Oscillatory Mechanisms of Stimulus Processing and Selection in the Visual and Auditory Systems: State-of-the-Art, Speculations and Suggestions
All sensory systems need to continuously prioritize and select incoming stimuli in order to avoid overflow or interference, and provide a structure to the brain's input. However, the characteristics of this input differ across sensory systems; therefore, and as a direct consequence, each sensor...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2017-05-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Neuroscience |
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| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnins.2017.00296/full |
| _version_ | 1818195838554341376 |
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| author | Benedikt Zoefel Benedikt Zoefel Benedikt Zoefel Rufin VanRullen Rufin VanRullen |
| author_facet | Benedikt Zoefel Benedikt Zoefel Benedikt Zoefel Rufin VanRullen Rufin VanRullen |
| author_sort | Benedikt Zoefel |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | All sensory systems need to continuously prioritize and select incoming stimuli in order to avoid overflow or interference, and provide a structure to the brain's input. However, the characteristics of this input differ across sensory systems; therefore, and as a direct consequence, each sensory system might have developed specialized strategies to cope with the continuous stream of incoming information. Neural oscillations are intimately connected with this selection process, as they can be used by the brain to rhythmically amplify or attenuate input and therefore represent an optimal tool for stimulus selection. In this paper, we focus on oscillatory processes for stimulus selection in the visual and auditory systems. We point out both commonalities and differences between the two systems and develop several hypotheses, inspired by recently published findings: (1) The rhythmic component in its input is crucial for the auditory, but not for the visual system. The alignment between oscillatory phase and rhythmic input (phase entrainment) is therefore an integral part of stimulus selection in the auditory system whereas the visual system merely adjusts its phase to upcoming events, without the need for any rhythmic component. (2) When input is unpredictable, the visual system can maintain its oscillatory sampling, whereas the auditory system switches to a different, potentially internally oriented, “mode” of processing that might be characterized by alpha oscillations. (3) Visual alpha can be divided into a faster occipital alpha (10 Hz) and a slower frontal alpha (7 Hz) that critically depends on attention. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-12T01:24:33Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-21689cd767ad41df94ae11b35f02bb4a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1662-453X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-12T01:24:33Z |
| publishDate | 2017-05-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj.art-21689cd767ad41df94ae11b35f02bb4a2022-12-22T00:43:08ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Neuroscience1662-453X2017-05-011110.3389/fnins.2017.00296265192Oscillatory Mechanisms of Stimulus Processing and Selection in the Visual and Auditory Systems: State-of-the-Art, Speculations and SuggestionsBenedikt Zoefel0Benedikt Zoefel1Benedikt Zoefel2Rufin VanRullen3Rufin VanRullen4Université Paul SabatierToulouse, FranceCentre de Recherche Cerveau et Cognition (CerCo), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, University of Toulouse, UMR5549Toulouse, FranceNathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric ResearchOrangeburg, NY, United StatesUniversité Paul SabatierToulouse, FranceCentre de Recherche Cerveau et Cognition (CerCo), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, University of Toulouse, UMR5549Toulouse, FranceAll sensory systems need to continuously prioritize and select incoming stimuli in order to avoid overflow or interference, and provide a structure to the brain's input. However, the characteristics of this input differ across sensory systems; therefore, and as a direct consequence, each sensory system might have developed specialized strategies to cope with the continuous stream of incoming information. Neural oscillations are intimately connected with this selection process, as they can be used by the brain to rhythmically amplify or attenuate input and therefore represent an optimal tool for stimulus selection. In this paper, we focus on oscillatory processes for stimulus selection in the visual and auditory systems. We point out both commonalities and differences between the two systems and develop several hypotheses, inspired by recently published findings: (1) The rhythmic component in its input is crucial for the auditory, but not for the visual system. The alignment between oscillatory phase and rhythmic input (phase entrainment) is therefore an integral part of stimulus selection in the auditory system whereas the visual system merely adjusts its phase to upcoming events, without the need for any rhythmic component. (2) When input is unpredictable, the visual system can maintain its oscillatory sampling, whereas the auditory system switches to a different, potentially internally oriented, “mode” of processing that might be characterized by alpha oscillations. (3) Visual alpha can be divided into a faster occipital alpha (10 Hz) and a slower frontal alpha (7 Hz) that critically depends on attention.http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnins.2017.00296/fulloscillationattentionperceptionalphaentrainment |
| spellingShingle | Benedikt Zoefel Benedikt Zoefel Benedikt Zoefel Rufin VanRullen Rufin VanRullen Oscillatory Mechanisms of Stimulus Processing and Selection in the Visual and Auditory Systems: State-of-the-Art, Speculations and Suggestions Frontiers in Neuroscience oscillation attention perception alpha entrainment |
| title | Oscillatory Mechanisms of Stimulus Processing and Selection in the Visual and Auditory Systems: State-of-the-Art, Speculations and Suggestions |
| title_full | Oscillatory Mechanisms of Stimulus Processing and Selection in the Visual and Auditory Systems: State-of-the-Art, Speculations and Suggestions |
| title_fullStr | Oscillatory Mechanisms of Stimulus Processing and Selection in the Visual and Auditory Systems: State-of-the-Art, Speculations and Suggestions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Oscillatory Mechanisms of Stimulus Processing and Selection in the Visual and Auditory Systems: State-of-the-Art, Speculations and Suggestions |
| title_short | Oscillatory Mechanisms of Stimulus Processing and Selection in the Visual and Auditory Systems: State-of-the-Art, Speculations and Suggestions |
| title_sort | oscillatory mechanisms of stimulus processing and selection in the visual and auditory systems state of the art speculations and suggestions |
| topic | oscillation attention perception alpha entrainment |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnins.2017.00296/full |
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