Schedule

BCSC 245: Lecture Schedule

Only students who are enrolled in the course may access the course readings online. You must be logged into Blackboard to download these materials.

Date
Topic
Reading
08/26
Introduction, course goals
Reading: Chapter 1, Purves et al.
SECTION I: Sensory Representations and Neural Coding
08/28
Retinal design principles
Reading: Chapter 11, Purves et al.
09/02
Labor Day, No Class
 
09/04
Receptive fields and geniculo-cortical transformations (LGN → V1)
Reading: Chapter 12, Purves et al., pp. 261-267, 273-276 (“Division of Labor…”) (4th edition: pp. 289-298, 303-307; 5th edition: pp. 257-265, 269-272)
09/09
Early visual cortex: architecture, maps, and coding schemes
[Lecture quiz #1: timed administration through Blackboard]
[Workshop #1 after this lecture]
Reading: Chapter 12, Purves et al., pp. 267-273 (4th edition: pp. 299-303; 5th edition: pp. 265-269)
09/11
Higher-level visual form processing (V4, IT)
Reading: Chapter 12, Purves et al., pp. 276-279 (4th edition: pp. 307-310; 5th edition: pp. 272-275)
DiCarlo, Zoccolan, and Rust, Neuron, 2012
09/16
Discussion I
[Discussion quiz #1: timed administration through Blackboard]
Kamitani and Tong, Nature Neuroscience, 2005
09/18
Constructing 3D representations: disparity and visual depth cues
Parker, Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 2007
DeAngelis, Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 2000
09/23
Constructing 3D representations: auditory sound localization
[Lecture quiz #2: timed administration through Blackboard]
[Workshop #2 after this lecture]
Chapter 13, Purves et al. (same for 4th and 5th editions)
09/25
Discussion II
[Discussion quiz #2: timed administration through Blackboard]
Knudsen, Nature, 2002
Linkenhofer and Knudsen, Nature, 2002
09/30
Midterm Exam I (timed administration through Blackboard)
 
SECTION II: Linking Neural Activity to Behavior
10/02
Concepts of psychophysical measurement and signal detection theory
Appendix A, Goldstein, Sensation and Perception
10/07
Dorsal stream and visual motion processing (MT, MST)
Andersen, Neuron, 1997
10/09
Comparison of Neuronal and Behavioral Sensitivity
[Workshop #3 after this lecture]
Britten et al., J. Neuroscience 1992
10/14
Fall Break: no class
 
10/16
Correlation of Neuronal Activity with Perceptual Decisions
[Lecture quiz #3: timed administration through Blackboard]
Britten et al., J. Neuroscience 1996
10/21
Causal manipulations: microstimulation and inactivation
[Workshop #4 after this lecture]
Salzman et al., J. Neuroscience, 1992
10/23
Discussion III
[Discussion quiz #3: timed administration through Blackboard]
Purushothaman and Bradley, Nature Neuroscience, 2005
Nienborg and Cumming, Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 2010
10/28
Midterm exam II (in-class portion; timed administration through Blackboard); distribution of take-home exam
 
SECTION III: Motor Planning and Decision-Making
10/30
Oculomotor system basics
Reading: Chapter 20, Purves et al. (same for 4th and 5th editions)
11/04
Saccade planning: intention, salience, target selection
Schall, Phil Trans. R. Soc. London, 2002
11/06
Sensori-motor transformations and reference frames
Cohen and Andersen, Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 2002
11/11
Neural correlates of decision-making I
[Lecture quiz #4: timed administration through Blackboard]
[Workshop #5 after this lecture]
Gold and Shadlen, Annual Review of Neuroscience, 2007
11/13
Discussion IV
[Discussion quiz #4: timed administration through Blackboard]
Roitman and Shadlen, J. Neuroscience, 2002
Yang and Shadlen, Nature, 2007
11/18
Somatosensory system basics
Reading: Chapter 9, Purves et al. (same for 4th and 5th editions)
11/20
Neural correlates of decision-making II
Romo and Salinas, Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 2003
11/25
Discussion V
[Discussion quiz #5: timed administration through Blackboard]
Romo et al. Neuron 2004
11/27
Thanksgiving: No Class
 
12/02
Attention: concepts and behavior
[Lecture quiz #5: timed administration through Blackboard]
Ashcraft, Cognition, Chapter 4
12/04
Attention: physiology
[Workshop #6 after this lecture]
Reynolds and Chelazzi, Annual Review of Neuroscience, 2004
12/09
Catch-up or review session
 
 
12/13-12/18: Final exam, at date/time to be specified by Registrar