IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v5y2014i1d10.1038_ncomms5765.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Energy landscape and dynamics of brain activity during human bistable perception

Author

Listed:
  • Takamitsu Watanabe

    (Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London)

  • Naoki Masuda

    (University of Bristol)

  • Fukuda Megumi

    (Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London)

  • Ryota Kanai

    (Centre for Consciousness Science, School of Psychology, University of Sussex)

  • Geraint Rees

    (Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London
    Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London)

Abstract

Individual differences in the structure of parietal and prefrontal cortex predict the stability of bistable visual perception. However, the mechanisms linking such individual differences in brain structures to behaviour remain elusive. Here we demonstrate a systematic relationship between the dynamics of brain activity, cortical structure and behaviour underpinning bistable perception. Using fMRI in humans, we find that the activity dynamics during bistable perception are well described as fluctuating between three spatially distributed energy minimums: visual-area-dominant, frontal-area-dominant and intermediate states. Transitions between these energy minimums predicted behaviour, with participants whose brain activity tend to reflect the visual-area-dominant state exhibiting more stable perception and those whose activity transits to frontal-area-dominant states reporting more frequent perceptual switches. Critically, these brain activity dynamics are correlated with individual differences in grey matter volume of the corresponding brain areas. Thus, individual differences in the large-scale dynamics of brain activity link focal brain structure with bistable perception.

Suggested Citation

  • Takamitsu Watanabe & Naoki Masuda & Fukuda Megumi & Ryota Kanai & Geraint Rees, 2014. "Energy landscape and dynamics of brain activity during human bistable perception," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 5(1), pages 1-11, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:5:y:2014:i:1:d:10.1038_ncomms5765
    DOI: 10.1038/ncomms5765
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms5765
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/ncomms5765?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Sheykhali, Somaye & Darooneh, Amir Hossein & Jafari, Gholam Reza, 2020. "Partial balance in social networks with stubborn links," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 548(C).
    2. Richard Hardstone & Michael Zhu & Adeen Flinker & Lucia Melloni & Sasha Devore & Daniel Friedman & Patricia Dugan & Werner K. Doyle & Orrin Devinsky & Biyu J. He, 2021. "Long-term priors influence visual perception through recruitment of long-range feedback," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-15, December.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:5:y:2014:i:1:d:10.1038_ncomms5765. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.