SPATIAL-FREQUENCY AND TEMPORAL-FREQUENCY SELECTIVITY AS A BASIS FOR VELOCITY PREFERENCE IN CAT STRIATE CORTEX NEURONS

Measurements were made of the optimal velocity for drifting bar-shaped stimuli to excite striate cortex neurons of the cat. These data were compared to the optimal spatial and temporal frequencies of the same neurons, as determined with drifting sine-wave grating stimuli. A systematic relationship was revealed, whereby those neurons preferring higher velocities of bar motion also preferred lower spatial and higher temporal frequencies of gratings. The optimal bar velocity for a given neuron could be quantitatively predicted from the ratio of that neuron's optimal temporal frequency to its optimal spatial frequency. © 1990, Cambridge University Press. All rights reserved.