Neuropsychology of vision

Abstract

A selection of the literature on vision published in the last 2 years from various neuroscience disciplines is reviewed. It is organized around the notion of independent processing mechanisms for sensory cues such as wavelength, intensity and orientation; these are subsequently integrated for the perception of colour, brightness and contours, for example, which then feed into higher order systems for visual recognition (words and objects) and visuospatial cognition. A strict hierarchical system is, however, not plausible. Apart from the physiological evidence against such a concept, the widespread observations of 'knowledge without awareness' suggest direct links between different levels, which by-pass conscious experience.