Hubel and Wiesel’s Study (1963)

1. Feature Detectors:
   Hubel and Wiesel discovered specialized neurons in the primary visual cortex, known as "feature detectors," that respond selectively to specific types of visual stimuli, such as lines, edges, or particular orientations.

2. Hierarchical Processing:
   They showed that visual processing occurs hierarchically:

   • Simple cells: Respond to specific orientations of lines or edges.

   • Complex cells: Respond to lines in motion.

   • Hypercomplex cells: Detect more complex patterns like angles or shapes.

3. Critical Periods of Development:
   They identified "critical periods" in early life during which visual input is crucial for the proper development of the visual system. Deprivation of visual stimuli during these periods led to permanent deficits, even if vision was later restored.

 

​​Hubel and Wiesel were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1981 because their discoveries fundamentally changed the understanding of sensory processing. Their work:

• Revealed the neural mechanisms underlying vision, forming the basis for understanding how the brain processes sensory information.

• Advanced neuroscience, cognitive psychology, and medicine by explaining visual disorders and their developmental origins.

• Paved the way for future research in artificial vision systems and machine learning models inspired by neural networks.

Their study remains a cornerstone in neuroscience and vision science, illustrating how basic visual features are the building blocks of pattern recognition.

​

​

​

​

​                                                                         References

                          Movshon, J. A., & Kiorpes, L. (2009). Recounting the impact of Hubel and Wiesel. Journal of Physiology, 587(12), 2775–2782. https://doi.org/10.1113/jphysiol.2009.171140​

​

​

​

​