Prior Expectations in Visual Speed Perception Predict Encoding Characteristics of Neurons in Area MT

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Why is it important?

Statistical regularities of the environment play an important role in shaping both neural representations and perceptual behavior. Most previous work addressed these two aspects independently. Here we present a quantitative validation of a theo- retical framework that makes joint predictions for neural coding and behavior, based on the assumption that neural represen- tations of sensory information are efficient but also optimally used in generating a percept. Specifically, we demonstrate that the neural tuning characteristics for visual speed in brain area MT are precisely predicted by the statistical prior expectations extracted from psychophysical data. As such, our results provide a normative link between perceptual behavior and the neural representation of sensory information in the brain.