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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 91/3/1193    most recent 00829.2003v3 00829.2003v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (10) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Samonds, J. M. Articles by Bonds, A. B. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Samonds, J. M. Articles by Bonds, A. B.

From Another Angle: Differences in Cortical Coding Between Fine and Coarse Discrimination of Orientation

¹Departments of Biomedical and ²Electrical Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 37235

Submitted 25 August 2003; accepted in final form 7 November 2003

We measured the information available for orientation discrimination from metric distances for 24 cells in area 17 of cats that were paralyzed and anesthetized with Propofol and N₂O. The metric distance information confirms fundamental coding differences for discrimination between fine (<10°) and coarse (>10°) orientation differences. The information for discriminating larger orientation differences is contained mainly in the firing rate, with minor enhancements from the coarse (30-70 ms) temporal structure in the firing rate. Both precise spike timing (9.2 ms) and intervals (6.8 ms) sustained over the stimulus presentation provide information for fine discrimination of orientation, where almost no reliable information is provided by the spike count. We compare and confirm the results (using the same data set) to vector distances based on classification theory. The results support a dynamic spiking mechanism where coordinated activity could provide fast and reliable information about detailed angle and/or direction information in the region of the preferred orientation.

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