{"id":4577,"date":"2015-01-16T08:15:34","date_gmt":"2015-01-16T13:15:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/advancement.yorku.ca\/?p=4577"},"modified":"2015-01-16T08:15:34","modified_gmt":"2015-01-16T13:15:34","slug":"york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/","title":{"rendered":"York researchers discover how our brains help us keep an eye on multiple targets at once"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>On Super Bowl Sunday, many of us will play arm-chair quarterback. After the snap, we might use our eyes to track a wide receiver as he runs toward an opening, while still remembering the location of the star running back in case he breaks through on a rushing play. This natural ability to track one moving player and being ready to quickly look back toward another one sounds simple.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_185718\" style=\"width: 235px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-185718\" class=\"wp-image-185718 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/yfile.news.yorku.ca\/files\/2013\/04\/DougCrawford-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"York researcher Doug Crawford\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-185718\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Doug Crawford<\/p><\/div>\n<p>But the science behind it is not so simple.<\/p>\n<p>In a groundbreaking study, York University researchers have discovered how a map in the midbrain remembers the location of visual targets even as the eyes follow another object.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs the eyes move, activity related to the remembered target travels across the \u2018visual\u2019 cells in the midbrain superior colliculus, constantly keeping track of its location relative to the direction the eyes are currently pointed,\u201d explains Professor Doug Crawford, Canada Research Chair in Visuomotor Neuroscience in the Faculty of Health. \u201cIn our football example, when it\u2019s time to aim an eye movement and then make a pass toward the open receiver, the visual memory is transferred to motor cells which then produce a burst of activity.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In a study conducted in Crawford\u2019s lab led by postdoctoral fellow Suryadeep Dash, the researchers have discovered a new physiological system that continuously updates the remembered location of visual targets. The finding also suggests that continuous updating of signals could emerge in other visuomotor areas of the brain.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe expect that continuous updating signals also emerge in other visuomotor areas of the brain. Most of those areas have only been tested during sudden jumps in eye position called saccades, but have not been tested during behaviors that involve continuous eye motion,\" notes Crawford, adding, \u201cStudying this system might help us understand how we remember where things are during other continuous motion behaviors such as walking, driving or general navigation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The study, titled \"Continuous updating of visuospatial memory in superior colliculus during slow eye movements,\" was published Thursday in <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cell.com\/current-biology\/home\"><em>Current Biology<\/em><\/a><em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>*Article courtesy of <a href=\"http:\/\/yfile.news.yorku.ca\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">yFile<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On Super Bowl Sunday, many of us will play arm-chair quarterback. After the snap, we might use our eyes to track a wide receiver as he runs toward an opening, while still remembering the location of the star running back in case he breaks through on a rushing play. This natural ability to track one [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4577","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>York researchers discover how our brains help us keep an eye on multiple targets at once - Division of Advancement - Alumni and Friends<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"York researchers discover how our brains help us keep an eye on multiple targets at once - Division of Advancement - Alumni and Friends\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"On Super Bowl Sunday, many of us will play arm-chair quarterback. After the snap, we might use our eyes to track a wide receiver as he runs toward an opening, while still remembering the location of the star running back in case he breaks through on a rushing play. This natural ability to track one [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Division of Advancement - Alumni and Friends\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-01-16T13:15:34+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/yfile.news.yorku.ca\/files\/2013\/04\/DougCrawford-225x300.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"akolade\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"akolade\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/\",\"name\":\"York researchers discover how our brains help us keep an eye on multiple targets at once - Division of Advancement - Alumni and Friends\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/yfile.news.yorku.ca\/files\/2013\/04\/DougCrawford-225x300.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-01-16T13:15:34+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2015-01-16T13:15:34+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/#\/schema\/person\/f640ecd87de34c2e5005a13ea6a9ba80\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/yfile.news.yorku.ca\/files\/2013\/04\/DougCrawford-225x300.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/yfile.news.yorku.ca\/files\/2013\/04\/DougCrawford-225x300.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"York researchers discover how our brains help us keep an eye on multiple targets at once\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/\",\"name\":\"Division of Advancement - Alumni and Friends\",\"description\":\"Meet, stay connected and get involved\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/#\/schema\/person\/f640ecd87de34c2e5005a13ea6a9ba80\",\"name\":\"akolade\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c09bf1d6f2d768da403160a1c37ce1fd?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c09bf1d6f2d768da403160a1c37ce1fd?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"akolade\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/author\/akolade\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"York researchers discover how our brains help us keep an eye on multiple targets at once - Division of Advancement - Alumni and Friends","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"York researchers discover how our brains help us keep an eye on multiple targets at once - Division of Advancement - Alumni and Friends","og_description":"On Super Bowl Sunday, many of us will play arm-chair quarterback. After the snap, we might use our eyes to track a wide receiver as he runs toward an opening, while still remembering the location of the star running back in case he breaks through on a rushing play. This natural ability to track one [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/","og_site_name":"Division of Advancement - Alumni and Friends","article_published_time":"2015-01-16T13:15:34+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/yfile.news.yorku.ca\/files\/2013\/04\/DougCrawford-225x300.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"akolade","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"akolade","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/","url":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/","name":"York researchers discover how our brains help us keep an eye on multiple targets at once - Division of Advancement - Alumni and Friends","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/yfile.news.yorku.ca\/files\/2013\/04\/DougCrawford-225x300.jpg","datePublished":"2015-01-16T13:15:34+00:00","dateModified":"2015-01-16T13:15:34+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/#\/schema\/person\/f640ecd87de34c2e5005a13ea6a9ba80"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-CA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-CA","@id":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/yfile.news.yorku.ca\/files\/2013\/04\/DougCrawford-225x300.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/yfile.news.yorku.ca\/files\/2013\/04\/DougCrawford-225x300.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/2015\/01\/york-u-researchers-discover-how-midbrain-map-continuously-updates-visuospatial-memory\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"York researchers discover how our brains help us keep an eye on multiple targets at once"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/","name":"Division of Advancement - Alumni and Friends","description":"Meet, stay connected and get involved","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-CA"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/#\/schema\/person\/f640ecd87de34c2e5005a13ea6a9ba80","name":"akolade","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-CA","@id":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c09bf1d6f2d768da403160a1c37ce1fd?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c09bf1d6f2d768da403160a1c37ce1fd?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"akolade"},"url":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/author\/akolade\/"}]}},"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":1,"label":"Uncategorized"}]},"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"akolade","author_link":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/author\/akolade\/"},"comment_info":"","category_info":[{"term_id":1,"name":"Uncategorized","slug":"uncategorized","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":558,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":1,"category_count":558,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Uncategorized","category_nicename":"uncategorized","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4577","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4577"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4577\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4577"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4577"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/alumniandfriends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4577"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}