Dynamics of Ongoing Activity: Explanation of the Large Variability in Evoked Cortical Responses

Evoked activity in the mammalian cortex and the resulting behavioral responses exhibit a large variability to repeated presentations of the same stimulus. This study examined whether the variability can be attributed to ongoing activity. Ongoing and evoked spatiotemporal activity patterns in the cat...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 1996-09, Vol.273 (5283), p.1868-1871
Main Authors: Arieli, Amos, Sterkin, Alexander, Grinvald, Amiram, Aertsen, Ad
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Activity Units
Animal behavior
Animal cognition
Animals
Biological and medical sciences
Brain
Cats
Cognitive Processes
Correlation
Correlation coefficients
Correlations
Evoked Potentials, Visual
Eye and associated structures. Visual pathways and centers. Vision
Feedback (Response)
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Information Transfer
Membrane Potentials
Neural transmission
Neurons
Neurons - physiology
Neurophysiology
Optical reflection
Photic Stimulation
Physiological aspects
Signal noise
Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted
Signal reflection
Stimulation
Synaptic transmission
Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs
Visual cortex
Visual Cortex - physiology
Visual Pathways - physiology
Visual stimulation
Visual Stimuli
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Summary:Evoked activity in the mammalian cortex and the resulting behavioral responses exhibit a large variability to repeated presentations of the same stimulus. This study examined whether the variability can be attributed to ongoing activity. Ongoing and evoked spatiotemporal activity patterns in the cat visual cortex were measured with real-time optical imaging; local field potentials and discharges of single neurons were recorded simultaneously, by electrophysiological techniques. The evoked activity appeared deterministic, and the variability resulted from the dynamics of ongoing activity, presumably reflecting the instantaneous state of cortical networks. In spite of the large variability, evoked responses in single trials could be predicted by linear summation of the deterministic response and the preceding ongoing activity. Ongoing activity must play an important role in cortical function and cannot be ignored in exploration of cognitive processes.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.273.5283.1868