🧠 New paper by Cowley et al: Compact deep neural network models of the #VisualCortex .
The authors show that neural responses in primate visual cortex can be predicted by much smaller, interpretable #DeepNeuralMetworks than previously assumed. By constraining model architecture and parameters, they achieve strong predictive performance while revealing computational structure in cortical processing.
The article describes a new neuroscience study linking heightened activity in the brain's visual processing center with subclinical social anxiety in young adults, and explains how this hyperactivity relates to brain connectivity and structure. It highlights early neurological markers that could inform future detection and intervention strategies for social anxiety.
This work is of interest to psychology enthusiasts because it connects brain function and structure to anxious experiences in social contexts, illustrating how neural networks may underlie emotional and perceptual processing during social evaluation.
Article Title: New neuroscience study links visual brain network hyperactivity to social anxiety
Link to PsyPost Article: https://www.psypost dot org/new-neuroscience-study-links-visual-brain-network-hyperactivity-to-social-anxiety/
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#neuroscience #socialanxiety #visualcortex #functionalconnectivity #psychologyresearch
Syeda, …, @computingnature et al., bioRxiv (2026) find that #NeuralActivity in #mouse #VisualCortex is dominated by #orofacial movements, not eye movements. Across darkness and visual stimulation, eye movements explain only a small fraction of neural variance and are largely correlated with whisking and sniffing. Movement signals thus strongly shape #V1 activity during free viewing.
🧠 Rao & Ballard’s (1999) spatial #PredictiveCoding theory gets strong support: Zhang et al. (2025) show in mouse #VisualCortex that predictive coding is primarily spatial, not temporal. #2P #imaging of ~20,000 neurons found mismatch responses only when new spatial landmarks appeared, but not when sequences were reordered:
🧠 New study by Lempel et al. (2025): Visual experience after eye opening aligns #feedforward inputs (L4) and #RecurrentNetworks (L2/3) in mouse #VisualCortex. This improved alignment, together with enhanced orientation discrimination, creates coherent, reliable sensory codes, revealing how experience shapes stable #cortical representations:
In their study, Morales-Gregorio et al. show that #NeuralManifolds in #V1 shift dynamically under top-down influence from #V4. They identify two distinct population activity states – eyes open vs. closed – with notably stronger V4→V1 signaling in the foveal region during eyes-open periods. A cool example of how cognitive context reshapes visual cortical dynamics.
🌍 https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/fulltext/S2211-1247(24)00699-5
#CompNeuro #Neuroscience #VisualCortex #NeuralManifolds #SystemsNeuroscience
A new study by Timothy Sit, Célian Bimbard, Anna Lebedeva, @MatteoCarandini, Philip Coen, and Kenneth Harris challenges the classic cortical column model. Using in vivo recordings, they show that layers 2/3 and 5 in #V1 encode distinct visual features — functionally dissociated, not redundant. A cool look into laminar specialization.
🌍 https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.06.30.662366v2
#Neuroscience #VisualCortex #CorticalLayers #SystemsNeuroscience
From Retina to Cortex: The Brain’s Visual Processing Powerhouse
#VisualNeuroscience #BrainAndSight #NeuroscienceExplained #VisionScience #NeuralPathways #BrainFunctions #OpticNerve #VisualProcessing #Neurotransmitters #SightAndPerception #BrainHealth #VisualCortex #EyeBrainConnection #CognitiveScience #NeuroscienceEducation
PLOS Biology
Fabrizio Musacchio
Psychotherapy Commission ACPE
Benjamin Carr, Ph.D. 👨🏻💻🧬
Fabrizio Musacchio
CITO Greenhouse