EFFECTS OF ATTENTION ON NEURONS IN SI AND SII CORTEX

要求提供资金，以研究选择性注意如何影响反应 初级（SI）和次级（SII）躯体感觉皮层神经元的数量。 动物被训练来前后转换它们的注意力 在不同的感觉系统之间，在不同的皮肤部位之间， 在单个皮肤部位和不同感觉之间的亚模态 由单一子模式提供的能力。目的是调查 注意对躯体感觉信息加工的影响 系统一种可能性是注意力并不参与 处理信息，并简单地"聚光灯"一个特定的躯体位置 位置.另一个是注意力是感知的一个组成部分， 选择性地过滤对感知至关重要的神经元的反应。五 确定了具体目标。一是考察差异 当动物的注意力被转移时， 从触摸到视觉或听觉，同时执行空间或 时间辨别任务触摸之间的信息整合 和视觉（或听觉）可能会导致不同的神经效应， 跨模态任务。第二个目的是研究空间调谐 通过让动物在不同的动物之间切换注意力， 在同一只手上的不同位置之间以及在不同的位置之间 手这里要解决的问题是注意力能有多紧密 空间聚焦第三个目的是调查是否不同 当注意力集中在 常见皮肤部位编年史以一种振动的空间模式呈现在 他们的指尖，并要求区分空间形式 或振动的模式。SM（空间型）、RA （扑动）和PC（振动）神经元的感受野在一个 将分析常见皮肤部位的模态特异性影响。的 第四个目的是调查不同的刺激属性是否 （结构和形式）由同一子模态（SM）从属， 当注意力集中在共同的皮肤部位时选择性地参与。的 第五个目的是研究神经反应是否聚类到 形态特定的柱或层。这一目标的数据将来自 这些实验旨在实现前四个目标。研究的重点是 解剖组织的一个重要特征是， 仅限于在特定于单个 刺激属性和选择性注意可通过以下任一方式起作用 激活整个列内的响应，或者通过激活 在柱内的特定薄层内的响应。

Funds are requested to study how selective attention affects the responses of neurons in primary (SI) and secondary (SII) somatosensory cortex. Animals are trained to switch their focus of attention back and forth between different sensory systems, between different skin sites, between submodalities at a single skin site and between different sensory capacities subserved by a single submodality. The aim is to investigate the effects of attention on information processing in the somatosensory system. One possibility is that attention is not involved in the processing of information and simply "spotlights" a particular somatotopic location. Another, is that attention is an integral part of perception and selectively filters the responses of neurons critical for perception. Five specific aims are identified. The first is to investigate the differences in the pattern of neuronal firing when an animal's attention is diverted from touch to vision or audition while performing either a spatial or temporal discrimination task. The integration of information between touch and vision (or audition) may result in different neural effects during cross-modality tasks. The second aim is to investigate spatial tuning of attention by having the animal switch its attention between different locations on the same hand and between different locations on separate hands. The question addressed here is how tightly can attention be spatially focused. The third aim is to investigate whether different submodalities can be selectively engaged when attention is focused at a common skin site. Annals are presented with a vibrating spatial pattern on their finger tips and are required to discriminate either the spatial form or the pattern of vibration. The responses of SM (spatial form), RA (flutter) and PC (vibration) neurons that have receptive fields at a common skin site will be analyzed for modality specific affects. The fourth aim is to investigate whether different stimulus attributes (texture and form) subserved by the same submodality (SM) can be selectively engaged when attention is focused at a common skin site. The fifth aim is to investigate whether the neural responses cluster into modality specific columns or laminae. The data for this aim will come from experiments that address the first four aims. The point of examining the anatomical organization is that modality specific mechanisms may be restricted to operate within columns that are specific to a single stimulus attribute and that selective attention may function by either activating the responses within an entire column or by activating the responses within specific lamina within a column.