Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience_ From the Eyeball to

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12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to Course Syllabus Syllabus Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to the Mind’s eye NSBV BC 3381 | Fall 2021 Instructor: Alex White Email: alwhite@barnard.edu (mailto:alwhite@barnard.edu)_ Office: Milbank 415H Office hours: by appointment Course meeting_time & Location: Tuesdays, 2:10-4:00 pm EST, in Milbank Hall room 214. Course description: By absorbing electromagnetic radiation through their eyes, people are able to catch frisbees, recognize faces, and judge the beauty of art. For most of us, seeing feels effortless. That feeling is misleading. Seeing requires not only precise optics to focus images on the retina, but also the concerted action of millions of nerve cells in the brain. This intricate circuitry infers the likely causes of incoming patterns of light and transforms that information into feelings, thoughts, and actions. In this course we will study how light evokes electrical activity in a hierarchy of specialized neural networks that accomplish many unique aspects of seeing. Students will have the opportunity to focus their study on particular aspects, such as color, motion, object recognition, learning, attention, awareness, and how sight can be lost and recovered. Throughout the course we will discuss principles of neural information coding (e.qg., receptive field tuning, adaptation, normalization, etc.) that are relevant to other areas of neuroscience, as well as medicine, engineering, art and design. Prerequisites: Introduction to Neuroscience, or Introduction to Psychology Learning_outcomes: By completing this course you will gain: o broad familiarity with the structure and function of the human visual system; « ability to relate that knowledge to their own daily experiences, to medical challenges, and to art and design; Course Chat A https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 1/12
12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to o deep expertise with at least one particular aspect of principles of neural activity to human perception and o critical understanding of scientific methods to study t recordings, neuroimaging, and psychophysics; proficiency with finding, reading, critiquing and integi of communicating complex ideas to their peers. Readings & Materials There is no textbook for this course. Weekly readings a chapters (along with some videos) that will be posted tc Course organization: In the first seven weeks, we will lay down a foundation processing. The key principles include: receptive fields, detection theory, top-down feedback, functional speciali capacity. Each class will consist of short lectures interm e Send discussion of the readings. The rest of the semester wil|- those key principles through specific aspects of vision. feature student presentations on a topic of their choosing. Course requirements & assignments e In-class participation: Although there will be some lectures, this course is primarily an active learning seminar. Student participation is key. You will be evaluated based on the following: demonstrating knowledge of the reading assignments; sharing your own insights; listening and responding respectfully to your classmates; asking questions and giving feedback to the instructor. » Reflection essays: Each week you will turn in a 1- or 2-page reflection essay that has three parts: (1) A summary of a key idea in that week’s assigned readings that caught your interest. Describe what the idea is and how it was investigated in the article(s) you read. (2) One paragraph about how this idea may relate to your own life experience, a medical issue, or technological design. (3) Questions you have about the readings. If the idea you summarized in part 1 was from only one of the readings, be sure to include guestions about the other readings. Part 3 should be much shorter than the others. The reflection essay is due by the start of class that week. It does not have to be perfectly polished prose, but it does have to show that you read and thought about the material. A reflection essay is not due during the week you are presenting your final project. https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 2/12
12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to o Concept definition: One week you will define a concept for your classmates. The concept will help everyone understand the readings for the following week, and will be assigned to you the week before you present it. You can learn about the concept through internet searches. Your presentation of the definition should last no more than 5 minutes, and must include some visual aids e Quizzes: There will be three quizzes during the first half of the semester, conducted on Canvas outside of class. Each quiz will be available for three days, from a Friday at noon to a Monday at noon, and you will have 1 hour to complete it after starting. The quizzes will cover the key principles from the readings and class discussions, with a mixture of multiple-choice questions and short essays. o Final project: You will pick one aspect of vision to study in detail. Potential topics are listed below. On October 8%, you will submit a list of your top three topics. Topics outside the list will be considered, and topics will be assigned ensure the course covers an interesting range. A one-page final project proposal is due on October 22nd. The instructor will help you modify the proposal to meet all the project requirements. The project must cover a specific visual phenomenon within the assigned topic. For instance, if the topic is color, the specific phenomenon could be color blindness, or a peculiar color illusion. If the topic is consciousness, the phenomenon could be subliminal processing during binocular rivalry. You will give a 30-minute in-class presentation, during one of the sessions between November 9" and December 7th. The in-class presentation must answer four questions: (1) What is the phenomenon, in terms of perception and behavior? (2) How is it measured? (3) What is one potential neural basis of the phenomenon? (4) How is the neural activity measured or manipulated? The presentation must include some visual aids and must discuss at least two empirical studies. The presentation must also link this phenomenon to some of the key principles discussed in the first half of the course (e.g., population coding, adaptation, etc.). Finally, at least one week in advance of the presentation, you must provide one article for the rest of the class to read and write their reflection essay about. At the end of the semester, you will submit a final paper. The paper is about the same topic as the presentation. It must answer the same four questions as the presentation, and two more: (1) What is the clinical relevance of this phenomenon? For instance, is it known to differ in a clinical population? Or does it reveal something about the brain that could be useful for devising a medical intervention? (If your topic is itself a clinical condition, then consider the reverse question: what does this condition tell us about normal vision?) (2) What https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 3/12
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12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to is the relevance of this phenomenon for art or technology? Find one example of how this phenomenon influences (or could influence) the design of a work of art or technological innovation. Describe how the design would not work if the human visual system was different. Include a bibliography of at least 10 published works. Final papers are typically ~25 pages long (double-spaced). An outline for the final paper is due on November 12" Note: non-traditional paper ideas will be considered. For instance, you could program a computer simulation of neural activity, conduct a small experiment, or create a piece of art that leverages this visual phenomenon. In that case, the written portion may be reduced. Grade distribution In-class participation 5% Project proposal & outline 5% Reflection essays & concept definition 20% Quizzes 20% Final project presentation 20% Final project paper 30% Potential final project topics: Color; motion; depth; form; crowding; face recognition; reading; attention; eye movements; perception vs. action; consciousness; imagery; working memory. Student feedback: Every other week, the instructor will ask the students to fill out a short anonymous survey about how the course is going. https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 4/12
12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to Note: if you find yourself confused about the methods used in any of the articles, check out the book chapter, "How we know it might be so (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/11842436/download)." in the Background Readings folder. Schedule: 1. September 14t": Welcome to the visual system! o Refresh your knowledge of light with this webpage: https://science.nasa.gov/ems/ = (https://science.nasa.gov/ems/). (focus on the first three sections, as well as “Visible Light”) o Snowden, R., Thompson, P., & Troscianko, T. (2011). (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/11782123/download)_"The first steps in seeing". Chapter 1 of Basic Vision, An Introduction to Visual Perception, Revised Edition, Oxford University Press, Oxford UK. 2. September 215t The retina to primary visual cortex (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/11782129/download) On the existence of neurones in the human visual system selectively sensitive to the orientation and size of retinal images. Journal of Physiology, 203, 237-260. = Skip pages 250-255 o Hubel, D. H., & Wiesel, T. N. (1979). (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/11824435/download) Brain mechanisms of vision. Scientific American, 241, 150-162. o Explanation by Wiesel himself with videos of neuronal recordings: https:/iwww.youtube.com/watch?v=aqzWy-zALzY & September 24-September 27th: Quiz #1 3. September 28t": Color & Motion https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 5/12
12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to o Jacobs, G. H., & Nathans, J. (2009). The evolution of primate color vision. (https://courseworks?2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/11835124/download)_Scientific American, 56—-63. o Snowden, Thomson & Troscianko, Chapter 6 (https:/icourseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/11835123/download)_, pages 177-193 o Newsome, W. T., Britten, K. H., Salzman, C. D., & Movshon, J. A. (1990). Neuronal mechanisms of motion perception. (https:/Icourseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/11835125/download)_Cold Spring Harbor Symposia on Quantitative Biology, 55, 697-705. & (https://doi.org/10.1101/SQB.1990.055.01.065) o Miller, Lulu (2014). The Blind Woman Who Sees Rain, But Not Her Daughter's woman-who-sees-rain-but-not-her-daughters-smile)_, National Public Radio. 4. October 5: Perceptual Inference o Wandell, B.A. (1995) Foundations of Vision: Chapter 11, “Seeing.” (https://foundationsofvision.stanford.edu/chapter-11-seeing/ & (https://[foundationsofvision.stanford.edu/chapter-11-seeing/)_) o Lee, T. S., & Nguyen, M. (2001).Dynamics of subjective contour formation in the early visual cortex. (https://icourseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/11853643/download) Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 98(4), 1907-1911 o Heeger, D. J. (1997). Signal detection theory (https://icourseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/11853645/download).. October 8" 5pm: selection of top three topics for final project 5. October 12t": Cortical Maps & Functional Specialization With special guest, Kalanit Grill-Spector 5> (http://vpnl.stanford.edu/kgs.htm)_! Dr. Grill-Spector will join via zoom at 3:30pm for a Q&A about the article below, and life as a scientist. Come prepared with 1-2 questions to ask her. o Nordt, M., Gomez, J., Natu, V. S., Rezai, A. A., Finzi, D., Kular, H., & Grill-Spector, K. (2021).Cortical recycling_in high-level visual cortex during_childhood development. https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 6/12
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12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/11999111/download) Nature Human Behaviour. o Dehaene, S., & Cohen, L. (2011). The unique role of the visual word form area in reading_(https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/11853687/download)_. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 15, 254—-262. October 15th-October 18th: Quiz #2 6. October 19th: Action & Attention o Carrasco, M., Ling, S., & Read, S. (2004). Attention alters appearance. (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12075794/download) Nature Neuroscience, 7(3), 308-313. o Jonikaitis, D., Szinte, M., Rolfs, M., & Cavanagh, P. (2013). Allocation of attention across saccades. (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12075795/download) Journal of Neurophysiology, 109, 1425-1434. October 22"°: final project topic proposal due 7. October 26" Sight Recovery o Beauchamp, M. et al. (2020). Dynamic stimulation of visual cortex produces form vision in sighted and blind (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12271113/download)_. Cell 181, 774—783. (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12271114/download)_. Nature Neuroscience, 6(9), 915-916. o Gregory, R. L. (2003). Seeing_after blindness. (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12271115/download) Nature Neuroscience, 6(9), 909-910. o Optional video: lone Fine on a sight recovery patient: https:/lyoutu.be/dXdeAtyYTCk > (https://lyoutu.be/dXdeAtyYTCKk) > (https:/lyoutu.be/dXdeAtyYTCKk) https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 712
12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to October 29" - November 1 Quiz #3 Tuesday, November 2™9: Election day, no class 8. November 9": Presentations 1 -- Anusha & Hannah on stereo vision & audiovisual integration (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12436489/download)_Factors affecting depth perception and comparison of depth perception measured by the three-rods test in monocular and binocular vision. Heliyon, 6, e04904. (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12449966/download) Visual speech speeds up the neural processing of auditory speech. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 102, 1181-1186. November 12th: final paper outline due 9. November 16'": Presentations 2 -- Ashwaq & Nikita on saccadic suppression & auras Krekelberg, B. (2010). (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12436507/download) Saccadic suppression. Current Biology, 20, 228-229. (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12436510/download)_The site of saccadic suppression. Nature Neuroscience, 7, 13—-14. (https://icourseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12531149/download).. Imaging the Visual Network in the Migraine Spectrum. Frontiers in Neurology, 10, 1-12. Drew, L. (2020). (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12531151/download)_A richer view of aura. Nature, 586, S7-S9. 10. November 23": Presentations 3 -- Anne & Carolina on agnosia & aesthetics https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 8/12
12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to (https://icourseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/1260997 2/download) Agnosia (including Prosopagnosia and Anosognosia). In Encyclopedia of Human Behavior: Second Edition (2nd ed.). Elsevier Inc. King, J. L., & Kaimal, G. (2019). (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12610002/download) Approaches to research in art therapy using imaging technologies. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 13. (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12610026/download)_The brain on art: Intense aesthetic experience activates the default mode network. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 6, 1-17. 11. November 30'"; Presentations 4 -- Ana-Sofia, Bella & Genevieve on face recognition (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12688012/download)._. VWhat Is a Face? Critical Features for Face Detection. Perception, 48, 437—-446. (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12690788/download)_. The dynamics of visual adaptation to faces. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 272, 897-904. L. (2019). (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12688015/download) Neural adaptation to faces reveals racial outgroup homogeneity effects in early perception. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 116, 14532—-14537. 12. December 7": Presentations 5 -- Julieth, Jackson & Claire (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12740392/download) Perceptual consequences of centre-surround antagonism in visual motion processing. Nature, 424, 312-315. https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 9/12
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12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to Schallmo, M. P., Kolodny, T., ... Murray, S. O. (2020). (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12740380/download) \Weaker neural suppression in autism. Nature Communications, 11, 1-13. Raymond, J. E., Shapiro, K. L., & Arnell, K. M. (1992). (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12740382/download), Temporary suppression of visual processing in an RSVP task: An attentional blink? Joumnal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 18, 849— 860. (https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/files/12757705/download)_. Neural correlates of the LSD experience revealed by multimodal neuroimaging. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 113, 4853-4858. December 22": final paper due Policies Class attendance policy: Attendance is important, and as noted a portion of your grade is determined by class participation and weekly reflection essays. One excused absence is allowed per semester. Please contact the instructor in advance if you must miss a class due to unavoidable circumstances. Personal device policy: Mobile phones and laptops are designed to be distracting. Please silence and put away your phone during class. | encourage you to take notes on paper. If the class is conducted remotely, laptop use is unavoidable. When using a computer, please close all applications other than those required to join the class and view the materials. Honor Code: Approved by the student body in 1912 and updated in 2016, the Code & (https://barnard.edu/honor-code)_states: We, the students of Bamard College, resolve to uphold the honor of the College by engaging with integrity in all of our academic pursuits. We affirm that academic integrity is the honorable creation and presentation of our own work. We acknowledge that it is our responsibility to seek clarification of proper forms of collaboration and use of academic resources in all assignments or exams. We consider academic integrity to include the proper https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 10/12
12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to use and care for all print, electronic, or other academic resources. We will respect the rights of others to engage in pursuit of learning in order to uphold our commitment to honor. We pledge to do all that is in our power to create a spirit of honesty and honor for its own sake. Wellness Statement It is important for undergraduates to recognize and identify the different pressures, burdens, and stressors you may be facing, whether personal, emotional, physical, financial, mental, or academic. We as a community urge you to make yourself--your own health, sanity, and wellness- -your priority throughout this term and your career here. Sleep, exercise, and eating well can all be a part of a healthy regimen to cope with stress. Resources exist to support you in several sectors of your life, and we encourage you to make use of them. Should you have any questions about navigating these resources, please visit these sites: « http://barnard.edu/primarycare &> (http://barnard.edu/primarycare) e https://barnard.edu/about-counseling 5> (https://barnard.edu/about-counseling) o http://barnard.edu/wellwoman/about &> (http://barnard.edu/wellwoman/about) « https://barnard.edu/events/Stressbuster 5> (https://barnard.edu/events/Stressbuster) Center for Accessibility Resources & Disability Services (CARDS) Statement If you believe you may encounter barriers to the academic environment due to a documented disability or emerging health challenges, please feel free to contact me and/or the Center for Accessibility Resources & Disability Services (CARDS). Any student with approved academic accommodations is encouraged to contact me during office hours or via email. If you have questions regarding registering a disability or receiving accommodations for the semester, please contact CARDS at (212) 854- 4634, cards@barnard.edu, or learn more at barnard.edu/disabilityservices. CARDS is located in 101 Altschul Hall. Affordable Access to Course Texts & Materials Statement All students deserve to be able to study and make use of course texts and materials regardless of cost. Barnard librarians have partnered with students, faculty, and staff to find ways to increase student access to textbooks. By the first day of advance registration for each term, faculty will have provided information about required texts for each course on CourseWorks (including ISBN or author, title, publisher, copyright date, and price), which can be viewed by students. A number of cost-free or low-cost methods for accessing some types of courses texts are detailed on the Barnard Library Textbook Affordability guide (library.barnard.edu/textbook-affordability). Undergraduate students who identify as first- https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 11/12
12/4/23, 9:51 AM Syllabus for NSBVBC3381_001_2021_3 - Visual Neuroscience: From the Eyeball to generation and/or low-income students may check out items from the FLIP lending libraries in the Barnard Library (library.barnard.edu/flip) and in Butler Library for an entire semester. Students may also consult with their professors, the Dean of Studies, and the Financial Aid Office about additional affordable alternatives for having access to course texts. Visit the guide and talk to your professors and your librarian for more details. https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/courses/132466/assignments/syllabus 12/12
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