such as our previous experience and current goals, and external factors, such as salient sensory stimulation, determine where, how and what we attend to in our environment. This dissertation investigated some of the neural mechanisms that underlie successful goal-directed behavior in two conditions 1. when attention was actively cued to a target stimulus, and 2. when the attentional target had to be actively and repeatedly learned, in macaque monkeys and in humans. In Chapter 2, I investigated inter-areal spiketrain correlations in neuron pairs across the fronto-cingulate cortex when macaque monkeys are cued to shift their attention to one of two target stimuli. I found that neuron pairs in anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and dorsal prefrontal cortex (PFC) with similar spatial preferences correlate their spiketrains at the time when attention needs to be actively shifted, suggesting that the flexible interaction between these two areas may support successful covert attention shifts. In Chapter 3, I show that when the attentional target stimulus needs to be repeatedly learned and is defined by only one of several stimulus features, neurons in macaque frontal and striatal regions encode prediction error signals that carry specific information about the stimulus feature that was selected in the preceding choice. These signals may be involved in identifying those synapses that require updating to allow flexible adjustments in goal-directed behavior. In Chapter 4, I found that when humans must repeatedly learn the identity of an attentional target, a human event-related potential over visual cortex that is thought to index attentional target selection, selectively decreases after successful learning, in particular for the distracting stimulus, and selectively increases for the target stimulus following negative feedback during learning. Overall, this dissertation provides novel insights into some of the complex neural mechanisms that support flexible control and learning of attention across brain regions of the human and non-human primate brain.

Neural Processes Underlying the Flexible Control and Learning of Attentional Selection

Neural Processes Underlying the Flexible Control and Learning of Attentional Selection PDF Author: Mariann Oemisch
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
In every-day life we are usually surrounded by a plethora of stimuli, of which only some may be relevant to us at a given moment in time. The dynamic interaction between internal factors, such as our previous experience and current goals, and external factors, such as salient sensory stimulation, determine where, how and what we attend to in our environment. This dissertation investigated some of the neural mechanisms that underlie successful goal-directed behavior in two conditions 1. when attention was actively cued to a target stimulus, and 2. when the attentional target had to be actively and repeatedly learned, in macaque monkeys and in humans. In Chapter 2, I investigated inter-areal spiketrain correlations in neuron pairs across the fronto-cingulate cortex when macaque monkeys are cued to shift their attention to one of two target stimuli. I found that neuron pairs in anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and dorsal prefrontal cortex (PFC) with similar spatial preferences correlate their spiketrains at the time when attention needs to be actively shifted, suggesting that the flexible interaction between these two areas may support successful covert attention shifts. In Chapter 3, I show that when the attentional target stimulus needs to be repeatedly learned and is defined by only one of several stimulus features, neurons in macaque frontal and striatal regions encode prediction error signals that carry specific information about the stimulus feature that was selected in the preceding choice. These signals may be involved in identifying those synapses that require updating to allow flexible adjustments in goal-directed behavior. In Chapter 4, I found that when humans must repeatedly learn the identity of an attentional target, a human event-related potential over visual cortex that is thought to index attentional target selection, selectively decreases after successful learning, in particular for the distracting stimulus, and selectively increases for the target stimulus following negative feedback during learning. Overall, this dissertation provides novel insights into some of the complex neural mechanisms that support flexible control and learning of attention across brain regions of the human and non-human primate brain.

Reinforcement Learning Describes the Computational and Neural Processes Underlying Flexible Learning of Values and Attentional Selection

Reinforcement Learning Describes the Computational and Neural Processes Underlying Flexible Learning of Values and Attentional Selection PDF Author: Matthew Dwight Balcarras
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

Get Book Here

Book Description


Attention, predictions and expectations, and their violation: attentional control in the human brain

Attention, predictions and expectations, and their violation: attentional control in the human brain PDF Author: Simone Vossel
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
ISBN: 2889193675
Category : Attentional control
Languages : en
Pages : 212

Get Book Here

Book Description
In the burdened scenes of everyday life, our brains must select from among many competing inputs for perceptual synthesis - so that only the most relevant receive full attention and irrelevant (distracting) information is suppressed. At the same time, we must remain responsive to salient events outside our current focus of attention - and balancing these two processing modes is a fundamental task our brain constantly needs to solve. Both the physical saliency of a stimulus, as well as top-down predictions about imminent sensations crucially influence attentional selection and consequently the response to unexpected events. Research over recent decades has identified two separate brain networks involved in predictive top-down control and reorientation to unattended events (or oddball stimuli): the dorsal and ventral fronto-parietal attention systems of the human brain. Moreover, specific electrophysiological brain responses are known to characterize attentional orienting as well as the processing of deviant stimuli. However, many key questions are outstanding. What are the exact functional differences between these cortical attention systems? How are they lateralised in the two hemispheres? How do top-down and bottom-up signals interact to enable flexible attentional control? How does structural damage to one system affect the functionality of the other in brain damaged patients? Are there sensory-specific and supra-modal attentional systems in the brain? In addition to these questions, it is now accepted that brain responses are not only affected by the saliency of external stimuli, but also by our expectations about sensory inputs. How these two influences are balanced, and how predictions are formed in cortical networks, or generated on the basis of experience-dependent learning, are intriguing issues. In this Research Topic, we aim to collect innovative contributions that shed further light on the (cortical) mechanisms of attentional control in the human brain. In particular, we would like to encourage submissions that investigate the behavioural correlates, functional anatomy or electrophysiological markers of attentional selection and reorientation. Special emphasis will be given to studies investigating the context-sensitivity of these attentional processes in relation to prior expectations, trial history, contextual cues or physical saliency. We would like to encourage submissions employing different research methods (psychophysical recordings, neuroimaging techniques such as fMRI, MEG, EEG or ECoG, as well as neurostimulation methods such as TMS or tDCS) in healthy volunteers or neurological patients. Computational models and animal studies are also welcome. Finally, we also welcome submission of meta-analyses and reviews articles that provide new insights into, or conclusions about recent work in the field.

Evolutionary Robotics

Evolutionary Robotics PDF Author: Stefano Nolfi
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 9780262140706
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 338

Get Book Here

Book Description
An overview of the basic concepts and methodologies of evolutionary robotics, which views robots as autonomous artificial organisms that develop their own skills in close interaction with the environment and without human intervention.

On the Neural Processes Underlying Attention and Volition

On the Neural Processes Underlying Attention and Volition PDF Author: H. Charlton Bastian
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 46

Get Book Here

Book Description


Neural Mechanisms Underlying Movement-Based Embodied Contemplative Practices

Neural Mechanisms Underlying Movement-Based Embodied Contemplative Practices PDF Author: Laura Schmalzl
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
ISBN: 2889198944
Category : Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry
Languages : en
Pages : 217

Get Book Here

Book Description
Relative to the extensive neuroscientific work on seated meditation practices, far less studies have investigated the neural mechanisms underlying movement-based contemplative practices such as yoga or tai chi. Movement-based practices have, however, been found to be effective for relieving the symptoms of several clinical conditions, and to elicit measurable changes in physiological, neural, and behavioral parameters in healthy individuals. An important challenge for neuroscience is therefore to advance our understanding of the neurophysiological and neurocognitive mechanisms underlying these observed effects, and this Research Topic aims to make a contribution in this regard. It showcases the current state of the art of investigations on movement-based practices including yoga, tai chi, the Feldenkrais Method, as well as dance. Featured contributions include empirical research, proposals of theoretical frameworks, as well as novel perspectives on a variety of issues relevant to the field. This Research Topic is the first of its kind to specifically attempt a neurophysiological and neurocognitive characterization that spans multiple mindful movement approaches, and we trust it will be of interest to basic scientists, clinical researchers, and contemplative practitioners alike.

Self Control in Society, Mind, and Brain

Self Control in Society, Mind, and Brain PDF Author: Ran Hassin
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 019974162X
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 575

Get Book Here

Book Description
This book presents social, cognitive and neuroscientific approaches to the study of self-control, connecting recent work in cognitive and social psychology with recent advances in cognitive and social neuroscience. In bringing together multiple perspectives on self-control dilemmas from internationally renowned researchers in various allied disciplines, this is the first single-reference volume to illustrate the richness, depth, and breadth of the research in the new field of self control.

Capabilities and Consequences of Feature-based Attention

Capabilities and Consequences of Feature-based Attention PDF Author: Angus Chapman
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
Attention--the process of selecting and prioritizing relevant stimuli in our environment--has long been considered a highly important cognitive process that enables us to deal with the large volume of information that we encounter at any moment. While we still do not have a complete understanding of the mechanisms that guide selection, different theories have carved out how attention might function with respect to distinct stimulus domains, namely spatial locations, bound objects, or basic visual features. A large body of research has emerged that investigates the behavioral implications of attentional selection within these domains, as well as the neural processes that underlie this selection. To extend upon this work, in this dissertation I present a series of studies exploring fundamental aspects of feature-based attention: how attention spreads between different features within a single object, as well as globally across locations in the visual field; how broader and narrower ranges of relevant colors can be attended simultaneously and efficiently; how attention warps the perception of colors in service of efficient processing, and; how information about target and distractor colors are carried within a neural marker of visual processing, and how representations of those colors are affected by attention. In each of these studies, I tie the main findings back to broader theories connecting feature-based attention with object-based and spatial theories of attention. By considering how these theories interact and make claims about the nature of attentional selection, I argue for a framework in which attention is thought of as a process by which the representational content of information is shaped in support of adaptive behavior, as opposed to a mechanism which highlights particular types of stimuli.

The Wiley Handbook of Cognitive Control

The Wiley Handbook of Cognitive Control PDF Author: Tobias Egner
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118920546
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 629

Get Book Here

Book Description
Covering basic theory, new research, and intersections with adjacent fields, this is the first comprehensive reference work on cognitive control – our ability to use internal goals to guide thought and behavior. Draws together expert perspectives from a range of disciplines, including cognitive psychology, neuropsychology, neuroscience, cognitive science, and neurology Covers behavioral phenomena of cognitive control, neuroanatomical and computational models of frontal lobe function, and the interface between cognitive control and other mental processes Explores the ways in which cognitive control research can inform and enhance our understanding of brain development and neurological and psychiatric conditions

The Oxford Handbook of Attention

The Oxford Handbook of Attention PDF Author: Kia Nobre
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 019882467X
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 1260

Get Book Here

Book Description
During the last three decades, there have been enormous advances in our understanding of the neural mechanisms of selective attention at the network as well as the cellular level. The Oxford Handbook of Attention brings together the different research areas that constitute contemporary attention research into one comprehensive and authoritative volume. In 40 chapters, it covers the most important aspects of attention research from the areas of cognitive psychology, neuropsychology, human and animal neuroscience, computational modelling, and philosophy. The book is divided into 4 main sections. Following an introduction from Michael Posner, the books starts by looking at theoretical models of attention. The next two sections are dedicated to spatial attention and non-spatial attention respectively. Within section 4, the authors consider the interactions between attention and other psychological domains. The last two sections focus on attention-related disorders, and finally, on computational models of attention. Aimed at both scholars and students, the Oxford Handbook of Attention provides a concise and state-of-the-art review of the current literature in this field.