Journal article
Visual sensitivity underlying changes in visual consciousness
Current Biology, Vol.20(15), pp.1362-1367
2010
Abstract
When viewing a different stimulus with each eye, we experience the remarkable phenomenon of binocular rivalry: alternations in consciousness between the stimuli [1, 2]. According to a popular theory first proposed in 1901, neurons encoding the two stimuli engage in reciprocal inhibition [3-8] so that those processing one stimulus inhibit those processing the other, yielding consciousness of one dominant stimulus at any moment and suppressing the other. Also according to the theory, neurons encoding the dominant stimulus adapt, weakening their activity and the inhibition they can exert, whereas neurons encoding the suppressed stimulus recover from adaptation until the balance of activity reverses, triggering an alternation in consciousness. Despite its popularity, this theory has one glaring inconsistency with data: during an episode of suppression, visual sensitivity to brief probe stimuli in the dominant eye should decrease over time and should increase in the suppressed eye, yet sensitivity appears to be constant [9, 10]. Using more appropriate probe stimuli (experiment 1) in conjunction with a new method (experiment 2), we found that sensitivities in dominance and suppression do show the predicted complementary changes.
Details
- Title
- Visual sensitivity underlying changes in visual consciousness
- Authors/Creators
- D. Alais (Author/Creator)J. Cass (Author/Creator)R.P. O'Shea (Author/Creator)R. Blake (Author/Creator)
- Publication Details
- Current Biology, Vol.20(15), pp.1362-1367
- Publisher
- Elsevier Ltd
- Identifiers
- 991005544727907891
- Copyright
- © 2010 Elsevier Ltd
- Murdoch Affiliation
- School of Psychology and Exercise Science
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- International collaboration
- Citation topics
- 1 Clinical & Life Sciences
- 1.7 Neuroscanning
- 1.7.203 Visual Perception
- Web Of Science research areas
- Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
- Biology
- Cell Biology
- ESI research areas
- Biology & Biochemistry