Synchronous information presented in 40-Hz flicker enhances visual feature binding

Recent neurophysiological studies have encouraged speculation that the synchronization of spatially distributed neural assemblies (at around 40 Hr in the neocortex) is responsible Sor the binding of discrete stimulus components into coherent wholes during visual object perception. Using a novel paradigm, we demonstrated specific figural priming under 40-Hz stimulus modulation conditions. Further, under these conditions, observers were not aware of the prime's existence, no,. did the prime act as a stimulus-driven attentional cue. These findings provide the first psyche physical support Sor a theory of preattentive coding of visual objects, based on an externally entrained and thereby synchronized 40-Hz feature-binding mechanism.