The distributed human neural system for face perception -James V. Haxby, Elizabeth A. Hoffman, M. Ida Gobbini
Face Perception Consists of two parts: Highly developed visual skill in humans Mediated by a Neural system Consists of two parts: 1. 2.
Neural System Core System Extended System Prefrontal Region
Core-3 bilateral regions Inferior Occipital Gyrus -input to both regions Superior Temporal Sulcus -changeable aspects Fusiform Gyrus -representation of Identity
Extended-additional regions -Interpret meaning from faces Amygdala (limbic) and Prefrontal cortex ( Inferior Frontal Gyrus, Orbitofrontal Cortex ) *Temporal- auditory *Parietal-spatial attention
How did they know?
Face-responsive Regions Core System Lateral Fusiform Gyrus Activity Response “Fusiform Face Area”
Core Neural system Step 1 Face Identification
Extended Neural System Step 2 Perceive face and expression Step 3 Infer mood “He is Upset”
Direct vs. Averted Gaze Which is more interesting?
Face Perception and Spatial Attention Superior Temporal Sulcus + Intraparietal Sulcus Parietal Neural Systems Averted Gaze
Face Perception and Spatial Attention
Famous Faces Events Anterior middle temporal gyrus Activation of the appearance Activation of Semantics Retrieval of Persons name ….I’ve seen him somewhere….?? Isn’t he the President of the United States…. That’s Barack Obama!!! Anterior middle temporal gyrus