Abstract
IN the nineteenth century there was a vigorous controversy over the role of visual experience in the development of stereoscopic depth perception1,2. Recent neurophysiological findings suggest that certain cells in the visual cortex of cats3,4, monkeys5 and sheep6 may provide the neural basis for stereopsis. Each cell is driven optimally by a stimulus at a certain distance from the animal, and different cells prefer different retinal disparities corresponding to objects at various distances. In cats, the neural pathways from the two eyes to individual cortical cells are labile and may be modified by visual deprivation during the first few weeks of life7–10. The visual cortex of the newborn kitten is immature and disparity selectivity appears only after exposure to a normal visual environment11. We find, however, that neither of these two conclusions is true of lambs.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Hering, E. in Handbuch der Physiologie 3 (1) (ed. Hermann, L.); see English translation by C. A. Radde, Spatial Sense and Movements of the Eyes (American Academy of Optometry, Baltimore, 1942).
Helmholtz, H. von in Treatise on Physiological Optics. 3, (ed. Southall, J. P. C.) ch. 33 (Dover, New York, 1962).
Barlow, H. B., Blakemore, C. & Pettigrew, J. D. J. Physiol., Lond. 193, 327–342 (1967).
Nikara, T., Bishop, P. O. & Pettigrew, J. D. Expl Brain Res. 6, 353–372 (1968).
Hubel, D. H. & Wiesel, T. N. Nature 225, 41–42 (1970).
Clarke, P. G. H., Donaldson, I. M. L. & Whitteridge, D. J. Physiol., Lond. 256, 509–526 (1976).
Wiesel, T. N. & Hubel, D. H. J. Neurophysiol. 28, 1060–1072 (1965).
Blakemore, C. & Cooper, G. F. Nature 228, 477–478 (1970).
Hirsch, H. V. B. & Spinelli, D. N. Science 168, 869–871 (1970).
Barlow, H. B. Nature 258, 199–204 (1975).
Pettigrew, J. D. J. Physiol., Lond. 237, 49–74 (1974).
Keating, M. J. Br. Med. Bull. 30, 145–151 (1974).
Pettigrew, J. D. Nature 264, 753–754 (1976).
Grobstein, P. & Chow, K. L. Science 190, 352–358 (1975).
Blakemore, C. & Van Sluyters, R. C. J. Physiol., Lond. 248, 663–716 (1975).
Shlaer, R. Science 173, 638–641 (1971).
Gibson, E. J. & Walk, R. D. Sci. Am. 202, 64–71 (1960).
Walk, R. D. & Gibson, E. J. Psychol. Mongr. 75, 1–44 (1961).
Geist, V. Mountain Sheep, 246 (University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1971).
Merrill, E. G. & Ainsworth, A. Med. Biol. Engng 10, 662–672 (1972).
Movshon, J. A. J. Physiol., Lond. 261, 125–174 (1976).
Wiesel, T. N. & Hubel, D. H. J. comp. Neurol. 158, 307–318 (1974).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
RAMACHANDRAN, V., CLARKE, P. & WHITTERIDGE, D. Cells selective to binocular disparity in the cortex of newborn lambs. Nature 268, 333–335 (1977). https://doi.org/10.1038/268333a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/268333a0
This article is cited by
-
The primary visual cortex of Cetartiodactyls: organization, cytoarchitectonics and comparison with perissodactyls and primates
Brain Structure and Function (2022)
-
Field processes in stereovision
Documenta Ophthalmologica (1987)
-
Perception of apparent motion by commissurotomy patients
Nature (1986)
-
Subjective contours capture stereopsis
Nature (1985)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.