Neural mechanisms of visual attention

We are constantly bombarded with sensory information, and our brains need a mechanism to filter out necessary information. The process of visual attention works like a spotlight to focus the brain on parts of the visual world. This can be done consciously, by directing our attention to objects of interest, but our attention can also be captured by salient objects in the world. The brain is tasked with integrating these competing interests and deciding where to look with our eyes. This process involves multiple stages of processing across the visual system of the brain. This project will look at how competing streams of information are integrated across areas of the visual system to guide attention.