Human scene-selective areas represent 3D configurations of surfaces (Lescroart et al., Neuron, 2019)
January 2, 2019
It has been argued that scene-selective areas in the human brain represent both the 3D structure of the local visual environment and low-level 2D features that provide cues for 3D structure. To evaluate these hypotheses we developed an encoding model of 3D scene structure and tested it against a model of low-level 2D features. We fit the models to fMRI data recorded while subjects viewed visual scenes. Scene-selective areas represent the distance to and orientation of large surfaces. The most important dimensions of 3D structure are distance and openness.