This book provides a most complete overview of physiological and psychophysical properties of perceptual systems in man and animals. The information processing chains are described step-by-step from the stimuli of the respective environments, via the perceptual neuronal coding networks to conscious sensations and behaviour.Articles by W G K Backhaus, A G Clark, B Hiley, A Iznak, M Kavaliers, B Kramer, A Michelsen, C Neumeyer, G A Orban, T Radil, D G Stavenga, M Stengl, U Thurm, R L DeValois, R Wehner, J S Werner, W Wiltschko, and related short articles.

Neuronal coding of information coming from external and internal environments and transducted by sensory receptors constitutes a basic biophysical problem. After the coding phase, such information orients organism responses, shaping complex behavioural patterns. The characteristics of both neurons (interneurons with re-entering connections, latency times, filter bandwidth with respect to input signals, logic operations on multiple convergent signals) and neuron nets (reverberating nets, feedback/feed-forward connections, oscillations due to endogenous activity patterns) are important for coding mechanisms. Neuronal coding is implied also in the higher phases of information processing linked to consciousness, when neuronal activity patterns are related to perceptual mental representations.

Understanding how populations of neurons encode information is the challenge faced by researchers in the field of neural coding. Focusing on the many mysteries and marvels of the mind has prompted a prominent team of experts in the field to put their heads together and fire up a book on the subject. Simply titled Principles of Neural Coding, this book covers the complexities of this discipline. It centers on some of the major developments in this area and presents a complete assessment of how neurons in the brain encode information. The book collaborators contribute various chapters that describe results in different systems (visual, auditory, somatosensory perception, etc.) and different species (monkeys, rats, humans, etc). Concentrating on the recording and analysis of the firing of single and multiple neurons, and the analysis and recording of other integrative measures of network activity and network states—such as local field potentials or current source densities—is the basis of the introductory chapters. Provides a comprehensive and interdisciplinary approach Describes topics of interest to a wide range of researchers The book then moves forward with the description of the principles of neural coding for different functions and in different species and concludes with theoretical and modeling works describing how information processing functions are implemented. The text not only contains the most important experimental findings, but gives an overview of the main methodological aspects for studying neural coding. In addition, the book describes alternative approaches based on simulations with neural networks and in silico modeling in this highly interdisciplinary topic. It can serve as an important reference to students and professionals.

Experimental and theoretical neuroscientists use Bayesian approaches to analyze the brain mechanisms of perception, decision-making, and motor control.

Although pitch has been considered an important area of auditory research since the birth of modern acoustics in the 19th century, some of the most significant developments in our understanding of this phenomenon have occurred comparatively recently. In auditory physiology, researchers are now identifying cells in the brainstem and cortex that may be involved in the derivation of pitch. In auditory psychophysics, dramatic developments over the last few years have changed our understanding of temporal pitch mechanisms, and of the roles of resolved and unresolved harmonics. Computational modeling has provided new insights into the biological algorithms that may underlie pitch perception. Modern brain imaging techniques have suggested possible cortical locations for pitch mechanisms. This timely volume brings together the more recent findings, while emphasizing their relation to the discoveries of the past. It brings together insights from several different methodological areas: physiology, psychophysics, comparative, imaging, etc., in addressing a single scientific problem. Pitch perception can be regarded as one of the main problems of hearing, and the multidisciplinary approach of the book provides a valuable reference source for graduate students and academics.

A survey of probabilistic approaches to modeling and understanding brain function. Neurophysiological, neuroanatomical, and brain imaging studies have helped to shed light on how the brain transforms raw sensory information into a form that is useful for goal-directed behavior. A fundamental question that is seldom addressed by these studies, however, is why the brain uses the types of representations it does and what evolutionary advantage, if any, these representations confer. It is difficult to address such questions directly via animal experiments. A promising alternative is to use probabilistic principles such as maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference to derive models of brain function. This book surveys some of the current probabilistic approaches to modeling and understanding brain function. Although most of the examples focus on vision, many of the models and techniques are applicable to other modalities as well. The book presents top-down computational models as well as bottom-up neurally motivated models of brain function. The topics covered include Bayesian and information-theoretic models of perception, probabilistic theories of neural coding and spike timing, computational models of lateral and cortico-cortical feedback connections, and the development of receptive field properties from natural signals.