Representing scene geometry in the human visual cortex

Prof. Soojin Park

April 1(Thu) - April 1(Thu), 2021

12PM

ZOOM (ID: 728-142-6028 )

Neuro@noon Seminar

Date:  12:00 PM, Thursday, Apr 1st

Title: Representing scene geometry in the human visual cortex

 

 

Abstract:

A central question in human visual cognition is how we construct a coherent scene percept, rapidly recognizing scene structure while integrating multiple views that constantly change over time. Past studies have shown that a number of brain regions are involved in scene understanding, including the parahippocampal place area, occipital place area and the retrosplenial cortex. Here I examine the nature of the representations in these networks of scene processing regions, using fMRI multi-voxel pattern analysis in humans. First I show how the brain represents geometric scene properties, such as spatial volume, layout angle and boundary. Second, I show that the brain represents scene information that reflect the functional navigation of the viewer. Altogether, my results show how multiple scene processing regions play distinct but complementary roles in constructing the rich and integrated scene representation that underlies our everyday experience of the visual world.