This volume brings together new papers advancing contemporary debates in foundational, conceptual, and methodological issues in cognitive neuroscience. The different perspectives presented in each chapter have previously been discussed between the authors, as the volume builds on the experience of Neural Mechanisms (NM) Online – webinar series on the philosophy of neuroscience organized by the editors of this volume. The contributed chapters pertain to five core areas in current philosophy of neuroscience. It surveys the novel forms of explanation (and prediction) developed in cognitive neuroscience, and looks at new concepts, methods and techniques used in the field. The book also highlights the metaphysical challenges raised by recent neuroscience and demonstrates the relation between neuroscience and mechanistic philosophy. Finally, the book dives into the issue of neural computations and representations. Assembling contributions from leading philosophers of neuroscience, this work draws upon the expertise of both established scholars and promising early career researchers.

Perceptual categorization is fundamental to the brain’s remarkable ability to process large amounts of sensory information and efficiently recognize objects including speech. Perceptual categorization is the neural bridge between lower-level sensory and higher-level language processing. A long line of research on the physical properties of the speech signal as determined by the anatomy and physiology of the speech production apparatus has led to descriptions of the acoustic information that is used in speech recognition (e.g., stop consonants place and manner of articulation, voice onset time, aspiration). Recent research has also considered what visual cues are relevant to visual speech recognition (i.e., the visual counter-parts used in lipreading or audiovisual speech perception). Much of the theoretical work on speech perception was done in the twentieth century without the benefit of neuroimaging technologies and models of neural representation. Recent progress in understanding the functional organization of sensory and association cortices based on advances in neuroimaging presents the possibility of achieving a comprehensive and far reaching account of perception in the service of language. At the level of cell assemblies, research in animals and humans suggests that neurons in the temporal cortex are important for encoding biological categories. On the cellular level, different classes of neurons (interneurons and pyramidal neurons) have been suggested to play differential roles in the neural computations underlying auditory and visual categorization. The moment is ripe for a research topic focused on neural mechanisms mediating the emergence of speech representations (including auditory, visual and even somatosensory based forms). Important progress can be achieved by juxtaposing within the same research topic the knowledge that currently exists, the identified lacunae, and the theories that can support future investigations. This research topic provides a snapshot and platform for discussion of current understanding of neural mechanisms underlying the formation of perceptual categories and their relationship to language from a multidisciplinary and multisensory perspective. It includes contributions (reviews, original research, methodological developments) pertaining to the neural substrates, dynamics, and mechanisms underlying perceptual categorization and their interaction with neural processes governing speech perception.

Volume Two April 14-15, 1989, The Woodlands, Texas

The seventeen contributions present current research in visual signal processing, in the retina and central pathways, and in the study of contrast sensitivity in humans. The seventeen contributions present current research in visual signal processing, in the retina and central pathways, and in the study of contrast sensitivity in humans.

Understanding “The Complex Neural Mechanisms of Time Perception at CNS.” Time perception is a concept that describes the subjective experience of time and how an individual interprets the duration of an event. The perception of time is the sum of stimuli associated with cognitive processes and environmental changes. Thus, the perception of time requires a complex neural mechanism and may be changed by emotional state, level of attention, memory and diseases. It is endeavored in this Booklet to relate the mechanisms involved the neurofunctional aspects, theories, executive functions, and pathologies that contribute the understanding of temporal perception on the basis of several evaluated Articles by using the key themes such as: · Neuroanatomy, · Neurophysiology, · Theories, · Time cells, · Memory, · Schizophrenia, · Depression, · Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and · Parkinson’s disease combined with the term Perception of Time. To conclude, in neurological and psychiatric disorders, the understanding of time depends on the severity of the diseases and the type of tasks. …Dr. H. K. Saboowala. M.B.(Bom) .M.R.S.H.(London)

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.

Dr. Conway mapped the spatial and temporal structure of the cone inputs to single neurons in the primary visual cortex of the alert macaque. Color cells had receptive fields that were often Double-Opponent, an organization of spatial and chromatic opponency sufficient to form the basis for color constancy and spatial color contrast. Almost all color cells gave a bigger response to color when preceded by an opposite color, suggesting that these cells also encode temporal color contrast. In sum, color perception is likely subserved by a subset of specialized neurons in the primary visual cortex. These cells are distinct from those that likely underlie form and motion perception. Color cells establish three color axes sufficient to describe all colors; moreover these cells are capable of computing spatial and temporal color contrast - and probably contribute to color constancy computations - because the receptive fields of these cells show spatial and temporal chromatic opponency.